Can you teach an old dog new tricks?

Thoughts from slightly above sea level...

After leaving the Blue Sky Trail in the Whitefish mountain range west of Polebridge, MT we stopped at the Clarence Creek US Forest Service campground for the night where we had the pleasure of meeting and talking with Ben Carlson, his wife Sharon and her sister Mary, native Montanans one and all. They were very hospitable (sharing food and fire), not much older than we are, and ready for a give and take on everything from our (continued?) coexistence with grizzly bears to global climate change to the keys to a good pancake (Krusteaz batter on a hot griddle with fresh Montana huckleberries). But an idea that kept creeping in was the ability (or willingness) of older generations to change their behavior regarding the environment and sustainability.

It was readily acknowledged that most of us know what we "should" be doing to protect the planet we live on (e.g. reusing grocery bags, unplugging electronics that aren't in use, and not throwing plastic forks into the fire) but moving from thought to action is another issue - especially if we have been doing it differently for years. Kids are blank slates - they can be taught "good" behaviors relatively easily because they haven't yet learned "bad" ones. But how do we overcome years of practice? Should we even try or should we simply write off anyone beyond college (high school?) and rely on change occurring on a generational time scale?

In Eureka, MT we had dinner with 83-year-old Thais Streeter and her grandson, Abe Quilling. They both agreed that everyone CAN change, but many people in our society WON'T change unless they see a personal economic benefit. I would argue that the economic benefit is there if you take the long view - and who better to appreciate that perspective than older individuals? Thais did point out that she grew up during the depression and learned at an early age to be conservation-minded. (She is also one of the only octogenarians who uses a computer regularly and will be reading this post online.) So why is it that some older individuals recognize when change is needed and act on it while others find it difficult to adjust their behavior?

Jake looking both ways before using the toilet at Clarence Creek

Clearly change is possible. After the oil shocks of the 1970's nearly everyone stopped taking plentiful gasoline for granted – the same thing happened after the recent spike in fuel prices. And it wasn't that long ago that only sandal-wearing granola eaters took canvas bags into the grocery store – now most people do it happily and feel like they are doing their bit to create a more sustainable society. But what about taking reusable dishes to the campground, or unplugging appliances that aren't in use but still suck electricity, or not buying bottled water?

If we can't do these small things as a society, how will we ever consider the environmental positions of political candidates when we enter the voting booth?