19 - Changing the world one household at a time: Portland's 30-day program to lose 5,000 pounds

Summary

On playing fields and battlegrounds, challenges that would be daunting and impossible if faced alone are suddenly possible when tackled in a close-knit group. The people haven't changed, but the way in which the task appears to them has.

Malcolm Gladwell (2002: 264)

In late 2001, denizens of several residential areas in Portland, Oregon, began knocking on doors, inviting their neighbors to take part in a campaign to reduce household carbon dioxide emissions. In doorway conversations, these volunteer “team initiators” emphasized the power of their low-carbon campaign not only to improve environmental quality, but also to promote a sense of community and enhance neighborhood life. Residents who showed interest were invited to attend a block-based information meeting in a neighbor's home.

Altogether, 130 Portland householders opened their doors to peer recruiters, and an additional 22 received invitations to introductory meetings via speakers and literature tables at large public events such as a local conference on sustainability. Seventy-two of those approached were sufficiently intrigued to attend meetings, and all but one of the 72 decided to join carbon-reducing teams. Ultimately, nine block-based teams representing 54 households came together in a pilot program to help each other diminish their impact on global climate.

In short, the CO₂-reducing campaign garnered a recruitment rate of about 43 percent: almost twice that of a similar environmental-action campaign that preceded it in Portland. By community organizing standards, this is remarkable recruitment rate, according to David Gershon, whose Empowerment Institute provided the blueprint and implemented the program.