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# Baby steps lead to big gains
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/baby-steps-lead-to-big-gains-editor/
- Published: 2008-02-20T16:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-24T18:37:43.000Z
- Author: Guest Author
- Tags: Opinion, Santa Monica, #archive-import

*By Jennifer L. Giancola Giancola Brothers, Inc. Santa Monica*

I want to thank (Melody Hanatani) for including parts of my interview in her article (“Restaurants prepare for ban,” page 1, Jan. 31) for your paper. It is through avenues like the Santa Monica Daily Press that awareness of this vital issue is increased and it is the passion of people … who stir others to action. I am also passionate about our environment and feel compelled to write this in an effort to clarify some points brought out in the article and to add my voice to the progress.

I think the goal of the current activity in the field of environmental awareness must be achieving a sustainable existence. This goes well beyond what has been categorized by the catch phrase “going green.” To achieve true sustainable existence will require significant changes in the way we do things — from the way we live our lives, what criteria we use in establishing our goals, and how we choose our desires and wants. Unfortunately, focusing on becoming “green” misses this entirely — we can all be green and still deplete our resources very quickly. We need fundamental changes in our very existence if we are ever to truly achieve a sustainable existence.

These changes are, unfortunately, not of the kind people will adopt quickly. We have built up an infrastructure in our past that will not be readily abandoned. Small changes are things people can embrace both philosophically and economically. As an example, Giancola Brothers has just taken delivery of an electric forklift to replace our propane-powered model. Now, the reason we chose an electric model was that it reduced our energy use footprint, but the reason we purchased a new forklift was because our propane model was in need of replacement — the point being that businesses are not going to replace fully functioning expensive equipment with new energy-saving models for the purpose of reducing their energy use. These changes will take place over time, as old equipment needs replacement.

Giancola Bros., Inc. is in the process of becoming a certified green business through Sustainable Works. My involvement in this program (I am a Sustainable Works Crew Leader at Santa Monica College) indicates to me that the goal of quickly converting existing businesses to green businesses entails an unacceptable environmental cost. As new, more environmentally friendly technology is developed and manufacturing technologies become less environmentally harmful, future needs of businesses served through these technologies will be less environmentally taxing than if they were to all convert now using today’s more taxing technologies. I am convinced that, short of environmental collapse, a sustainable existence will rationally be achieved by small changes accumulating over time. Any other position seems historically and psychologically uninformed at best and irrational and illogical at worst.

This process must be fueled by education. One point I tried to focus on in the interview, which was not brought up in the article, is the importance of educating people about the simple changes that can be made now and the positive impact those changes can have. I think many people will be less reluctant to implement changes when they are made aware of just how easy they are to make and just how significant their impact can be.

Awareness of our impact on our environment is growing every day. Articles like this one are helpful in bringing these issues to the general public. Through reasonable methods promoted by public education and implemented over time, we can, as a community, achieve the goal of reducing our footprint on this planet and attaining sus-tainability.

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on February 20, 2008.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/022008.pdf?ref=smdp.com)