Want to save cash? Shun materialism
Eco-friendly approach also financially sound
NEW YORK — Give up worldly goods and help save the Earth.
Oh, and save lots of money.
As the economy worsens, one group of Americans is turning to an Earth-friendly way of life as a hardline strategy for saving. The Compact started a few years ago in San Francisco as a group of people who vowed to shun consumer culture for a year in the name of conservation. Now it has over 9,000 members and spinoff groups are sprouting up across the country.
It seems what’s good for the Earth is good for the wallet.
“You don’t just go out and needlessly shop as a hobby. It’s really kind of an eye opener,” said Julia Park Tracey, a mother of five in Alameda, Calif. who swears she isn’t a “crunchy granola hippie.”
Since joining in January, The Compact has turned a flood light on her family’s frivolous spending — scented lotions, flavored lattes, iPod accessories. Now they no longer dryclean their clothes and even make their own cat food.
“All that was money out the window. We could not keep going like that and make ends meet,” said Tracey, whose budget is being stretched thin by escalating food and gas prices.
What makes The Compact compelling for average Americans is that there are no hard-and-fast rules; you won’t be ostracized for buying a designer handbag or any other slips in consumerism. Members simply try to conserve the best they can. When necessary, they borrow, barter or buy second hand. Food and hygienic purchases are OK, but the idea is to cut back there too.
The goals sound a lot like those of a growing population of Americans squeezed by inflation.
On Wednesday, the Labor Department said consumer prices rose 1.1 percent in June, nearly the fastest pace in a generation.
The conservation movement has moved into the mainstream too, making the principles behind The Compact an easier sell for those looking to save.
“People are coming for all different reasons, with credit card debt or others who say ‘my kids are so materialistic and out of control,’ ” said John Perry, founder of The Compact.
In just the last year, more than 3,000 people have joined The Compact. That doesn’t include the two dozen local groups that have sprung up across the country.
Perry didn’t start The Compact to save money, but it’s one of the lifestyle’s intrinsic perks. He saves at least a couple of hundred dollars a month, which leaves more cash for his mortgage, charity and children’s savings accounts.
Cutting out dry-cleaning and Starbucks alone is saving Tracey’s family $250 a month. Biking and walking conserves not just oil, but piles of gas money.
Gone too are the mindless sprees where Tracey would blow $100 or more on cosmetics and snacks.
Since so much of consumerism is on making upgrades — faster gadgets, the newest sneakers — ending such purchases isn’t even all that painful, Perry said.
“The real surprise is that it’s so much easier than you would think,” he said. “If you hang on, it’s like dieting — the hunger goes away.”
