About

Hello. I’m Ms. Cocodar and I am Imperfectly Green.

I am a Discovery Project Manager by day, Mom and wife by all day.

I’ve always been a cynic, pessimist and basically a buzz kill, often bringing up topics of human rights, animal welfare and global warming at parties. I don’t think people really liked that…

But nothing has made me feel that sense of doom heavier than when I had my first child in early 2018. Not because I have a child (come on, I’m not a monster!) but because I feel terrible that the Earth is taking a turn for the worst during the prime of his life. I think every person wants the best for their children, but what I want in order to improve quality his quality of life goes well beyond my control. How can we be better, and make it less of a buzzkill to talk about and address issues of global climate change? Environmental change is very overwhelming and it can easily cripple people to the point of doing nothing about it, but I won’t let that happen to me and my family.

This blog is a public examination of my conscious choices toward a greener life as a working woman, mother, and consumer. I am also an artist, anthropologist, tech enthusiast, food lover, inventor (though I think it’s more tinkering), and triple-shift working parent, so you may get some posts about those topics as well. 

This blog is about my own adventure toward being greener, knowing it’s not perfect. We don’t live in a world where it’s particularly easy or affordable to be green, especially if you’ve grown up with a certain set of habits. To be truly green, I often feel as though we have to live like Tarzan, make loads of money, or be vegan starting now.  It also does not help that in an age of information overload; we easily just jump on the latest eco-trends and unquestioningly accept reassuring labels without truly understanding the consequences (good or bad). If we are serious about our individual environmental impact, we need to read beyond labels and headlines, and think about how we apply ethical standards to our daily choices.

Change isn’t quick and it is not realistic to expect that it will be. However, if we are all headed in that direction, we are better off than we were yesterday. I am here to be realistic about what has been tried and done given my own unique circumstances. 

I will be very honest about my experience as well. I won’t ever share ideas or product recommendations unless I absolutely swear by them. It may also be worth mentioning I am married to someone who works in the LPG industry (liquefied petroleum gas) and he is a great sounding board for my issues and learning about how the world of energy works. Believe it or not, he’s an environmentalist too, but we have our fair share of debates about how we can live in a world where oil/gas interests of the world and green can co-exist. This is why you won’t read about me going to extremes. Because I know realistically, not everyone is going to (or is able to) give up their plastics, start growing their own food, or stop eating meat. Going green is not easy, but the burden isn’t entirely on the individual either. It’s about doing what you can, and what is most reasonable for you, while simultaneously being an advocate and applying pressure on larger institutions for systemic change and increase demand for sustainability.

Hope you enjoy and please reach out if you have any questions!