Editor's note: Duke writing professor Rebecca Vidra finished her yearlong Going Green series in Wednesday's paper. We asked her to share some of the reaction she received from readers during the series.


When I discuss writing publicly with my first-year students at Duke, I try to impress upon them that their aim should be to generate responses from readers. Yet, when I began writing the "Going Green" column in The Chapel Hill News last summer, I had not quite anticipated the volume or tenor of responses I would receive.

By far the most controversial column involved the cloth vs. disposable diaper dilemma. When it ran in October, I received several nasty e-mails from proponents of cloth diapers, challenging my assertion that there is no real difference in environmental cost between the two types. Some questioned my motives in writing the column:

"Honestly, justifying your own laziness is ridiculous -- you don't want to use cloth diapers, fine, don't. But don't preach about how what you're doing is no worse than people who use cloth diapers. That is patently untrue!"

While a cloth diaper blogger found a disconnect in my approach:

"And for Vidra, who has vowed not to purchase anything NEW? It seems cloth diapers would keep her aligned with that goal, whereas 'environmentally less harsh' disposable, throwaway diapers do not."

I cannot figure out why some people so vehemently oppose the perspective I offered in my column. I tried to be as honest about the diaper dilemma as I could be without making outrageous claims.

One of the strangest responses I received referenced one of the first columns I wrote which centered on our plight of losing my younger daughter's special toy on vacation. I ended up buying a new one (gasp!). Those of you who have children with attachments to a special lovey probably could understand why I chose to break my pledge for this occasion. However, not everyone agreed that I was teaching her (she was 15 months old at the time) the right lesson:

"You can justify buying a new toy for your child because she is suffering, but isn't that what all those people who do not want to give up their SUVs are doing? Acting like babies? So what are you teaching your daughter?"

My response to this: Um, what does a 15-month-old need to know about suffering?

While these responses were rather extreme, I received many, many more that expressed solidarity with my "going green" pledge. I was asked thoughtful questions about whether my actions were motivated by spirituality and whether I thought that buying nothing would work on a large scale.

Readers wrote with ideas for finding good free and used things around town. Some asked for help, like this local mom responding to my column about passing around used kids' clothes:

"Do you know if there is any chain of pass-me-downs running in Chapel Hill area? If there is any chance, I would love to join them. However, I live in an aged neighborhood and there aren't many kids around. If you could give me some suggestion and information, it will be highly appreciated."

I also fielded questions about greening birthday parties, how to avoid accepting "new" gifts, and whether or not I liked my Prius. When I asked the somewhat rhetorical question "Does anyone have a watch I could borrow?" at the end of one of my columns, three total strangers replied that I could borrow theirs! Many people have written to me to tell of their own pledge to buy nothing new and if we all organized, we just might be the largest chapter of people doing so outside of San Francisco.

I never intended to portray myself as a green goddess but instead tried to look into the real challenges of going green. I appreciate that my columns have generated good discussion, even with those who disagree with me or think that I could do much better. These responses continue to influence my thinking and strengthen my commitment to "go green."