What’s this and who’s writing it?
I’m Alison Wiley, here in Portland, Oregon, living a full and joyful life without buying much stuff, especially fossil fuels. Diamond-Cut Life is about chiseling our consumption down to the core of happiness. I try to tread with a carbon footprint low enough to be truly sustainable in the face of global warming — and doing it with so much happiness, vitality and sociability that others want to do it, too.
Sometimes I write about how we can save money at the same time we’re saving resources, sometimes on the many places I and others find joy, and other times I offer my take on current events. I welcome comments, and publish everything that’s not abusive and is truly a comment.
I think joy comes from honest work, relationships, connection to nature, sharing resources and using our bodies instead of machines whenever possible. Given that global warming is the problem of our time, my focus is on living in solutions rather than fear or denial.
I love my full-time day job: promoting transportation options (carpooling, bicycling, walking, public transit). I’ve also led projects for the Oregon League of Conservation Voters and Opal Creek Ancient Forest Center, and my opinion pieces have been published in The Philadelphia Inquirer, International Herald Tribune, San Francisco Chronicle and Sacramento Bee.
I have a B.S. in Sociology from Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina and an M.S. in Counseling Psychology from California State University, Fullerton. My wonderful husband Thor Hinckley leads the nation’s leading renewable energy program at Portland General Electric.
Hi Alison,
My wife Kim and I also thoroughly enjoyed the Crater Lake Trip. I do hope that you can pass along your contact information – it would be great to stay in touch about the Bicycle related transportation we discussed. Take good care, and say hello to Thor for us.
Brian and Kim Davies
Hi Alison,
Here’s a juicy little graphic that was posted on our bulletin board
http://learningfundamentals.com.au/resources/combating-global-warming-mind-map/
- Dave
Alison,
Hi, I came across you blog while searching Grist. I am a journalism student at Ohio University beginning a project to study the advantages and disadvantages of online environmental reporting. Would you have time or be interested by helping with an interview?
Thanks, Joe Lowe
The new site looks great! Nice job.
alison
i used to live in corvallis and eugene, time when Mt St Helens blew. graduate work at OSU. Now in Taiwan, Japan, Alaska. From Boston 1949.
did i ever tell you about polar cities? it’s my take on the glo war future, but with a positive happy ending maybe in 3500……but yes, we are in big trouble now, and we need NEW thinking and I love your idea of getting rid of all our so called entitlements to travel, consumption etc….we don;’t need half those things, most of them we dont need…..sigh
danny, homeless, retirement fund less, own nothing, no car, coasting to the finish line…. and working on polar cities, aka LOVELOCK RETREATS ideas…
northwardho.blogspot.com
what do you think of polar cities idea? just to get people THINKING!
Dear Alison,
Thanks for standing up for sustainability and the environment. Keep up the good work! I know that traffic is really important to any media property and I am contacting you to help you in this regard. I believe our sites have a common goal, that is, to promote and educate people on environmentalism and sustainability. We at PosiPeople believe the content on your blog would be interesting and useful to our users, and in return, you may find topics which are of interest to you. Therefore, we urge you to visit our site and see for yourself what PosiPeople is all about. All you have to do is register for a free account, submit your posts to our newly launched forum, and watch traffic to your blog grow.
In case you’re wondering, PosiPeople is a community-driven forum that highlights any web content that makes or is about positive impact on society and the environment. PosiPeople allows anyone to submit, vote, and comment on any content on the web that is about positive impact on society and the environment. Some examples of the content that PosiPeople highlights is organic food, renewable energy, recycling, hybrid/electric cars, climate change, and green issues. Anyone can register for a free PosiPeople account.
PosiPeople works as follows:
1. Any member of the community submits a link to content that is about positive social or environmental impact.
2. The community then votes for the content they like best.
3. Content that receives the most votes in a certain period of time is published to the main page of the site.
Additional PosiPeople features allow users to connect with other users by interacting with them through comments, viewing their profile page, sending them a message, or adding them as a friend (a.k.a. a PosiPal).
We would appreciate if you take a peek at our site at http://www.posipeople.com, and review it in a blog entry. You can also visit the official PosiPeople blog at http://blog.posipeople.com. as well as read a press release about our recent public launch of PosiPeople.
Thank you for your time, and we look forward to seeing you join us!
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Danwen Chen
Marketing Associate
PosiMedia Corporation
web: http://www.PosiPeople.com
email: danwen@PosiPeople.com
Please contact me at the above email so we can discuss propelling your cause to the next level.
Thank you
Melissa
melissa@thethirstymoose.com
http://www.thethirstymoose.com
Hi Allison,
Great site, I got to it via GetRichSlowly, have a look at my new site (http://www.scordo.com/blog/blog) and let me know what you think! I focus on frugal living, how to, and leading a practical life!
Cheers,
Vince Scordo
Hi, Allison,
You played trumpet as I recall.
I, alas, was a lowly clarinet player who was not really interested in music but electronics. Class of ‘77.
Send me an Email sometime. I am alive and well in Cave Creek, Arizona.
Jeff
Awesome website. And I see you made the Reddit front page. Keep up the great work.
You’re correct in noting that Adams is getting a raw deal. It appears he is being railroaded. I thought Portland might be above that sort of thing. =(
From a fellow Portlander!
Hello Alilson Wiley,
Your comment about gas price is very interesting. I would like to know the exact reference you made about David Kavanaugh that «VMT (vehicle miles traveled) has five times more to do with whether people are fully employed, than it does with the price of gas».
Thank you very lmuch.
Meric beaucoup.
Robert, from Montréal, Québec.
Hi Robert,
Here is where it was reported in the Portland Tribune: http://www.portlandtribune.com/news/story.php?story_id=121745437044578500
Hi Alison – Cathy sent me the link to your website, so I thought I’d drop you a note. After nearly a year of being unemployed, I’m now in my second week at my new “dream job” working as a planning coordinator for the Oregon Zoo. Not only do I get to bike to work, but I get to work with an organization that does environmental education and is concerned with helping to preserve endangered species. Briefly, to begin with I am involved with the building of the new Animal Hospital with (hopefully) an as yet undetermined LEED certification and helping the Zoo to establish a new plan district using environmentally sustainable standards. I hope to do this in such a way that this “Eco District” can be a transferable model for others trying to incorporate the same principles in any future development. That’s enough for now – it would be good to spend some time really catching up with one another.
Cheers, Doug S.
Hi Alison, your site looks great! You were my best reader at frankwork, my discontinued blog, but I wanted to let you know about my latest project — The Solar Job Guide (www.solarjobguide.com) . . . send me your email and I’ll send you a link for a free copy. (And of course would love a plug if you deem it worthwhile!) I hope you’re well and appreciate your thoughtful and humanistic posts!
Hi alison,
Your website came up as you had moved from Desert to forest. I would like to change deserts to forests:
While we should of course live with a small footprint, as I try to do we should also reach deep inside and change the World as you have done already with your carpooling etc.
http://saharaforest.ning.com/
I am currently gathering people together to embark on the project. Each increase in awareness will change how people think. The Sahara is about the size of the US and growing each Day.
I invite you to join Today, and everyone who reads this, just make the effort and join the project. The more input there is the quicker it will succeed. Don’t underestimate yourself.
Hello dear heart,
I have some book reviews for you– email me & I’ll run the titles by you & see what you think. I miss you!
Great blog. I really appreciate the tone you take in your writing. I’m a conservative who can’t stand the fact that responsible and sustainable living has become a Democrat vs. Republican issue.
I like to learn about the issues you address, but I’m put off by the smug and condescending tone in so many blogs and news sites (GRIST! – sorry, I see you read them). Anyway, I plan to check back here periodically.
This sort of writing and perspective is what our country needs to bridge the political divides that environmental issues often create.
Keep it up!
Hello Alison! I want to invite you to an event Nissan is hosting in Portland on Thursday, please email me.
MM,
I appreciate your comment. In fact, I devoted a post to it here: http://www.diamondcutlife.org/a-conservative-reader-speaks-up/
Please keep visiting and commenting; I value your thoughts. While I am liberal on some political issues, my core message is definitely nonpartisan, and thank you for your encouragement, i.e. that I am helping to bridge the divide.
Alex, I just emailed you. I noticed that Nissan EV recently started following me on Twitter. Thanks in advance for your invitation.
Hey Alison! I just wanted to say that I was searching for some good healthy dinner recipes and I stumbled upon your website. I am very excited about it, and it has inspired me already to make a greater effort to be more conscious of both my own well-being and the condition of this world we share. I am eager to learn more from you! Thanks so much.
Hello Megan,
I’m happy you’ve landed at Diamond-Cut Life and that you feel inspired by it. Please keep commenting; I love it when other people have things to say besides me. Big hug!
Hi,
I wondered if you would be interested in exchanging links with The Green Providers Directory.
We are a not-for-profit, green directory founded on ethical principles, providing links to renewable energy suppliers, organic health and beauty products, fair trade clothing, gifts and household goods and services. We also provide news and updates on the environment, recycling, energy efficiency and related topics.
We are listed in The Guardian and Channel 4’s environmental sections and on green.tv, a United Nations Environmental Programme, and we are members of Ethical Junction.
Please let me know if this would be of interest.
Kind regards,
Dr Gary Robertshaw
The Green Providers Directory
http://www.search-for-me.co.uk
Follow us on Twitter http://twitter.com/greenproviders
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Green-Providers-Directory/140642334915
Hi Alison,
My name is Will and I’m in Portland running Growandmake.com. Wanted to reach out and see if there are any ways we could collaborate?
Great blog.
Hi Will,
I’m open. Would you like to write a guest post?
Thanks for stopping by.