How I Became Green

It's difficult to love an escape to the outdoors without learning to love the natural beauty and necessity of the environment surrounding you. This, combined with my childhood, my recreational desires, and exposure to a growing green community, I myself became Green. I would like to use this blog as an opportunity to discuss (non-political) green issues and initiatives, Team Green adventures and how they impact me as an individual, and other health and environmental tid-bits that I learn throughout my career.

Nothing that I post is a reflection of the overall opinion of Tuned In Broadcasting, Lightning 100, Team Green, Music Business Radio or any other program within the company that I work for.

It has been an interesting 2 years here in Nashville! My name is Keeley and I am the Programs and Event Coordinator for Lightning 100's Team Green and Music Business Radio. I was raised as a Navy brat traveling from California to Washington DC to Manila, Philippines. When my dad retired in 1992 we moved to Michigan (where my mom's family was) and there we stayed until I graduated college. I never imagined settling in Nashville, or anywhere between Indiana and Florida, really; and I never imagined I would change the course of my life to stay here. Through high school and college I thought I was destined to be an attorney, but reality struck and I discovered how to make an old passion a new career.

I'm pretty sure there are more trees than people in all cities of Michigan except for maybe Detroit and Flint! As a result, I passed most of my childhood hiking through the woods in my backyard and going on Boy Scout trips with my mom and brother. When I decided to move to Nashville to "take a year off from school," I had no idea what sort of beauty existed in the landscape of Tennessee. My first hiking experience was at Fall Creek Falls. A new friend in Nashville and I drove down there for a weekend and hiked to every waterfall we could find within 2 miles of the main trails. My father was raised in Nashville, and we spent many many summers here, yet I had no idea a single waterfall existed in Tennessee! It blew me away!

From there I spent just over a year trying to find friends to hike, backpack, or camp with me, but to some (and I'll never understand why) the outdoors do not appeal to them. Finally in February of 2008 I discovered the Nashville Hiking Meetup and I was on the trails every weekend, sometimes several different trails a week. It was almost an obsession, but what I loved even more than being outdoors was having the opportunity to organize my own events and experience that hike or backpacking trip knowing how much effort and skill it took to get everyone there and back safely. This is how I met Laurel, Lightning 100's Team Green Director. She was looking for an assistant and I had the passion and ability she needed to move forward with Team Green.

While I was in the process of interviewing for the Event Coordinator position, I tried everything I could to become more appealing as a candidate. I took a Wilderness First Aid and CPR course and learned several ways to help sustain life using limited resources. Isn't that basically the purpose of the Green movement? It opened my eyes to several ways in which our environment can be used to help us in emergency. I also decided to attend Green Drinks meetings in order to "conveniently run into Laurel" and meet other people in the Green Business community. I didn't really understand until then just how far the Green movement had taken us towards sustainable business practices. It's amazing, really, how many people don't consider the benefits (and cost effectiveness) of becoming a green business. Around this time, the Discovery Channel launched it's satellite channel Planet Green. It has all of the same great shows that you'll find on HGTV, TLC, Discovery Channel, the Food Network, and more, only with a green twist. Each of these contributed to my eco-transformation.

So, here I am, doing what I love and loving what I do! I hope that this blog offends no one, inspires many, and entertains all.