Wormjava & Sustainability:

Wormjava is sustainable, socially, economically, and ecologically…but what the heck does this mean? Really! Sunnye Dreyfus, the founder and Chief Worm Wrangler of Wormjava LLC spent a good portion of her masters program wrestling with the definition of the word. After looking at several established definitions of the word, and surveying several individuals on what the word meant to them, Wormjava defined the word for itself and its operations and will constantly work to live by this definition:

“To live within the boundaries of what and how Nature provides…and to be fulfilled by this…”

Wormjava encourages you to wrestle with this word as well and see if you can find a definition that is personally meaningful for you. When you define it for yourself, then ask: How am I living sustainably? What can I do to live a more sustainable life? Why is this important to me?

There are several people, organizations, businesses, and publications that inspire and feed Wormjava. Here are a few:

People:
Dov Bock—Wormjava label artist
Cam McKenzie—grad camp friend and connector for Dov Bock
Becca Lambdin—Keeper of worms, Fairy godmother, Redeemer of Hugo, Pack n’ Cackle crew
Joshua Dreyfus—Filmmaker & Wormjava core support, focus group participant
Hugo—spirit guide, cheerleader, walking buddy, and dog
Katy Ham—friend, Wormjava core support
Todd Collins—brother, Wormjava core support
Mike & Susan Collins—Parents, Wormjava core support, part-time staff
Lindsay—The great Wisconsonian Web designer
Margaret Dreyfus—Inspiration, Wormjava core support, Pack n’ Cackle crew, website consultant
Sue Gregory—friend, small business mentor
Jo Ann Whitehead—Boston Natural Areas Network educator, focus group participant
Judy Pratt—Action Research mentor
John & Sue Porretto—Sustainability mentors, Wormjava core support
John Knott—Wormjava core support
Tara Lamoureux—fellow grad camp friend, focus group participant
Christy Edwards—friend, Pack n’ Cackle crew, focus group participant
Colleen Cusick— friend, Pack n’ Cackle crew, focus group participant
Sharon Tinianow—grad camp friend, Wormjava core support
Shawn Bennett—friend, focus group participant, idea guy
Cindy Curran—1st client, focus group participant
Anna—focus group participant
Tony Norton—focus group participant
Fawn & Jeremy O’Brien—friends, Green Festival support
Pandora Thomas—friend, “partner in sublime”
Coleen O’Connell—ETL mentor, encourager of unlearning
Cathy Augat—aunt, first gardener I ever met
Mark “Speedy” Gonzales—friend
Dennis Lasko—friend, Wormjava core support, 1st investor
The people of Cuba—I haven’t met any of you, but you still inspire me.

Organizations/Businesses & others that have made Wormjava possible:*
Eisenia fetida (red wigglers, 100,000 and growing, thanks for the poop)
Planet Earth (thanks for the water…and everything else)
City of Boston (thanks bringing the water to a faucet)
Plants (thanks for linking Wormjava)
Fruit flies (thanks for keeping it real)
Audubon Expedition Institute/Lesley University Ecological Teaching & Learning (thanks for the new ecological lens)
The Natural Step (thanks for giving me some guiding principles)
Boston Natural Areas Network (thanks for making be a master urban gardener)
Acme Worm Farm (thanks for the worms)
Green Business (thanks for the networking opportunities)
Spread Shirt (thanks for the swag)
Freund Container (thanks for the bottles)
Rising Tide Natural Foods (thanks for putting Wormjava on the shelf in Kittery, ME)
UPS (thanks for mailing Wormjava)
FedEx (thanks for mailing Wormjava)
Staples (thanks for the enlargements, labels, printer cartridges, etc.)
Tugboat Creative (thanks for the banner)
Sovereign Bank (thanks for giving me a central location for my money other than my sock drawer)
Print My Thing/Century Marketing (thanks for the labels)
Adirondack Beverages (thanks for the materials donation)
Green Festivals (thanks for the venue)
Apple, Inc. (thanks for the computer)
Hewlett Packard (thanks for the printer)
Comcast (thanks for the DSL)
Sprint (thanks for the phone)
Microsoft (thanks for Office)
Google (thanks for research and gmail)
VistaPrint (thanks for the business cards
Costa Rica Natural (thanks for the paper)

*I have tried to include everything that makes this business possible. Wormjava does business with these folks in some fashion and this list will change and become “greener” as finances and knowledge move forward. Any input that you have on any of these businesses, or green alternatives are encouraged.

Books:
To be of use: The 7 seeds of meaningful work, Dave Smith
Values-driven business, Ben Cohen & Mal Warwick
The Natural Step Story, Karl-Henrick Robert
Fostering Sustainable Behavior: An Introduction to Community-Based Social Marketing, Doug McKenzie-Mohr & William Smith
Developing Ecological Consciousness, Christopher Uhl
Eco-Economy, Lester Brown
The Ecology of Commerce, Paul Hawken
Walden and Civil Disobedience, Henry David Thoreau
Bootstrapping Your Business, Greg Gianforte