Green cities are the place to be, the place for me!

Some of the greenest cities (and countries) are years ahead of others when it comes to the citizens and the government working together in harmony to maintain a balanced urban ecosystem. It does seem difficult to do when taxing and regulation comes into play. But when it does work, the positive results to the environment are astonishing.

Some countries have strict environmental regulations and high taxes on products that pollute. This dissuades the citizens from overly using these products, but at the same time the tax can't be too high (and regulations too tough) as to completely halt the use of a product that can be good in some ways and that brings jobs and revenue to the economy. For example, placing a higher tax on fuel will encourage citizens to bike around town or use public transportation to save themselves some cash.

In San Francisco, California, nearly half of all the citizens either walk, bike or use public transit. Just recently in the news, Austin, Texas showed off graduation gowns made of recycled water bottles. They were actually more comfortable and breathable and looked just the same as the itchy polyester ones. Chicago, Illinois is known for it's "living roofs" - many businesses have plant life on the building rooftops to help absorb runoff water and help clean the air. It is said that Portland, Oregon is the greenest city in the U.S. with it's miles and miles of pathways suited for biking to just about anywhere.

While there are some notable green cities in the U.S., sadly, when it comes to worldwide ranking, our country falls way down on the list. Some of the countries that top the list are Iceland, Switzerland, Costa Rica and Sweden. That's right, we're #61! We're #61! (Sarcasm). Check out the full 2010 Environmental Performance Index, a report by Yale University. Data like that can make you think the grass IS greener, and the air IS cleaner on the other side.

Traditional Icelandic turf houses

Don't get me wrong, I love our beautiful country and I will keep faith, stay put and do my best to contribute my efforts to get us higher up on that list. We're only harming our precious land, air and consequently, our health otherwise.