Sustainability was the buzz word for women/mommy bloggers and exhibitors at BlogHer 2010 conference.  The term was repeated throughout the workshops and exhibition halls. Everyone, every vendor, every exhibitor, every blogger tried to out “sustain” one another.

One exhibit in particular seemed to define the term in 3-dimensional, living color. It was a nearly 300-square-foot exhibit featuring wild flowers, renewable carpeting, a park bench, gazebo and, of course, reusable shopping bags.  Cool, soothing blues and greens with a hint of yellow dominated the exhibit.

A woman with a warm southern accent approached and softly spoke about how everything in the exhibit had been recycled.  She managed to use the word “sustainability” nearly a dozen times in three-minute conversation.  Only after she handed me what looked like a book of matches did I realize the exhibit was Walmart’s.  The matchbook turned out to be tear-out matchsticks of wildflowers suitable for planting at home.

I asked why she didn’t talk about “affordability,” considering the recent survey of Walmart moms reveals they are very worried about the economy so much so that it will affect how they vote in November. She persisted, that while Walmart is affordable, they are focused on being “sustainable” too.

Right now “sustainability” usually refers to the environment. According to Wikipedia, not a definitive cite by any means but one that works for this situation, “sustainability” means:

…the capacity to endure…For humans it is the potential for long-term maintenance of well being, which in turn depends on the well being of the natural world and the responsible use of natural resources.

In short, be good stewards of the earth. Do it for the children.

This got me thinking about how to incorporate sustainability into what we do here at MAD.  I propose a new term: economic sustainability.

What does economic sustainability mean? It means we should be good stewards of our financial resources.

• Don’t spend more than what we have.
• Don’t put our children into debt.
• Don’t compromise parents’ ability to care for their children financially.

Good financial stewards embrace a national Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR) along with a balanced budget.

Only irresponsible parents would destroy their children’s future opportunities by supporting elected officials who advance unsustainable economic policies. Since MAD represents responsible parents, we promote economic sustainability. We do it for the children.