Taking the 'N' Out of NIMBY

The term NIMBY, an acronym for Not In My Back Yard was coined about 25 years ago to refer to groups of people or communities who didn't want things like airports or landfills 'in their back yard'. It occurred to me over the weekend that perhaps we need to collectively start a new term - IMBY - In My Back Yard.

Two 'by chance' conversations I had this weekend led me to think that perhaps there is a place in the world for IMBY.My street was re-paved last week, not with regular pavement, but with chip seal, or crushed rock. Chip seal consists of a thin layer of petroleum based tar to which crushed rocks adhere (over time). The street surface is not exactly conducive to skateboarding, but, as my good neighbour pointed out - our street uses much less oil based products this way vs. being paved with regular asphalt. Good point - for that alone, I am willing to stay off my skateboard.

Another chance conversation happened with the gentleman who builds the homes in our community - Fred Herkert of Starlite Homes. Fred builds high quality homes, and has recently decided to build R2000 +++ homes from now on - essentially going beyond this energy efficient standard - good on him! He has even built a home on spec with a solar heated hot water system. We will be featuring this home soon on www.greennexxus.com.

Two chance conversations - two great examples of IMBY - things I want in my back yard.