Wateca Teaches Ownership of Environmental Stewardship

By Wallis Gaillard

HAMPTON — Owned and operated by partners Nathan Johnson and Ernest Proper, Visions Kitchens and Designs specializes in full-on kitchen design from cabinets to counters, closets, and much more. Visions Kitchens offers a variety of products all from companies that practice sustainable harvesting including bamboo and sustainable woods. Similarly, Visions makes use of reclaimed or recycled cabinet and countertop materials as well.

The sustainable efforts and influences of Johnson and Proper are not contained by the business world. Both are active members of the Native American Community, specifically the Lakota. Johnson practices the traditional craft of parflechè, which are cases (like the ones used to hold the eating utensils), envelopes and clothing made of rawhide decorated with paints. “I was taught this craft to help carry on these traditions of our people,” Johnson says. “I currently make and sell parflechè
items for people all over the United States and Canada.”

In traditional Native American custom, people took great responsibility in providing for their own needs. Eating utensils were an important part of these customs, and people carried their utensils to all gatherings or even casual visits. This ties into the traditional way of thinking for Native American people and how they see the universe, trying to look seven generations ahead whenever making a choice.

In contemporary times, “WaTEcha” is a word used to describe when one attends a gathering and brings food home. Today, rather than taking extra care to bring Wateca dishes, people consistently depend on the Styrofoam plates, bowls, cups, and plastic-ware provided at gatherings. Often, these disposable plates and bowls become litter. Not only that but, “Styrofoam specifically takes so long to decompose and leaches many chemicals into the Earth,” Johnson says.

In order to combat these prevalent environmental consequences of using Styrofoam and other disposable dinnerware, the Lakota communities and many other native communities have created the Wateca Challenge.

The Wateca Challenge is a means through which to return to the traditional practice of bringing utensils and other dinnerware to gatherings. Johnson says, “I would love to see family's own Wateca kits. They don't have to be wooden bowls and parflechè cases. They can be reusable cups in a cooler. It can be so many great things. I'd love to see what people come up with.”

This movement does not have to be contained within the Native American community; it is a movement that encompasses ideals of sustainability and keeping the Earth clean.

The Blue Ocean Society for Marine Conservation is one local organization that is working to promote a greater awareness of marine life and environmental stewardship. Johnson and Visions Kitchens “fully supports the Blue Ocean Society in their endeavors,” Johnson says.

Through many avenues such as the Keep Our Beaches Clean Campaign, pollution research, school and group programs, and coordinating beach cleanups, Blue Ocean lives out its mission. “For me a beach clean up isn’t just a fun thing to do, it’s a way I can connect with and keep our Earth and Oceans clean,” Johnson says.

Following similar ideals, the Green Alliance of Portsmouth, especially its Green Families Club, works to promote sustainable alternatives for families. In the same way that Johnson expresses a desire to teach his children the importance of caring for Mother Earth, the Green Families Club seeks to encourage families with children of all ages to foster stewardship and responsibility of actions from a young age through making environmentally friendly choices.

Next time you attend a gathering, don’t forget your Wateca dishes! Spread the word of this initiative. In Johnson’s words, “Help others see that their choices don’t just affect themselves. It’s time we really take ownership of what we have done as a whole and try to fix it. Every little step helps, even just picking up a single piece of trash off the ground. After all, an ocean starts with a single drop of water.”

Visions Kitchens and Designs is a business partner of the Green Alliance, a union of local sustainable businesses promoting environmentally sound business practices and a green co-op offering discounted green products and services to its
members.

GA Green Card holders save 10 percent on all products and services, and Visions will give a portion of the proceeds to The Blue Ocean Society! To learn more about Visions, visit www.visionskitchens.com.

The Blue Ocean Society is a non-profit organization dedicated to the protection of marine mammals through education, research, and conservation. To learn more about the Blue Ocean Society, visit www.blueoceansociety.org/

For more information about the Green Alliance, visit www.greenalliance.biz.