It can be tough to balance holiday celebrations with a sustainable lifestyle, but there are ways to make greener choices without becoming a grinch.

As new technologies continue to change consumption patterns, land use and social norms, we have an opportunity to ensure these changes result in an exciting sustainable lifestyle in a new type of sustainable city.

While the reduction and eventual elimination of fossil fuel use is a key element of such an economy, so too are the public policies and public-private partnerships needed to collect and reuse discarded products and packages. Bag bills and bottle bills can help develop these capacities. In most of the United States, these ideas have not taken hold and are generally seen as unneeded government intervention in the free market.

Countries vary dramatically in their records of environmental responsibility. Some nations such as Switzerland and Norway are well known for their willingness to sacrifice for the future good, while countries such Iraq and South Africa lag far behind. There are certainly socio-economic reasons for these stark differences, but is it also possible that human psychology shapes our perception of environmental responsibility?