I’ve been in Galway, Ireland, for five weeks now, and one of the things that has stood out the most is how green Ireland is. I’ve always heard Ireland referred to as “The Emerald Isle,” and everyone who has ever gone there mades the comment that Ireland has shades of green that you don’t see anywhere else. While it’s true that Ireland is absurdly green even in the winter, that’s not the type of green I’m talking about.

I’m talking about green, as in the environmental movement.

Although it’s a small country about the size of Missouri, Ireland has taken noticeable steps in going green. While in the United States, recycling is encouraged (but by and large lacking in follow-through), here recycling is commonplace. I watch my Irish roommates diligently separate recyclables from garbage and can’t help but wonder why Americans find that such a difficult task.

Most Americans would admit that we live in a throwaway society, in which we use stuff once, get rid of it and just take it for granted. We expect everything to be at our disposal and feel shocked and inconvenienced when it isn’t.

One of the things I had to quickly adjust to when I got here was the fact that most stores, especially grocery stores, do not provide you with bags. They have plastic and paper bags, but you have to pay for them. Thus, most people buy large bags that can be used over and over and bring those with them every time they go to the store.

Imagine if that happened in the United States: Instead of bagging groceries with bags supplied by the store, people would have to bring their own reusable bag and pack up their groceries on their own. I don’t think we’d be able to handle it-not without vast numbers of disgruntled shoppers.

Unlike most of the United States, Ireland utilizes a very effective public transit system that results in a reduced need for cars. Although many people drive, trucks and SUVs are a rare sight.

Instead, the roads are rife with small, fuel-efficient cars. This is partially due to the Irish people, as a whole, being rather environmentally conscious, but also because of the government’s encouraging that mindset.

When someone purchases a vehicle, he or she is taxed annually according to the amount of carbon dioxide produced by that vehicle. Therefore, it is both financially and environmentally beneficial for Irish people to buy smaller, more fuel-efficient cars.

While I really admire Ireland for the efforts they’ve taken to help the environment, including and even beyond those that I’ve mentioned, it also makes me a bit frustrated with the United States.

Much of the world looks to the United States as an example. Yet, as a whole, we don’t do nearly as much as we could. We seem to have become set in this complacency where, although we’re aware of the problems we cause for the environment, we just expect somebody else to do something about it.

There’s a lack of willingness to shake ourselves out of our usual habits and make changes that, while small, actually can make a difference.

Carly Doenges is a junior in the College of Arts and Sciences, studying abroad in Galway, Ireland.