The best time and place to be a citizen of a community or nation is when there is peace and prosperity. But the rights and duties don’t stop then. Here are some civic-minded actions that a good citizen will do when there are no greater issues at hand.

Planting a tree

A tree provides shade, sometimes fruit, and perches for songbirds. Trees exchange CO2 and refresh the atmosphere. Trees are nice. But trees take 30 or more years to grow, and a tree planted today won’t do much good for many years to come. Planting a tree is a generous and sacrificial gift to the future.

Maintaining or beautifying your property

Drive around in the residential parts of any city, and you can tell immediately which neighborhoods are really homes and which are just stop-overs on the way to somewhere else. The efforts people make in keeping their own home nice is a benefit to their neighbors and their community as well.

Cleaning up a vacant lot or a stretch of highway

Actions like these are gifts to the community. Everyone who passes by appreciates the effort. Volunteerism has limits. It is not reasonable to expect citizens to build bridges or to operate hospitals in their spare time. But there is plenty of work that volunteers can do as well, and much more cheaply, than paid public employees.

Recycling

In many communities, recycling is mandatory and easy. But for those very reasons, recycling can have a bigger impact than anything one person or a small group of enthusiasts can do voluntarily. Recycling is important and positive when people do it enthusiastically and cheerfully. During World War II, the government asked people to donate unnecessary pots and pans and anything metal so there could be more airplanes. The planners behind this appeal knew that airplanes aren’t made from the cheap metal pots and pans are made of; but they also knew that citizens would feel pride and ownership in every plane they saw overhead. Recycling demands just enough effort that people feel good, but not so much that they won’t do it.

Donating money to a cause you like

The ability to donate money to a cause you like – and subtract that donation from your tax bill – is one of the greatest privileges available to citizens. If you don’t like something the government spends money on, you can donate to something else, and then send the government that much less. Changes to the federal tax laws in 2017 changed the extent to which taxpayers can direct their tax dollars to causes they like. But the idea is sound. Giving to charities helps those efforts to thrive.

Paying taxes

Paying taxes is rated lower than donating to a cause because paying taxes is mandatory, and because tax money gets used for many different purposes, while your donations get used only for the cause you choose.

Starting a business, hiring workers, selling a product or service

This act of pure capitalism is (potentially) a mighty act of good citizenship. There’s hardly anything more virtuous and more valuable to the community. Business owners who pay their workers fairly and give their customers a good product or service at a fair price are excellent citizens.

Think:

• Are any important rights and duties of a citizen missing here?

• Do you disagree with any of these rights and duties?

• Why do you suppose the common lists of rights and duties are so incomplete?