Sustainability Stories :: Part One
As part of our 10 year anniversary celebration, we’re sharing our Sustainability Stories, where each of our team members explains a little more about their passion for sustainability. Stay tuned for new posts every week this month from our team.
Chloe
When + why did you decide to start living more sustainably?
My passion for sustainability definitely grew over time. I don’t think I was an environmentalist necessarily growing up, but my siblings and I were raised knowing that any waste (whether it was food, clothes, etc.) was bad. The mentality of saving and making the most of what we had has definitely informed my mentality toward environmentalism today.
I took a few Environmental Studies and International Studies courses in college, so I “knew” the facts about global warming and climate change, and I already practiced the mainstream sustainability changes (like using a reusable water bottle). But I was still pretty indifferent. I would think, “How can these little changes even make a difference when there are millions of other people who aren’t thinking about this?” At the end of my sophomore year of college, I started learning about how sustainability intertwines with justice, politics, and identity, and that’s when I started to understand the scale and importance of being an environmentalist, and being an activist in general. Yes, it’s important to bring a reusable water bottle with you, but it’s also important to recognize the people most affected by extreme weather events caused by climate change, and how we need to be held responsible for our carbon emissions.
What would you like people to know about sustainable living?
Sustainable living, in its simplest form, looks like maximizing the most out of your belongings: your food, your money, your clothes, your tupperware, your technology, etc. You may already have the tools you need to live low-waste (think of all the free reusable water bottles and totes you might have), but making the transition is hard given the ease of convenience and our culture of consumption. It's hard when we're constantly bombarded by advertisements asking us to buy more and buy new. What has helped me is using the “Hide Ad” feature on Facebook or Instagram, and unfollowing a lot of “influencers” and brands. By removing these sponsored photos from my feed, I no longer see products that I can easily shop for or be tempted to buy.
Jason
When + why did you decide to start living more sustainably?
I think I decided to start living more sustainably once I started traveling. I've always been an outdoorsy person, so had an appreciation for local sustainability and Leave No Trace ethics and standards, but once I saw the worldly impact of bad environmental policy or disregard for mama earth, it hit home even more.
What would you like people to know about sustainable living?
Don't let Perfection be the enemy of progress. A lot of people seem to feel so overwhelmed with the "what good is this doing in the big picture" mentality, or that it's not worth the effort. But there are such simple ways to make daily changes that really do multiply en masse. Getting started with being more environmentally sustainable leads to this fun "wait, now how can I do this even better tomorrow" game in your brain bucket that just breeds even better habits!