A little of what I’ve learnt on my sustainability journey

I’ll often have a moment during the day where I suddenly become filled with the feeling ofnot doing enough. Not doing enough to save the planet, not doing enough to protect the animals, not doing enough to make sure that we don’t destroy the natural world we live in. I only made it 15 minutes into David Attenborough’s Our Planet before turning it off to cry instead. 

The pressure I feel to revolutionise the way I live and eradicate any footprint I might be leaving on the earth is confusing. I feel excited to learn about more sustainable ways of living and become aware of the effects of my actions. However, I also feel overwhelmed with uncertainty about where to begin and what to do, and conflicted about how much guilt should really be placed on my head as a little individual in a huge society. As an individual, though, there is so much that I consume and use, and so much resulting waste. There seems to be such a volume of things that need replacing or ways of living that need fixing, and presumably a great expense in making these changes. In the wider picture, does my impact really matter that much at all? If I restructured my whole life, would it even make a dent? 

I hope that by sharing some of my conflicts and worries, that they will resonate with people, and inspire rather than dishearten. It is at times isolating to place so much pressure upon yourself. I came to a point of stagnation because of it – stuck and overwhelmed. Floating in a self-made bubble of unawareness, following the usual flows and routines, seemed easier than rebellion or reform. But slowly and gradually, I realised that I didn’t need to stage a full-blown revolution – didn’t need to grab a massive bin bag and throw everything I owned into it. I didn’t need to instantly replace all the ‘bad’ and plastic products I owned with perfectly manicured versions – shiny, sustainable and beautifully biodegradable.

I realised that I was once again reaching for the lives I saw on social media – people dressed in expensive, organic, sustainably-sourced hemp clothing, drinking out of repurposed glass jars, growing all their own food, never wasting anything, environmentally perfect. Previously, it had been exercise goddesses, strong, fit and inspiring, or interior decorators or fashion enthusiasts. All these ideas and lifestyles make me feel envious and lacking in some way. I’m sure the people who grow all their own food have a cute little negligible environmental footprint, but by placing their lives as my goal I doomed myself to the opposite – stuck changing nothing. Not very sustainable.

I forgot, you see, that ‘greenwashing’ wants you to think that buying all the new organic and sustainable products is not consumerism. It wants you to buy more instead of reusing and repurposing.

So my new rebellion is to consume less. To gradually replace my things as they come to the end of their natural lives, caring for them and fixing them until time catches up and we finally part. I have been learning slowly instead of overwhelming myself with information and articles and ingredient lists. My life is definitely not a picture of perfect environmental practice, but I hope that I am beginning to make a difference. I try to be optimistic about my actions, no matter how small, and use that to spur me on.

Here are some of the little adjustments I have learnt along my journey so far.

• Once you finish your pack of disposable plastic razors, give a metal safety razor a try. I have found mine to work perfectly and to be safe and practical when used correctly. It has been two years since I bought it and the only razor waste I have now is the metal blades I occasionally replace.
• Switching to shampoo and conditioner bars was also a pleasant change. The bars are easy to use (like soap but then you put it on your hair) and last for extremely long periods of time – at least in my experience. I have used only one shampoo bar each year so far.
• I also realised that cotton pads are not really necessary. When I need one, I use a cloth or a fabric version of a cotton pad that I can wash and reuse.
• Fabric sanitary pads and a moon cup were other changes that I didn’t realise would:

      a) reduce so much plastic waste, 

      b) save money on purchases, and 

      c) not be as difficult as I imagined, 

I bought a range of pads that I wash in the shower with me after using, then throw into the laundry for an extra clean. I also rinse and clean the moon cup and then keep using it, and it was far less scary than I had thought. 

I share these examples to recommend them as they have worked for me. However, I know that some changes may not be as practical or easy for everyone. I feel that sustainability to a certain extent should also work for you, adapting to the specific context of your own life.