Higher Purpose and Reuse/ Repurposing

The world is in a dire state.

It is also very full of love and awareness.

Having said that, I am at a point in life where I am realizing more and more just how important it is that we take the utmost care of this planet. It is imperative that we extend the love in our hearts not only to ourselves and our families, friends, and lovers... but also to this very earth we all share.

When I first started letting it soak in how desperately our Mother Earth needs our help, it was almost impossible not to be overwhelmed. I saw so many opportunities for change, so many things I could do differently in order to effect change for humanity.

I tried to “do it all.” I was worrying about how I would achieve such a big shift in my daily living. I worried about how to afford a more environmentally friendly car. I mentally reprimanded myself every single time I used something plastic and didn’t save it to use again. Or when I didn’t know how to reuse things.

I think perspective is one of the most important aspects of making changes to our daily habits to create positive effects on a global level. I no longer expect to make these changes overnight and I don’t have a panic attack if I can’t manage to achieve one of my recycling or repurposing goals for one day. It is in consistent, small shifts over time that we will make the most long-term successful impact. I firmly believe that starting small and ramping up is the most realistic way to ensure the change lasts.

As a general rule to help our planet, I am currently using simple methods to break down my plans for more sustainable living. In all situations, I make sure to substitute some resources for others (for example, a reusable fork and knife instead of plastic.) If for some reason I am not able to, I try to find ways to repurpose that material instead of merely throwing it away. I aim for 0% wastefulness in all situations.

Another area of focus for me is diet. I have watched documentaries such as Before the Flood, Cowspiracy, and An Inconvenient Truth which shaped my awareness and outlook on the future of our world. These films inspired me to bring a stronger element of consciousness to what I eat. The agricultural industry has seemingly had some profound direct impacts upon climate change. From what I have read and seen, it is an even bigger problem than fossil fuels. With this in mind, I have switched my diet to consume less meat products. One third or so of my diet is still meat as of now, but I have come up with a goal and timeline to convert the rest of the way to vegetarianism. I make sure to only buy groceries as I need them, and only the amount I need as to avoid food waste and throwing out unused goods.

A department that I feel many people overlook is energy. Sure, we make sure to turn our lights off or appliances when we aren’t using them, but there are so many steps further we could take to conserve energy. I have learned that even if your device is not powered on, it still draws power form the outlet if it is plugged in. Imagine all the energy lost just because of that! I make sure to unplug things I am not using.

Further, I am no longer supporting the fashion industry’s mass overproduction. Upon further research, I have found that it leads to further textile wastes. So many clothes end up at landfills! I aim to reuse all materials I wear, or hand them down. I have encouraged those close to me to swap clothes and reuse or restyle them however we can. Not only has it helped lower the amount of clothes thrown out, it has kept our wardrobes rather interesting! I am working to grow this practice further to community/city wide clothing swaps and sales.

I currently live in an apartment, but I aim to further expand my community’s shared gardens. We have a few in our city, and I am starting to grow what I can of my own food. Extras go to family and friends, and donations to food banks or anyone I hear of who needs it. I plan to start more community gardens this summer. Growing our own food is important—it is healthy for us and discourages wastefulness in my experience.

Smaller changes I am actively making include: hanging my laundry to dry instead of a dryer, using far less heat during washing cycle, and abstaining from the use of hair styling tools which harm hair but more importantly drain energy and usually end up in landfills as wasted plastic or metal. I try to fix things before pitching them in the trash. I have switched to energy saving lightbulbs too.

These are just a few of the myriad ways I am making an impact in my own life. I truly hope to inspire others and that we can create more space in our communities for more sustainable living! We owe it to ourselves and our earth to do our part in reducing our carbon footprints. Each person thinks they cannot make a difference, but if each person believes that together we all can, we will!