Can Being a Third Child Influence Environmental Awareness?

The order of your birth might not seem at all related to environmental awareness. I’m sure there are plenty of only or eldest or middle children with just the same level of concern as me. However, for me, I’m well aware that arriving third has had a large impact on my mindset.

The Bible got it wrong, the meek don’t inherit the Earth: younger siblings do. It’s the eternal curse of the youngest siblings never to have anything shiny and new, but to be "gifted" with an endless supply of hand-me-downs. Regardless of differences in style, or size, come to that.

"Oh, you’ll grow into it," you are assured by various family members as you stagger across the living room in your older sister’s school blazer, sleeves just brushing the floor. Yes, grandma, by the time I’m 30, I’m sure it’ll fit great. I know it wasn’t just my parents, my abundantly sibling-ed friends all have the same stories to tell. The skirt that had been handed from cousin to cousin, somehow skipping your older siblings and going straight to you. Or the older sister’s shoes that didn’t quite fit, but would probably be fine armed with a thick pair of socks. This seemed like an unfair burden as a child, but having become an adult in an age where vintage clothes and upcycling are making a huge comeback, my familiarity with hand-me-downs is coming in useful. I find it a lot easier to identify how much wear I will get out of a vintage or charity shop piece now, what a suspicious seam looks like, and how badly a shirt may fade in certain places. Thinking back now, I’m very glad I got a head start in this upcycling trend. Three children are expensive and getting the most out of your clothes is essential for normal parents, but as fast fashion is falling out of fashion and upcycled clothing makes a comeback, being able to darn your own socks is sexy again.

The very nature of having three children changes the way a family thinks, and more importantly, budgets. Any sensible family knows that every penny counts and (like my parents), adopt a "waste not want not" mentality. Wasting food was a cardinal sin in my home. That’s not to say my mum forced us to eat every scrap—in fact, far from it. She always made my siblings and I discuss dinner with her, talking about the meal plans for the week. She would never cook anything we were likely to push away or turn noses up at. Having been vegetarian in an age where it was all but criminalised, my mum has never believed in forcing people to eat food they inherently despise. This approach might seem spoilt, but in reality, it prevented a lot of food waste and dinner time battles because we all knew what we would be eating and that it wasn’t something too overtly green. This has created real aversion to waste in my adult life. If I cook too much, I always put it in the fridge for the next day (or for when I want a dinner-sized snack later that night). I do my shopping on a weekly basis, making a meal plan and buying only those ingredients. This is not only very budget friendly, but also prevents buying that extra courgette (because I feel very Pinterest-health motivated that week, but it will almost definitely go mouldy before I actually bother to use it). If it’s not in the plan, it’s not in the basket.

Being a third child also meant my family had to entertain three children most weekends. That can be a cripplingly expensive job if you give in to the theme parks, the shopping trips, and all the single use plastic and fleeting interest toys that come with them. Luckily, I grew up near the coast, which meant going to the local beach every weekend in summer felt like a mini summer holiday. Being a green thumb, my mum often took us to country parks and local forests. We didn’t know it at the time, but this outside activity actually held off the migraines I would suffer with for the next decade as my screen time increased and outdoor opportunities were naturally replaced with homework.

As I resurfaced from the other end of school and sixth form, I find University leaves much more time for going out and about. We have a reduced timetable on Wednesdays to allow for sporting activity, which (although I have no natural affinity for) I am grateful for. Thanks to the time I spent outside as a child, I have a deeper appreciation of the outside environment, and whole-heartedly support the numerous studies linking time spent in nature with increased mental health benefits. It genuinely saddens me to see people of my generation who grew up on concrete and tarmac who simply don’t care about the environment. The age where it wasn’t cool to care ended years ago—some people just haven’t caught on yet.

So overall, yes, I do believe that being a third child has influenced my environmental awareness. I appreciate new things and try to make them last as long as I can, carrying out my own repairs where possible. I avoid waste wherever I can and always try to plan ahead to avoid impulse or splurge buying.

And yes… my children will know the joys of a fifth generation jumper.