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Plant a seed

Mon, 23 Aug 2021 22:02:21 +0000

Plant a seed

After writing this article about Eco-Anxiety and not being able to sleep because the ocean is on fire, I sat down and spent some time reflecting on what actions I can take that will actually make a difference.

I find it incredibly frustrating that I’m channeling so much time and energy into making my own deodorant and bringing my own container when multibillionaires who have the power to change the world just won’t.

I have been feeling hopeless and helpless. So I needed to find something concrete and practical to do right now that would make me feel better.

At first, I couldn’t come up with much.

Email companies and ask them to be more sustainable.
Show up at protests and demonstrations.
Use your vote and support political parties that have good sustainability policies. 

But the truth is, it’s hard to know if anyone is actually listening. Words often fall on deaf ears. You won’t see immediate results, and all I wanted and needed was instant gratification. I needed to make sure I was making a difference right now.

I had been banging my head against a wall for a while, until at some point I asked myself: What is the one thing that we as humans will need most of all, when climate change hits us even harder? When the pandemic gets worse? When an earthquake strikes?

Food.

That’s your answer.

I remember thinking about this during the first lockdown, when people would flock to supermarkets in panic and I realised how screwed I would be without grocery stores. And that time I grew my own lettuce and it felt so rewarding and delicious and it gave me a sense of self-sufficiency.

So there you have it: grow your own food. Plant a seed. Learn how to garden.

If there’s one thing that will help make you feel like you’re doing something in a world that’s falling apart, it’s probably this one. Or at least, that’s the one thing I could come up with.

Of course, not everyone has a patch of land or some grass outside their house that they can use, but there are different ways you can get your hands dirty.

In the Wellington region, you can check out the Council’s guide to local community gardens, and of course this applies to wherever you live. Alternatively, you can support people who are already walking the talk. I personally will have some free time on my hands soon, so I will probably hit up Kaicycle and see how best I can contribute to the amazing work they do.

After chatting with Liam from the Rubbish Trip last night about this, I feel so much better already. Thank you Liam for confirming that this was a good idea hehe!

Of course I’m still open to suggestions. Can you think of anything else that could make a difference in the short term? That would give us a quick motivation to keep on going? That would stop the world from ending? I’d love to hear from you, and I hope this post was helpful to anyone who’s been going through some environment-related hard times as well!

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