My mantra at the moment is to focus on what I can do rather than what I cannot. Positivity is what I need right now and so I am currently thinking about what my New Year’s resolutions should be to motivate myself. The start of 2021 is unfortunately not going to be the fresh start that we so desperately want but I find that positive action is the best way to deal with the anxiety and despair that I have been feeling recently. (About both the virus and climate change.)
So along with my usual annual renewal of good intentions to do some exercise next year, I will be continuing to push myself to take some more sustainability action and to write about what I am doing more often. Yes it does sometimes get tricky, frustrating, time consuming and even boring but when I remember my overall purpose it does make it feel worthwhile. My main hope is that by sharing what I am doing you can see that the changes I make are realistic and achievable. I am not some kind of superwoman or expert in sustainability I am simply just muddling my way through it all with a little bit of focus and effort. I do not for one minute think that everyone needs to be doing what I am. I am just hoping that with each post that I write I can inspire at least one person to take a new step towards living more sustainably in their own way.
So for anyone that is also currently thinking about their New Year’s resolutions or just wanting to take some positive sustainability action but struggling to know how to get started or to do it in a timely manner I can highly recommend the “Count Us In” project.
It is a worldwide project with the aim to inspire 1 billion people to make impactful changes to the way that they live to combat climate change. I find it really helpful as it very simply describes the 16 most impactful things that you can do as an individual. The idea is that you can then select which ones you would like to try to do over a two month period and at the end of the two months you then report back as to how you have got on and you will be able see how much of an impact your individual actions will have had as well as (more importantly) contributing to how much of an impact the “Count Us In” community has achieved overall. This powerful information can then be used to demonstrate to Governments and business that there is a public will to make significant changes to the way that we live.I really like the way it has been broken down into small manageable steps where you can challenge yourself at your own pace and with the setting of a timeline it really helps to focus your efforts. The sense of community it has is also really inspiring to see that you are not the only one trying. The impact of an individual may be small, but if 1 billion people all take a step just imagine what we can achieve.
So whilst we are all housebound for a just little bit longer perhaps take this time as an opportunity to make some sustainable changes, for you know once we are allowed out again you will no doubt have more exciting things to be doing!
Happy New Year everyone. Sending positive vibes your way! Xx
(This photo is one of my favourites from 2020. Catching a beautiful sunrise in the summer whilst my boys are wrestling each other on the beach! This year may have been hard but we have still managed to make some wonderful memories!)