If you have stepped into the climate conversation, you have probably met someone who will vilify convenience. Calling it the root of all climate evil, if you will.
But can you, yes you, truly say convenience and on-the-go items are bad, to that struggling mom, trying to balance raising a family and two jobs? Or that person struggling with depression just trying to make it through their dare. Of course, not. Because we as humans understand, sometimes we need to pick the easy route. Life is not a sacrificial agniparikha after all, especially a sustainable-friendly life. We cannot keep a habitable and comfortable home planet for people if we do not consider people in it.
This means sustainability should come with options. It should be a range perhaps. Or simple various eco-friendly options. For someone with dry skin, we can have liquid washes that come in powder forms. Or we can have moisturizing bar soaps that are homemade and free of marine-toxic chemicals. For the struggling mom with two kids and a rough job, we can have compostable packing so that when she heats up water for her ready-to-eat lunch, she only has to worry about her health and not the planet.
Or perhaps we can improve our recycling systems- so that she can simply take the flexi-pouch, clean it, and send it to the recyclers. Sure, that is still a lot of work, but it is better than being shamed for buying plastic, which she isn’t even sure can be recycled, and then having to stay up at night wondering if she has made climate-change worse.
Which none of us did. An individual’s actions can make the lives of workers, farmers, and activists better. We can vote with our rupee and demand change. But as far as causing the problem goes, our share is perhaps the smallest as individuals, because it is the systems we live in that carry the blame.
Yet, we must solve the issue for it is us who inherit the planet- which means we need to come together and find solutions that make sustainability viable for everyone. From an overworked mother to an anxiety-ridden college student to that eldery man who just misses his daughter when his arthritis acts up. And that cannot be done with shame and guilt for just living. It has to be done with innovation, kindness, and creativity.
Shall we make sustainability accessible?