The power of reflection and acceptance in climate action

in canada

many of us are feeling the urgency of

climate change

in toronto a survey showed that 78

of residents are concerned about climate

change

yet we’re not seeing change at the pace

we need to

in ontario the average carbon footprint

per person

is an unsustainable 11 tons more than

twice the global average

this is a paradox we feel that climate

change is an emergency

but we’re not acting like it’s an

emergency

in other words there’s a gap between our

intentions

and our actions why is that

i co-founded a group called carbon

conversations teo

to help individuals find hope in the

climate crisis

our materials are adapted from the work

of rosemary randall

a psychotherapist and andy brown an

engineer

who created carbon conversations in the

uk

we at carbon conversations teo strongly

believe

one of the main reasons for this

intention action gap

is because facing our feelings

can be challenging

hearing information about a complex and

systemic challenge like climate change

can cause us to feel overwhelmed

anxious depressed

angry helpless

guilty shameful

are any of these familiar to you if so

know that these hard feelings are

completely normal

and experiencing them is actually a sign

that we care about each other and the

planet

yet they are often uncomfortable and

quite painful to experience

so our minds help us avoid that pain

to resist that pain by summoning

our defenses our defenses

allow us to rationalize our role in

harmful systems that lead to climate

change

to reject knowledge that challenges our

sense of identity

to repress information that makes us

feel guilty or ashamed

and with these defenses activated our

pain

temporarily goes away but the world’s

pain

is not

us humans are really good at resisting

hard truths

so good in fact that many of us don’t

even know we’re doing it

we resist by saying things like

individual actions don’t really matter

anyway do they

it shouldn’t be up to me it should be up

to government

and corporations to solve the world’s

issues

well the world is doomed anyway so may

as well party while we have time left

it is really easy to feel discouraged

particularly when government and

industry do

often seem to be paralyzed it’s also

challenging to make a lot of personal

changes

especially when layering on the

emotional stress we’re feeling from the

pandemic

so we find ways to resist these hard

truths

here’s what that resistance looks like

for me

i’m a vegetarian and i do so many other

actions already

so this one carbon intensive action is

small compared to everything else i do

i’ll order take out this one time but

i’m not going to make it a habit

i’ll order takeout again but for sure

this time

i am not going to make it a habit

we are in the middle of a pandemic

surely it’s okay that i scale back on my

environmental efforts right now

if you’ve experienced some of these

thoughts you are not alone

these things we tell ourselves are there

to mask a conflict between our values

and our behaviors we try to protect

ourselves from feeling the pain that

comes with having to give up experiences

that we hold

quite dear to our hearts

experiences that help us fit in with the

people we love

experiences that we’ve worked really

hard for

experiences that perhaps we even feel

social or political pressure to

participate in

and this can lead to our own paralysis

in taking climate action

know that this inner conflict is normal

and it’s okay if you’re feeling this way

the climate action aspirations we have

can be really hard to live up to

so be kind and try not to be too hard on

yourself

yet the question remains how can we move

from paralysis to action

i believe it starts with understanding

and accepting

our emotions

accepting our emotions what does that

even mean

when we accept our emotions we are

ending our struggle

against feeling them so when

guilt shame anxiety

helplessness come knocking at our door

we let go of the urge to board that door

up

and instead we open it

and invite them to join us for a cup of

tea

even though we don’t particularly enjoy

their company

we allow ourselves to slow down

listen to ourselves and feel however we

need to feel

okay but how does that lead to climate

action

when we’re able to let ourselves feel

it can open up new opportunities to

acquire knowledge

and take action that we may have

previously overlooked

for me practicing acceptance has helped

me to unlock

a feeling behind the feeling where

another emotion comes up

that i didn’t even realize was there

it’s helped me discover many epiphanies

about myself

it’s helped me realize that it’s okay to

not be okay

and know when to reach out for support

and it’s helped me make tough

climate-related decisions that i was

previously avoiding

like measuring my carbon footprint or

making a commitment to not go on

vacation outside of canada again

and carbon conversations to wouldn’t

exist today

if one of our co-founders hadn’t seen

and felt

the pain that climate change was causing

for her partner

this is a prime example of how action

began

with awareness and acceptance of

feelings

now i’d like to share two ways that you

can practice bringing understanding and

acceptance into your regular routine

first is to slow down and breathe

it’s very easy to speed through a day

without noticing how you feel

here’s a variation of a common breathing

exercise that you can bring into your

regular routine

breathe in for a count of four

hold it for four

and exhale for six

and repeat this three times you can try

it now if you’d like

and if you’re doing the exercise notice

how you feel

what are the physical sensations coming

up

where on your body are they

where do you feel tension

are you able to name the feeling or

feelings that you’re experiencing

try to be as specific as you can for

example

instead of sad do you feel regretful

rejected despair disappointed

second you can practice curiosity

explore your reactions and feelings

ask yourself questions that dig deeper

into knowing yourself

like how do i feel about this fact i

just heard

or what might be causing this reaction

in me

or what is this reaction telling me

about myself

just a few minutes of self-reflection

can bring up different feelings

explore them sit with them

get to know and understand them

environmental scientist and writer

donnella meadows once wrote

feelings like knowledge don’t directly

change anything

but if we don’t rush past the feelings

or stuff them down

if we take time to admit even the most

uncomfortable ones

to accept them share them

and couple them with knowledge of what’s

wrong and how it might be fixed

then feelings and knowledge together are

motors for

change the feelings make the doings of a

technological

cultural economic and political

revolution

inevitable unstoppable

our emotions have important wisdom to

share

and listening to them can unlock

potential that

you may not even know you have

thank you