Sustainability and Minimalism
according to intergovernmental panel on
climate change
ipcc we need to keep the global
temperature rise below 1.5 degrees
celsius
in 2013 by when the world must have a
common emissions i will be
in
just 23 years young by 2050 when the
world should achieve net zero
i will be in my early 40s
india will be devastated by climate
change over the next 30 years
if we do not act now
by that time i will be only 44 years
here
according to a recent u.n report
an estimated 1 million species are at
risk of
extinction many within decades
the countdown
has already started
today i will be sharing how minimalism
is connected with sustainability
when i talk about minimalism don’t start
imagining you have to live like a son
allow me to tell you what minimalism is
according to joshua fields milburn
minimalism is a tool to eliminate life’s
excess
focus on the essentials fulfillment and
freedom
a great principle of minimalism
is
using the minimum number of resources
which accords perfectly with our
present-day need for sustainability
sustainability is meeting the needs of
the present without compromising the
ability of future generations to meet
their own needs
sustainability is directly related to
how we decide to consume unlimited
resources such as energy water food and
minerals
it also relates to the responsible use
of our resources and environment
respecting our biodiversity will also
make us more sustainable
we need to discuss ways in which we can
become more sustainable by using our iso
resources more responsibly and also by
tapping into renewable resources such as
wind and solar energy
minimalism is a method for using only
what we need to survive and waste
nothing
owning less
is great
wanting less is even better
things don’t define you you do
as i continue this journey of becoming a
sustainable minimalist
something that i have come to value is
the idea of eco minimalism a living more
sustainably
eco minimalism is being conscious or
mindful of what we bring into our lives
and how we dispose of those things
to me
living more sustainably is the intention
habits actions and decisions
i help to reduce my impact on climate
change and help support the environment
i have started with just consuming less
if i acquire less i have less to get rid
of
i have convinced my parents not to buy
me clothes regularly i think twice
before buying any stuff for that matter
the last time i bought myself a t-shirt
was in january 2020
i generally buy a size more than my
current size so i can use it for a
longer duration
i somehow like the concept of minimalism
for which sometimes i am being teased
too
but i tell them why i am doing so and
ask them do the same
some agree some laugh at me but i am the
one
minimalism and sustainability go hand in
hand because the less you accommodate
the more you’re conscious about the
world around you
given a current climate crisis
consciousness about our environment does
a lot good but bringing us closer to
zero waste
remember
simple can be harder than complex
simple is sustainable
we haven’t addicted to buying like we
have been addicted to sugar
how we buy clothes has changed
i recall my mother saying that she used
to get only two dresses packs a year
one on her birthday and the other when
there was any occasion
clothes were passed on to the younger
siblings or cousins which was considered
quite normal in those days
mending refashioning and caring like
hanging outside to refresh
airing them out instead of washing after
every rules is what is required
wash less loved one
fashion shouldn’t cause the earth
the dangerously high environmental cost
of fast fashion
is impossible to ignore
in which
thousands of tons of discarded loads are
being done in landfills
these items are largely leftovers from
the fashion industry
according to the world economic forum
the fashion industry produces 10 of all
humanity’s carbon emissions
it is the second largest consumer of
water supplies and it is the seventh
largest economy in the world
people buy 60
clothes than fifteen years ago
on an average eighty percent of our
clothes are worn just seven times before
being tossed
millions of tons of clothing items are
thrown away each year
you will be surprised to know that the
most popular fabrics in the fashion
industry are the most toxic ones
have a look at how long does it take for
a clothes to biodegrade
caught in one to two weeks denim
11 months silk one to two years
nylon 30 to 40 years
polyester 20 to 200 years look at
spandex such a definite sequence
never there’s an environmental impact
each time you hit the buy now button you
are helping power up the ships that are
running down endangered wheels of the
coast
amazon flipkart etc in the name of
vacuum is destroying the country with
plastics
the national green tribunal has directed
the polluters to set up a collection
system to take care of the plastic
shipping material recently we had a
black friday and people were going gaga
over it
it is not a bargain
if you don’t need it to all my friends
here
be more of a conscious consumer to
preserve this beautiful planet minimum
you don’t always need to buy trendy
clothes to be stylish
join the slow fashion movement move away
from the fast fashion and start a
fashion detox like me
if 20 000 people from all over the world
will join this
we can save up to 750 million liters of
water
and 2.5 million kilograms of carbon
emissions by simply not buying new
clothes for three months
slow fashion is the opposite of fast
fashion
it is a deliberate choice for consumers
to slow down their consumption and buy
less by investing in high quality pieces
that last longer
now coming to plastic
did you know that nine percent of the
plastic used every day is recycled
the other 91 percent is going to
landfills incinerators etc
so it’s simple
stop buying plastic
and companies will stop making it lower
demand means less production
the consumers make the market
if the consumers stop buying fruits and
vegetables packed in plastic resources
will stop selling them
emma watson has rightly said
as consumers we have so much power to
change the world by just being careful
in what we buy
consumerism leads to deforestation toxic
pollution climate change and the
extinction of species as just a few of
the innumerable problems tied to a
consumption
are you aware of how much water is used
to wash a turkish doll or a terry cloth
or towel
imagine we replace this with a simple
thin tall kamcha
it requires very less water to wash and
it even dries very fast
if all the hotels replace the turkey
stones with a plain gum
imagine how much water will be saved
it is said
that charity begins at home
break the consumption cycle
to do this we need to follow the
hierarchy or rather i should say the
biagi of needs
this was coined by sarah nazzaro
first
make good use of what we already have
stop and think
do i already have this item to do this
task
don’t use and abuse your
positions take care of your things so
that they will last longer
borrow from a friend if you need a
specific item that you don’t have
poured on the same things again and
again organize a swamp party with your
community
go to thrift mode
shop second hand when you need to add a
piece to your collection
or why not try to make it
bike should be the last
after all areas have been tried
waste not one part
joshua becker has rightly said
the most environmentally friendly
product is the one you didn’t buy think
about it
i will be sharing with you five
questions to ask yourself
how to reduce impulsive buying and be a
minimalist
first
will i still be wanting that item after
12 hours have passed
second
if it wasn’t on sale would i be paying
the full price
third
will the item still be in active news
after five years
fourth are we getting into the tracks or
do we love it
and fifth
don’t try don’t i already have something
similar at home do i need this one
the greatest threat to our planet
is the belief that someone else will
save
i am reminded of a
story where a village was suffering from
a drought the villagers prayed to god
for
god granted the wish with a condition
that the next day
each manager will have to take a jug off
milk and put it in a particular pond
each one of them thought that everyone
is going to put the share of the jug of
milk if i don’t do it it will cause no
harm
the next day
the pot was full of water not milk
because each one had thought the same
way
what i am trying to say is that in the
present circumstances
no one can afford to assume that someone
else will solve this problem
every individual has a responsibility
towards climate change and the
environment
we dream of changing the world but
sometimes changing a single soul is
enough for inside every human there is a
world
we need to embrace zero waste build
sustainable habits that last long and
become a minimalist without sacrificing
the planet
we don’t have to engage in grand heroin
actions
to participate in change
small apps when multiplied by millions
of people can transform the world
let’s create a wave of change together
if all of us commit to taking action we
will truly do it
i am doing my bit are you