“…It is better to light one small candle
than curse the darkness…”
Quaker proverb
It is easy to blame our current ecological crisis on 'the system', on capitalism
and greed, governments and industry, but in truth, it is we as people, demanding
consumers, who have created and continue to create the pollution that is destroying
our world. In short, living is polluting. Although companies and MPs are now
tripping over themselves to jump on the Green Bandwagon and general awareness
is much higher than it was even 10 years ago, we still need to change our
own values radically to encompass a greener lifestyle. We need to light our
own candles, however small, in order to avoid the ecological darkness which
threatens to engulf us if we keep living as wastefully as we do now, imagining
that the earth’s resources are never going to run out.
Silverwashed Fritillary by Tony Eaglehart |
In order to do this, we must understand and take responsibility for our actions.
It is more than just changing from using an earth-bashing product to using
a slightly more 'eco-friendly' version. It means questioning both the nature
and volume of our daily consumption and re-assessing our role as individuals
in transforming the fundamental inequalities in today’s world economy.
We can challenge government and industry to adopt greener policies by voting
with our pounds/euros/dollars and ensuring that we buy, and therefore demand,
more compassionate and ethically sound products.
But it is not all about consumerism gone wild in our throw-away society.
It is about quality not quantity. Living a less clutter-filled, more simple
life, assessing the difference between what we really need over what we simply
just want. Living lightly or green living is about having less impact
on our own environment and in doing so, the wider environment, inspiring ourselves
and others to ask what is really important: our convenience or the future
of the planet? It is about not taking more than our fair share and ensuring
that life remains worth living. It is a form of self-empowerment. A practical,
unpretentious commitment to future generations and to the earth itself.
It is our hope that these pages, the information and resources that we post
here, will help us all to live more lightly upon our planet.
Julia Jackdaw
