Conscious Living in a Changing World

Creating an environmentally sustainable, spiritually fulfilling, socially just human presence on this planet—a New Dream for Humanity by the Pachamama Alliance

Many of us can feel are discouraged and disheartened by the destruction of the the Earth, our only home. Many people think that we can do nothing as individuals. Although there are huge forces at place here, I do think there are many things we can do as individuals on many levels. I have thought about this over the last months when I also became discouraged and found myself with nothing to say in this blog. But here I am again with my thoughts and my that have evolved during these last few months.

Finding this out for yourself is a process. These ideas and actions that I have come to take are not meant to stir up guilt. And perhaps you have already considered many of these actions. What I am trying to create is an awareness of our own impact and carbon footprint. And to recognize that it is we in the more developmental countries who create the most carbon per inhabitant. This recognition is an expansion of consciousness. It is a way to recognize that we are but a small part of the world.

In the end it isn’t just our actions but the whole economic system that stimulates growth and consumerism as a given to survive. When we really understand this, we will do our part to disengage from this system. But until that happens, we still have other choices to make the contribute to a new system. For more information on this you can check this article: Capitalism and the Destruction of Life on Earth: Six Theses on Saving the Humans.

And be sure to check out the positive film trailer at the end.

So here is my list. Perhaps you can add to it in the comments. I keep thinking of more but will stop here for now!

Connecting

I have discovered that in order to do anything worthwhile I need to really recognize my connection to the Earth. Without the Earth, I am nothing. Without water, no life. Without air, no life. Without food, no life. The quality of these aspects of earth also is essential for my life. I am totally dependent upon the Earth. The earth becomes me and I feed the earth with my breath. This cycle is being destroyed and put out of balance. My life and the lives of all the humans depends on this. The next step is to expand our consciousness to include all the humans and not just my closest loved ones. This is a big step for humans to do. When we have opened up our hearts with empathy and compassion to everyone on the planet, our expansion of consciousness will reveal that we are all in the same boat. Then innovation and new actions arise from a different place in us.

I think it is relevant that mainstream news is encouraging the development of compassion as in this article from FastCompany

For the rest of this article I will simple list some ideas that have become important for me.

Contribution

Share and support those in need and suffering in the world.
Teach children and grandchildren about suffering of others – to share and give away – to be kind and empathize – to be outdoors and respect / love nature – also to be themselves
If possible take children on trips where they can see other children who do not have enough and bring toys or clothes to them

Food

Use Organic and Fairtrade food when there is a choice. No pesticide is good for your health and saves the soil. Animal welfare is part of organic process. Commercial animal factories keep animals in closed quarters which often result in developing resistant bacteria which then requires antibiotics. This contributes to the huge problem of antibiotics no longer working. (Paying a higher price for organic or FairTrade could be considered support for the farmers and growers who are not plugged into the mainstream and sacrifice commercial rewards to take care of the earth and create justice)
Know supply chain
Sort and recycle: cans, paper, glass, plastic etc.
Cut down on meat – “Meatless Monday” to help cut carbon output from meat

Home:

Most cleaning products are chemically made and toxic for humans.. They also pollute the earth and water.
Cleaning products, laundry products, dishwasher products are all available in bio-degradable formats at Health Stores
Use “micro-cloths” which only require water for cleaning- they clean better and pick up both dirt and bacteria.

Transportation:

Use public transportation when possible, EL cars or cars with high gas mileage.

Buying:

Be conscious of supply chain and be aware of other possibilities when considering buying new. Cheap is often a sign of something suspect in supply chain (child labor, slave labor, cheap labor, etc.)

This list is a good reminder:

Recycle

Up-cycle

Borrow

Salvage

Repair

Do without

Buy second hand

Create

Swap

Grow

Travel:

Be a eco-aware tourist
Pay for carbon footprint – there are projects that do re-forestation
Watch your water-use –many countries that water problems – hotels overuse water while natives have to conserve
Contribute to community where you stay- buy local products etc
Look into eco-tourism (“Responsible travel to natural areas that conserves the environment and improves the well-being of local people.”)
Be aware of your impact culturally and physically

Politics:

Support those who are clearly trying to make changes for the planet.
Look at the big picture (planet, world, suffering outside of Norway etc) – not just own welfare.
Talk about planetary issues with friends. Be willing to take a stand and a risk.
Focus on reducing inequality and justice in all areas

May we all find a way to be activists by sharing our process and our actions with our friends. Talking about this is a big step forward. Thank you for reading this post and if you think it is helpful please send a tweet out about it.