Sustainable wellbeing and green living

Sustainable Wellbeing may not be a term that you have heard before, but it sure sounds great doesn’t it? "Sustainable" – can be sustained, unlike this pace at work that doesn't feel at all sustainable. And "Wellbeing", “the state of being comfortable, healthy or happy”(1). Now, what if we expand that definition of Sustainability to also include the meaning that relates to Environmental Sustainability. Where we mean that human actions cause little to no damage to the environment (2) or may even be restorative to environmental systems?

Now the idea becomes pretty mind-blowing.

Can we actually find personal wellness, looking after our mental and physical health AND at the same time, do what is right for the planet?

This is the concept of Sustainable Wellbeing. It is living at the intersection of environmental sustainability and personal wellness. It is seeking balance for ourselves, while working towards solutions that build resilience in human and ecological communities. 

It me...

“Right now you have everything you need to be in bliss.” – Anthony de Mello

At one point or another, we have all experienced a feeling of contentment and gratitude for the small comforts in our lives. This warm and fuzzy feeling can be described by the Danish word “Hygge.”

After much publicity around the word, hygge has been recently adopted into the English language. It is defined by the Oxford Dictionary as “A quality of coziness and comfortable conviviality that engenders a feeling of contentment or well-being.” Although there is no direct English translation, the concept and feeling of hygge is a useful lesson that we can learn to foster.

Being able to assign a word to this feeling can help us appreciate, take notice of, and make an effort to incorporate more hygge into our lives!

The word hygge has been a part of Danish culture since the 19^th century when it first appeared in writing. Hygge can be used as an adjective, a noun, and a verb.

Your favorite pair of cozy sock...

As holidays, celebrations, and birthdays approach, many of us start to think about what gifts to give our friends and family. Picking out a gift for a loved one is a great way to show them how much they mean to you. That being said, I’m sure you’re well aware that gift-giving can also lead to the purchasing of unnecessary items, create waste, and overall have a negative impact on the environment.

Luckily, there are many ways to give gifts in an environmentally responsible manner! Although you may initially think that green gift giving significantly narrows down your options, there are plenty of ways to give green, and live out your values. Gift giving is also a beautiful way to connect others to new and unique Eco-friendly items and suppliers that they may not have known about. Besides that, it feels AMAZING when the gifts that we receive also help others in need, or help to save an endangered species, or plant trees, or support small Eco-friendly businesses! Wins all around!

If you’...

Sustainability is often defined as the ability to meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability to meet the needs of future generations. Typically, sustainability is made up of three pillars: social, environmental, and economic. In other words, sustainability takes into account people, the planet, and profit.

The environmental pillar tends to get a lot of attention when it comes to discussions surrounding sustainability. While this topic is undoubtedly important, it is useful to look at the economic side of things as well! Let’s take a closer look at the economic pillar of sustainability.

Issues with the current linear economy

We are currently operating in a linear economy. That means that consumption follows a linear process referred to as the ‘take-make-waste’ approach.

Take – When there is a high demand for consumer products, supplies such as non-renewable and natural resources get depleted at an alarming rate in order to keep up with demand. And we know that ex...

Science lovers are everywhere! You don’t need a degree in science to know that you love learning, looking at data, and contributing to our collective knowledge about the natural world. Whether your interest in science stems from your desire to know more about the world around you, the intellectual challenges it provides, or educating the children around you, there are ways that you can be a part of scientific research!

It is not uncommon for individuals to believe that there is no space for ordinary citizens when it comes to scientific research. This is not the case! The truth is that you -don’t- have to have a PhD in order to participate in scientific research. Whether you are interested in learning about the ecosystem function of a specific species or the impacts of pollution on water bodies, there is a way that you can collaborate with scientists and researchers in order to gather important data and make a difference in the scientific community! Through citizen science projects t...

We live in a fast paced, often tumultuous society in which we are confronted with new problems and stressors on a near daily basis. Whether it be challenges we face at work, conflicts with family or friends, or much larger scale issues like the climate crisis, it is easy to become overwhelmed and feel helpless.

It can be difficult to comprehend the effects these challenges have on us and our feelings. They can cause us to feel stressed, anxious and unfulfilled in our relationships with ourselves, our loved ones and our surroundings. It is understandable that we are often left thinking “What I am missing? There must be something more.”

Wellbeing

The wellbeing model integrates multiple aspects of our lives, promoting a more holistic approach to leading a fulfilling life. As opposed to being a state of mind or a response to stimuli, wellbeing is a much broader concept of what it means to flourish, and what is necessary to allow us to do so.

Wellbeing has value in itself and asks not ...

Don't get me wrong, I love well-integrated initiatives that create lasting change, but what I see ALL THE TIME are people struggling with knowing what action to take - and that leads to inaction, or too many projects started and nothing finished. Without finishing and realizing the end goal, we deprive ourselves and the world of the benefits of these initiatives.

A time and a place

So, there is a time and a place for well-defined, small concise projects that realize their modest little goals - and get the win! These small wins are actually vital in realizing larger goals. They provide us with momentum, and a sense of accomplishment, individually and collectively. And they can be really useful as demonstration projects that set us up for success when it comes to larger projects.

I like to think of these small wins as being the base of the Action Pyramid. They are at the bottom because there are lots of them, they are easy to achieve, accessible, and they save money and even time and ...

Sure, we want to do what is right when it comes to recycling and disposal of our electronics, but for many people, electronics recycling can be a bit of a grey area. It’s hard to know exactly what to do with your e-waste or outdated electronics. That's why so many people find they have a drawer or box full of old electronics that they haven't quite figured out what to do with.

So, here is my quick guide to help you find the best way to manage your e-waste responsibly.

E-waste 101

First, let's just cover off what we mean when we are talking about e-waste. E-waste, or Electronic waste, is electronic equipment that is no longer wanted or no longer works. When electronic devices have reached the end of their useful life, for us, they become electronic waste. But, that doesn't mean they are no longer useful!

Keep these devices out of the landfill!

Sending your electronic waste to the landfill can cause serious environmental harm. Most electronic devices contain toxic heavy metals such...

So many of the so-called sustainable living ideas and suggestions really only scratch the surface. They are superficial ideas that only slightly stall the inevitable linear model of resource extraction - material goods - waste. Even the feel-good efforts of making fleece jackets out of recycled pop bottles only slightly delays that plastic's inevitable fate of becoming waste and ending up in the landfill.

That's where solutions that create systems-level change come in as important real fixes for the systems that aren't working. Cradle to Cradle is one of these concepts that bring our human-made systems into alignment with natural systems by mimicking the natural world.

The origins of Cradle to Cradle

The ‘Cradle to Cradle’ concept was coined by Michael Braungart and William McDonough and is discussed in detail in their book ‘Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things’ published in 2002.

In short, the Cradle to Cradle concept is a reinvigorated way of looking at our lifecycl...

“Joy does not simply happen to us. We have to choose joy and keep choosing it every day.” - Henri Nouwen

The practice of gratitude has proven to have a substantial impact on the wellbeing and happiness of individuals who consistently express thankfulness for the things and people in their lives, no matter how big or small.

It is important to keep in mind that nobody’s life is perfect. We all experience negative emotions and difficult circumstances but being able to acknowledge the things you are grateful for is an important part in helping you overcome your struggles and feel content with your life.

In fact, one of the best ways to identify your gratitude is by visualizing your life without the positive events that you have experienced. By imagining the absence of these events, you will be able to develop an even stronger appreciation that they did in fact occur and are present in your life.

How you can express gratitude

In expressing gratitude, you will be able to change your...