In this newsletter:
Keep your sanity as a climate activist
Sustainable sneakers 15% off
Global Goals Forum — Attend for free!
Climate Optimism
Keep your sanity
It’s an incredible privilege to have the opportunity to converse with great thinkers of this world. This weekend I got to do exactly that when I chatted with the other speakers backstage at my TEDx event. We had gathered in the “green room” to wait for the curtains to open and in an attempt to calm our nerves, we explored each other’s topics deeper.
I don’t know what subject led us into this one, but one of the speakers, Lisa Powell Graham, shared a quote that she loves:
“Perfection is terrible, it cannot have children.”
I’ve already drawn some parenting + climate change correlations here before, but this one resonated hard, so I’m staying on that train. I’m yet to pop my baby out but I already understand that perfection as a parent simply does not exist. And more importantly — if you try to achieve it, you will only run yourself dry while driving everyone around you (including your child) mad.
I grew up a perfectionist so this mindset of dodging perfectionism is still fairly new to me. But I’m learning, and I must say that my journey from an angry activist to a climate optimist has given me LOTS of practice over the years. Because here’s the truth — perfection as a climate activist/earth hero/ thoughtful citizen simply does not exist.
Have you ever been there?
You brought your own fork to the salad bar but although you told the guy at the register that you DO NOT need a plastic fork, he forgot and brings you one anyways…
You went out for dinner and find yourself in the dilemma of having ordered too much food. You don’t want to contribute to food waste so you ask for a to-go container from the waiter, only to squirm when you see the plastic (non-recyclable) container he comes out with. Maybe you should’ve just continued stuffing yourself after all…
You order a drink but forget to say “no straw please” and now you have to stare at this useless piece of plastic for the entirety of your date.
You meet with a friend you haven’t seen in a long time and she brings a gift that is nothing you would ever buy from a brand you would never support. You focus hard on tuning into the gratitude over the frustration that you’ll have to bring something into your home you can’t help but think of as… trash.
You find yourself in a random town, ravenous, but without a single plant based or locally produced option in sight. Do you starve? Or do you… accept and just eat?
I’m sure you can think of many more occasions when you’ve found yourself in a moral pinch. Do you stay stubborn and seek perfectionism, or do you surrender and accept that the world is not (sigh) perfect yet?
I’ve learned (the hard way) that if you don’t give in to acceptance from time to time, you will end up spending all your energy in all the wrong places. I’ve had to have my husband put heavy hands on my shoulders and convince me that the world will not go under from one plastic fork. Three days into our honeymoon to Italy, I had to accept that I couldn’t live on just figs, olives, and nuts and decided to also include some gluten and non-vegan options in my honeymoon diet. (Funnily enough, as soon as I accepted this, I started to see gluten-free pasta and vegan options everywhere!)
These moments of acceptance saved me, my sanity, and my body.
But there have also been times when I gave in too quickly and I probably should’ve stood my ground a little firmer. Because sometimes, speaking up about the change you wish to see is the only way it’ll ever get a chance to manifest. If you ask for a plant-based option although there isn’t one on the menu, maybe they can customize something for you. And perhaps, if enough people ask, they will soon make sure they have some options that cater to vegan eaters too.
Here’s the deal:
A perfect, sustainable, and climate-just world does not exist yet. That can be frustrating to accept at times, but we need to live with that acceptance if we are to ever have a chance to keep going. If we don’t, we’ll only end up angry, resentful, and filled with despair.
However, since this perfect world does not exist yet, it’s also incredibly important that we don’t just give into dissonance and the “it is what it is” mindset. Just like we will always strive to make our kids’ lives as love-filled and supportive as possible, so do we have to do our very best to ensure we’re headed to the future we want. We have to speak up when we think something is wrong. We have to boldly and excitedly share what we believe in and be living examples of that shift.
We have to not give up on what we believe is possible, no matter how many frustrating situations we find ourselves in.
And we don’t have to, as long as we keep giving ourselves some breaks along the way.
Perfection does not exist, and that’s OK. Now let’s keep going anyways!
My Tedx Talk
My TEDx talk — “From Angry Activist to Climate Optimist” — was about my journey over the past 8 years, what I’ve learned on that journey, and how I landed in the fact that we must shift the narrative on climate change so that we can act from courage and excitement, not fear. I can’t wait to share it with you once it’s live on the TED platform!
Big Win — Joe Manchin Pulls out Oil Giveaways
“Late (last) afternoon, Joe Manchin conceded he didn’t have the votes to force an absurd series of Big Oil giveaways through the Senate, and asked that the package be removed from the must-pass continuing resolution to keep the government going.”
YAY!
Source: Bill McKibben’s newsletter: The Crucial Years
Sustainable Sneakers 15% off!
I’m proud to be an official Cariuma ambassador and I want to let you in on a little secret — right now you can get 15% off any sneakers on their site when you use the code “AnneTherese15”
I am IN LOVE with these shoes and have been for many years. As an avid walker and New Yorker, a good pair of sneaks is a lifesaver and I’m yet to come across a brand that offers such high-quality and comfortable sneakers as Cariuma (hand on heart!)
I wore them to my TEDx talk and during multiple events at Climate Week NYC last week. Find your pair of favorites here:
Global Goals Forum, a Summit to Understand the Present and Think the
Future of Sustainability
I’m proud to announce that I’m an official partner with the Global Goals Forum this year. The Global Goals Forum (GGF) is a summit of leaders from politics, business and civil society where they discuss, provide ideas and recommendations for action on key topics on the global agenda, such as tackling inequity, climate change, and corporate responsibility. The 2022 summit will be fully digital and takes place on October 13 2022.
Among the speakers are Jorge Laguna Celis, Head of United Nations One Planet Network; Stefan Brunnhuber, full member of the Club of Rome; Michael O'Sullivan, author of "The Levelling"; Dr. Petra Künkel, CEO Collective Leadership Institute; and Dr. Bayo Akomolafe, Philosopher and Poet. They will discuss the Rio+30 Agenda; the Future of Globalization; the balance between Planet Profit and Purpose; and Sustainability in the new Silk Road.
For more details on the agenda: globalgoals-forum.org
The new edition of the Global Goals Yearbook also corresponds to this. It includes good practice examples, opinions, and stories of corporate and civil society, sustainability, and regenerative economy leaders. Thus, it offers proactive and in-depth information on key sustainability issues and promotes unique and comprehensive knowledge exchange and learning in the spirit of the United Nations Global Goals. The total circulation is more than 400,000 (print and e-book).
For more details on the Yearbook: globalgoals-yearbook.org
Climate Optimism
Worldwide, the number of people working in clean energy jobs surpassed those working in the fossil fuel sector for the first time ever. (Source, Katharine Hayhoe’s newsletter)
CO2 that turned into food? Check out this new steak!