How do we distinguish the basic principles of sustainability? Sustainability can be divided into subtopics in various ways.
Tom and I usually keep it at 3: planet, people, profit. And those 3 can also be subdivided.
Recently I found a list that seemed very interesting to me: social, economic, cultural, and environmental, each of which is subdivided into 6 principles.
This article gives an overview of all our articles that belong to such a subtopic.
Where to find sustainable communities if you have recently moved to another country? It was complicated for Tom and me to find like-minded people and companies to our liking when we had just moved.
Fortunately, the internet exists. It’s easy to search on a few keywords. We started with organic and markets. Other words we have looked for are ecological, biological, sustainable event, local activities.
We then visited the promising found addresses. When you’re focused like this, it’s easy to get in touch with people. You can ask about their products or ask if they know of other people who are interested in ‘keyword’.
Both Tom and I talk a lot about contributing and reciprocity in society. With our friends. In our blog posts. In our Facebook posts. Most of the time this is about volunteering in some way or another. But there are many other ways.
Reciprocity in society is a common gesture. A neighbor smiles at us and next time when they are not at home, we collect their delivered goods from the courier.
Society is built on written and unwritten laws. Some are evident. You do not enter another person’s house without an invitation. Others are less obvious. For example, when you borrow your neighbors’ chainsaw, they might expect you to be extra careful when you use it.
The question – What is a sustainable home and how can we develop one? – requires an answer from 2 perspectives.
The first perspective is that of the current state of the environment and the circumstances in which our home exists.
The second perspective is that of the design and the construction of the actual home. What materials are used or do we want to be used? What are the esthetics? How much space do we desire?
The question of what is a sustainable lifestyle precedes our knowledge of how we can achieve such a lifestyle. We need to agree on some notion of what sustainability is before we can actually make an effort.
Often to our frustration, we’re all aware that the scope of our sustainable actions is limited. However, by taking all individual actions together, we can make a substantial difference.
At the core of this effort is our understanding that moderation is the key to a sustainable lifestyle. Less is more. Being aware of this saves the environment and when we’re lucky also our health, our time, and our money.
From a young age, I have hated fireplaces and open fires. Probably because my bronchitis often made it difficult to breathe freely and because I didn’t like the smell.
Until I was 15, my parents had a coal stove. It partly had the same disadvantage as a fireplace: if you stand in front of it your face burns and at the back, your tushy freezes off. I thought the central heating that we had, later on, was a lot more pleasant.
For many, a fireplace represents coziness. But is burning wood sustainable or bad for the environment? And if it’s the latter, are there sustainable alternatives?
How can you be sustainable while traveling around the world might be a weird topic, hardly being able to travel at all because of the covid rules.
However, when you have the time to mesmerize about traveling, this will perhaps lift up your spirits a bit.
If so, you might as well take the opportunity to design a sustainable travel plan. This is good for you, for the environment, for biodiversity, for the climate, and for the people that live in the countries and places you wish to visit.
Many people are willing to contribute to sustainability, yet at times lack the time or the knowledge to put that intention into practice. Can tech contribute to making sustainable living easier?
As always the short answer to that question is both yes and no. Many apps have a specific topic to make it easier to find the right information. On the other hand, the huge amount of internet traffic and data storage results in the consumption of resources as well.