Here it is – my first blog post of 2020! I’m writing this in the glow of 66° F weather here in Connecticut, which used to be absolutely unheard of this time of year.
Yep – we walked by the beach today. Outfit details: Top, Tradlands Box Top in Salt; Denim, Madewell Fair Trade; Shoes, Rothy’s The Point in Black; Necklace, 31 Bits Balance Box Necklace; Bracelet, Mejuri Croissant Dome Bracelet.
While us New Englanders are selfishly loving the temperature, it isn’t lost on most of us that these changing weather patterns are a sign of an increasingly warming and changing world. We are just two weeks into 2020, and you’d have to be living under a rock to miss the news of the earthquakes in Puerto Rico, fires in Australia and of course, the seemingly minor but overall unprecedented and unique weather events that everyone is experiencing.
I’ve been thinking a lot about sustainability these days, maybe even more than usual, because I want to set intentions for how I want to live in 2020.
Lately, I’ve been discouraged – no, I’ve been angry – about the narrative that our personal choices, like shopping ethically, not eating meat and going zero waste are going to save the planet. And I’m mad at myself for playing a role in this narrative for so long. You’ve probably seen some of my musings about this on Instagram. It’s not that I don’t think these lifestyle choices are sometimes worthwhile (I still do!), but I do think that some of us have or do take it to the extreme, causing guilt for ourselves or others when they don’t live up to our vision of a perfect, sustainable person. Basically, my relationship with sustainable living is changing.
If saving the planet were as easy as not using plastic straws or shopping ethically, we wouldn’t be in the situation we’re in. The system wants us to blame ourselves – because then nothing has to change.
I do think living sustainably does good in that it gives us a sense of control and hope in an overwhelming situation, but what we really need is large-scale, legislative change.
For me, living sustainably in 2020 looks like this: It’s less worrying about what I’m buying and more worrying about what I’m reading. It’s less about how I look (have you seen my mirror selfies lately – hah!) and more about why I care.
I don’t want what I wear and buy (or don’t buy) to be the most interesting things about me. I started this blog wanting to simplify my life, reduce my anxiety and build a capsule wardrobe. That’s still part of who I am. Fashion will always be the forefront of this blog. But in 2020, I want to focus even more on the why, with fashion being the vehicle for it but not the be-all-end-all.
So with all of that being said, here are my concrete 2020 intentions that I want to share with all of you.
- Read 10 books specifically focused on sustainability, climate and climate policy. And talk about them.
- Be less rigid with myself about my sustainable living rules – in turn, hopefully creating space for other people to see how complex this issue is. As a subset to this – not letting people make me feel guilty or wrong for the choices I make. I know I’m well-educated and informed on sustainability, and I refuse to let someone else make me feel small for my perspective (this doesn’t mean I’m not open to being challenged, though.)
- Share at least one personal, thoughtful piece on my blog each month (I feel like it is so easy to fall into the trap of getting busy and then only ever blogging my sponsored content.)
Excited to be going into 2020 with an open mind, open heart, and, of course, with all of you.
P.S. – since I’m wearing Tradlands and as a fashion blog, I’d be remiss to not point out that they have their Anniversary Sale going on right now, with a lot of wonderful wardrobe staples still in stock in many sizes (including this shirt). Use code BDAY25 for an additional 25% off and, of course, if you don’t need it, don’t buy it. If you have any questions on their clothing, drop me a comment!
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You’re right in that our individual choices aren’t going to save the day, and there could stand to be less personal guilt going around and more top-down shifts in industry and society. But I also think we do these things – eat less meat, use less plastic – because we need to feel like we’re doing SOMETHING in the face of disaster. Your intentions are good ones and I look forward to seeing how they translate through this blog as the year goes on.
Honestly, sometimes I think the most important thing to do is get involved politically. All our individual choices do matter, but not on a scale that does, if that makes sense. We need to change systems.