This post was written in November 2021.
Of course, caring for our planet isn’t something we only do for the two weeks of COP26… how do we carry on caring?
Well, if nothing else, COP26 will have been about starting conversations, raising awareness. So, carrying on those conversations will be its future: talk to your friends and teachers, your work colleagues, your boss, your pets, the trees, the sky... Just keep talking about your hopes and fears, swap ideas and tips, keep each other motivated.
Commit to changing your own economy, and from there the world’s: think carefully about what you buy, what you eat, how you look after your belongings and your space. Think ‘reuse, repair, recycle’ first… celebrate giving care rather than stuff as gifts. Shop with us at ApparelXChange, and with our #ReworkingTogether partners at Merry Go Round and Revolve Recycle. Visit Repair Cafes. Offer to repair things for others. Always reach for pre-loved if you can.
Keep up the dialogue with leaders and politicians: write to your local representatives regularly, telling them what is important to you, asking them questions about how they are going to follow up on COP 26 promises.
Remind your school or college about their obligations after COP26: did they sign the Climate Charter? How are they going to keep their promises?
Ultimately, we are animals and our bodies are made up of mostly water... we share DNA with things like strawberries and acorns: everything is interconnected. So think about your relationship with the natural world, and with your own body as a part of that as you decide what to eat and drink. Try out plant-based options for your school dinners, try out a new vegetarian recipe, see what you can find out about buying from local farmers and suppliers. Shop at zero waste markets, like Locavore, Society Zero and Zero Waste market. Ask your school or college to set up a growing garden, ask them to give you cooking lessons!
As we saw at the start of this series, what’s vital to changing our economy to something sustainable and earth-friendly is dialogue with other countries and cultures. So be open to other world views, keep educating yourself, keep thinking, ‘is this the right way to act, or is this just what I’m used to? Could I think of this differently?’.
In the end, looking after our earth and living lightly on it is about caring. Let’s hope we have a Glasgow Pact come out of COP26 to hold major economies to account… And let’s just carry on being kind – to ourselves, to our neighbours, to our belongings, to the earth beneath our feet.