So this has been brewing in my head for a while, but a pair of articles I read this morning really helped solidify some things for me about this whole sustainability conversation. It’s hard to stay positive when you read something like this. It’s hard to look at all you do and then find out the “natural” shampoo you were buying helped clear acres of rainforest. Articles like this make folks feel like they just can’t win, and can you blame them? It makes people want to pull the covers over their heads and give up. But then, on the very same day, you’ll find something completely different, and it fills you up with hope.
So, how do we still talk about the bad stuff, like palm oil in our….everything….without overwhelming folks? Because of course we want to know, so we can keep an eye out and keep living more and more sustainably. Ignorance isn’t a good tactic for promoting positive change. But I’m sure I’m not the only one who gets overwhelmed with all the bad news. Something has to change, and I wonder if the first thing is the way we’re getting our information. What if that Jezebel article were more interested in focusing on what you can do than on writing a catchy headline? I wonder if I would have come away from it feeling more positive if they’d offered even one solution. What if the writer had finished up with a list of shampoos that are both biodegradable AND didn’t contain palm oil like this one or this one?
I don’t mean to rag on that one article. That doomy tone is all over the place. I guess I just wish there was more focus on action along with all this information. There is so much talk about what’s wrong, and I think folks need to feel empowered. And I think the responsibility falls on the people providing our information. But maybe that’s asking too much. Is it asking too much?
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I really like this post, because I feel the same way too sometimes. I feel that ‘sexy’ headlines and certain information is being put out there, but it’s not being backed up with the tools to empower people to make a positive change and do the right things (sometimes it is and people just don’t want to listen and/or change their ways or the sources worry about sounding ‘too extreme’ and don’t list a lot of the ways for people to really reduce their footprint and live sustainable, such as giving up meat, biking/using public transportation/car sharing, etc).
It’s frustrating and can be overwhelming sometimes (especially with all the greenwashing going on now), but hopefully people are realizing there is a serious problem and will search out more positive sources for answers which in turn will change the style of the less positive sources.
We’ve just gotta keep doing the best that we can each day, get the word out there as much as possible and keep moving forward.
That Jezebel article was actually not very pleasant to read… :( It was very negative. I’ve been feeling very overwhelmed by the cnn broadcast in our lobby – everytime I walk through it seems to be talking about food crisis or something similar. I want to know more to do, but at the same time, it wears me down. Frustrated.
Ashley – I totally agree! We have a long way to go, and all you can do in the meantime is be your best self. It’s hard for me to remember sometimes! And amen on greenwashing. I really feel like that is going to bite some companies in the butt once more folks get hip to that tactic. Good luck earning back your customers’ trust!
San – Ohman…CNN. I used to watch it at work but just can’t stomach it lately. I hope reporting gets better. I mean…more folks than just us have to be getting sick of that tone, right? It’s totally exhausting to get hammered all the time with what’s wrong but never with what we can do. And there’s so much we can do!!
The first shampoo had coconut oil in it. Isn’t there something bad about that, too?
Crap. I’m not sure about coconut oil, but it makes sense that another tropical oil would have similar issues. I did a little googling and am not turning anything up…have you read something about it that might help me search? Everything I turn up about coconut oil is its health benefits and potential as a biofuel. :/