Welcome!

My name is Bethany, I'm a student at the University of Southampton and this is my first blog post!

I decided to start this blog after recently becoming interested in environmentalism and my personal impact. Two things I noticed when I began researching different ways I could be more 'eco-friendly' 
  1. Environmentalism isn't being made accessible to everyone - especially those on low-income
  2. There exists far too much snobbery and perfectionism around people trying help the environment
What I mean by this is that the stereotype surrounding your average hippie trying to do 'zero waste' is both somewhat accurate AND extremely damaging to getting more people attracted to the movement. 

Most products advertised as being available to assist people in living with less waste or consumption are far too expensive. Examples being anything from good quality reusable cups or speciality wholefoods to electric cars. And even if you can afford these items, there exists this pressure to be ideologically pure with all your actions i.e if you cycle everywhere but use plastic straws, you can't claim to be helping the environment. Both of these ideas end up doing more harm than good and eventually creates this stigma that to be an environmentalist you have to be an off-grid spoon whittler who eats only food grown on their allotment. 

In my view, doing what you can and what you feel comfortable with is enough and people shouldn't shame each other for not being entirely consistent! We are all hypocrites in some way and that's okay!!! Everyone has their reasons for what they do. For example, my student nurse friends might not feel like trekking across town to the only wholefoods shop after a long week on placement. Or if someone has suffered from an eating disorder, it would be irresponsible to suggest they restrict their diet to become vegan or vegetarian. Other people might have financial reasons or simply lack of awareness towards these issues. All of these are totally acceptable reasons! We were all ignorant once so it's important not to judge others for how far they choose to support environmentalism. 

Furthermore, it is important to note that whilst I am a big advocate for individual change, I understand the real difference will come from a higher level - with government and big-business taking responsibility for their impact on the planet. Climate change and pollution undoubtedly has and will continue to have more of an effect on the poor. So, part of my blog will also include looking at environmentalism from a class perspective (globally and nationally) as the two are so closely linked!

With all this in mind, my aim with this blog is to help make environmentalism more accessible. I'm a student so in particular, I'm looking for solutions that are easy to integrate with a hectic routine but are also affordable on a low-income budget. Alongside this, I want to address the bigger problems behind how we deal with environmental issues at home and abroad within a class and community lead context! 

So! Watch this space for some environmental tips, tricks and capitalist criticism! 

Much love, 
Bethany xo


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