Redefining your Resolutions
Another year beginning and time to reflect on how we want to improve heading into 2023. If you’ve decided to join the gym or quit doughnuts for your New Year’s Resolution – good on you! Personal goal setting and accomplishments are never a bad idea, but what if we levelled up our New Year’s Resolutions and made a conscious effort to help our communities and the planet?
Resolving to make better decisions around sustainability and human connection has an overflow effect on your personal well-being and you’re helping others at the same time. Here are some excellent ways to level up your resolution setting
Happy ‘Know’ Year
Imagine if your entire network of friends and acquaintances had the skills to grow their own food, make their own clothes, or even learnt lifesaving first aid. Learning a new skill is food for your brain and soul and can have a profound effect on your immediate environment. You don’t need to go out and get a PHD in Biodiversity, there are so many short courses and online resources that can lift your skin in the skill game.
Slow Fashion
Since the turn of this century, fast fashion has taken over most of our fashion shopping experiences. Fast fashion, as its name suggests, has a very quick turnaround on the rack, it’s cheap and it is having a devastating impact on our environment. The impact of clothing waste in Australia alone sees over 500 million kilograms of material waste ending up in landfill each year.
Make a conscious commitment this year (and every year) on how and where you source your clothing and accessories and what will happen to them when you’re finished. When we say, ‘slow fashion’, we’re talking about a conscious decision to look after your clothing items, how you can make them last beyond one year or one season and choosing sustainable fabrics and suppliers for when you do need a new item. Set yourself a sustainable purchasing challenge across the year as your resolution. It might stick for good!
Soul Volunteering
There is qualified scientific evidence that helping others in need profoundly impacts your overall happiness and quality of life. By volunteering your skills or time to assist others in need – humans, pets, or the environment – you’re helping those around you and helping yourself to be connected to be soulfully connected to your community.
As we’ve become accustomed to living life via screens, socialisation and human connection have decreased, leading to an epidemic of loneliness across the globe. A little time with others goes a very long way. Carve out some time in your new year to make new connections through volunteering.
From little things, big things grow
This planet needs more trees. Period. There is an abundance of businesses and organisations that provide tree planting initiatives with the services they provide, and you need to do little more than make a decision to use these businesses. We proudly support Plantfulness and their message of “Gardening for Good”.
From clothing to wine, and even mobile phone plans, a tree is planted for every product or the monetary amount you commit to. These tree initiatives are usually in parts of the world that are aiming to regenerate or bring nature back into their communities. Minimum effort from you, maximum impact on the world. If you really want to get your hands dirty, contact your local council and see how you can become involved in environmental initiatives closer to home.
Even the smallest changes can make a huge impact on our future if we all take a step in the right direction. Happy New Year!