I hate the word “sustainability”. It’s such a buzz word and in a lot of ways, very generic, impersonal and meaningless. Even when I use the word I hate it, because how can you encompass all the ideas, ideologies, philosophies, pedagogies, experiences, et cetera that makes up what “sustainability” is?
I think John Robinson gave the best metaphor in a lecture – sustainability, like all great things in life, cannot be defined. It is unique to each person. Such that is life, beauty, love…and I like to believe that.
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I often find that I’m fighting myself in my decisions. For example, I went to Sejuiced today which is this awesome little restaurant. They’re all vegan/vegetarian and crazy crazy good. But I had to get it to go and didn’t have any containers for the drink or the food. So this awesome restaurant had biodegradable, compostable, recycled containers. Hence – it’s my new love!
However, I get to school to work in the SUB. And I can’t find any composting bins (since Pacific Spirit Place was closed). I mean – I could’ve taken 5 minutes and walked to Irving – and if I had thought about it it probably would’ve been worth it. But what about the million of other compostable containers that wouldn’t be composted because, well – it’s too much work.
And then I get really upset that this seems to be a recurring battle within myself. Being resourceful, buying less packaging and reducing the overall waste I produce is always at the forefront of my mind. But the more I think about it, the more I see the things I am not doing.
For example, composting at home. Since I live at home, it’s hard to communicate with my family the importance of placing organics in a different location. I’ve tried to start a conversation many times over it, but at the end of the day, it’s always cut short by a “why don’t you do it – it’s too much work for us”. So most of the time when I’m at home, I make the trip down to the yard trimmings box to compost the food scraps from what I cooked. It’s disappointing, frustrating, and definitely contributes to the daily battle I have with myself.
I just feel like I’m not doing enough. Even when I’m trying my best – I just wish I had the resources, autonomy and finances to invest in more sustainable waste management practices in my own home.