Start Where You Can This Earth Day

You open Instagram and see a video of a starving polar bear, and your heart sinks a little bit. Scrolling a little past that jarring reminder about climate change, you come across a video about how, thanks to fast fashion, we already have enough clothing to keep everyone clothed for the next several generations—buy more, kill the planet. Your feed contains videos about microplastics, factory farming, and a deinfluencer lecturing on ‘underconsumption core.’ And that’s just one social media platform. 

Does anyone else have a social media algorithm that resembles mine? The above is a sampling of what I might view in a day. 

Now, there’s nothing wrong with pro-environment social media content. I’m all for it—I’ve been an environmentalist for many years and still learn new things and get ideas from sustainable creators I follow. Social media is also a great place to keep up with the news. The problem comes when too much information leads to paralysis. 

If you want to live in a way that is friendlier to the planet, but social media, the news, or any other factor in your life has completely overwhelmed you, let me offer a gentle push forward: Just start where you can. 

You must recognize that no one is a perfect environmentalist. It’s a myth. We are people embedded within structures we did not set up and a global economy that often fails to put the planet first. There are more forces at play than just your willpower. 

However, that’s not a reason to do nothing. We’re free-marketeers! We believe in the power of the individual! You can’t heal the whole world, but you can start in your own home and your own community. 

You just have to take a single step forward to start walking down a more sustainable path. Can you cut plastic from an area of your life? Reduce your car use? Keep the house warmer than usual this summer? Have a Meatless Monday (or give up meat altogether)? Donate to a conservation group doing important work? There are so many little steps you can take—don’t overthink it, pick one and go. 

Before you can run toward a goal, before you can even walk, you have to start. April 22 is Earth Day, and April is widely regarded as Earth Month. What better time for you to take a small step forward for the planet?