Recently I watched Seaspiracy and hopefully you already know what I am talking about but if you don’t then Seaspiracy is essentially: A documentary educating us on how our Oceans are dying, therefore our planet, therefore we are going to die and oh, how we are being lied to with stamps that say ‘Dolphin Friendly Tuna.’ There is a bit more to it than that but I won’t do it justice. Go watch it yourself.
I know this type of post will trigger a lot of people for different reasons, whether you are for or against the documentary and the messages they convey, but I’m not here to persuade you either way. The documentary made me realise something else. Does anyone really know how to help?
How Can We Help When We Don't Know How To Help?
All these thoughts and questions have been bouncing around in my mind:
– I am only 1 person, what difference can I make?
– Where do I even start with trying to help?
– What can I do to make a significant difference?
– I have a full time job, I don’t have time to make a difference.
– What skills do I possess in helping to save the planet?
Maybe these sound familiar to you and you have asked yourself the same questions. Maybe you feel stuck too. Even though we have this knowledge that we NEED to make a difference, life still goes on and we still have rent to pay and full time jobs to go to. However there are people who dedicate their lives starting or working for organisations that help save the planet, and that feels far more impactful than me reusing a plastic bag. But how realistic is that? Surely we can’t all do that because how would world go round?
Removing the 'I Can't'
I messaged some friends with how I was feeling and to get their opinion. Every one of them agreed; They know they need to do more but they don’t know what to do. And this led to one friend saying; ‘So I do nothing‘. I don’t think badly of this friend, I get it!
But are we just making excuses for ourselves? These charities and organisations don’t go out of their way to make it difficult for us to get involved. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. If you want to join a charity, you fill out an application form and the chances are you’ll be approved. Of course we need to have time and probably money as we won’t get paid to do volunteer work. But to me it always feels like there’s an excuse.
‘I can’t dedicate one month of my entire life to live on a boat and help save the Oceans’
‘I can’t dedicate a few hours a week to volunteer for a charity.’
If you want something badly enough, you will figure out how to make it happen. I’m not talking about winning the lottery. If you want a nice house in a city, you’ll go find a job that helps fund that. The luxury holiday you’ve always dreamed off will be funded by cutting out takeaways and clothes shopping so you can put money aside. Your dream job might only be a university course away so you’re willing to put the work in to make that dream a reality. Where there’s a will, there’s a way.
Does this mean we actually don’t care enough for the planet to go all in and dedicate a significant chunk of our life? Maybe it’s because we don’t feel like we will get anything tangible back in return? Or maybe it’s because we are stuck in societies world of telling us how we are meant to live, and saving the planet features lower down in the list of priorities. Honestly, I think it’s an accumulation of the above but also, we don’t know how to help and we don’t know where to start. The first place would be removing the ‘I can’t’
What Can We Do To Help Save The Planet?
I don’t have all the answers to help save the planet but I can share some of my own suggestions that might benefit or inspire you. (Aside from the obvious of eat sustainably sourced food where possible, avoid single-use plastic, if you see litter pick it up etc)
- Educate yourself. As the saying goes; Knowledge is power. The more we learn and understand about the planet and our ecosystem, the more we can tailor and target what we do to help.
- Educate others. Not in an annoying, preaching way, but share the documentaries and the articles you read. Share your learnings and help others to understand better.
- Donating money is easy but donating your time is where you can really help. Of course charities need funding, but people offering their free time is harder to come by. I actually don’t have a permanent base and so I emailed a few charities to offer my time remotely. If you don’t want to get up early on a Saturday to do a beach clean, maybe you could help build and maintain a charity website or do some admin.
- If you can’t offer up your free time unpaid, you could find a paid job within a charity. The salary may not be as good but I am sure it is far more rewarding knowing the difference you are making.
- If you can take a sabbatical from your job, or find yourself in a position where you are not working for an extended period, it might be the perfect opportunity to go all in volunteering for a charity. You may even get the chance to travel!
- The biggest takeaway is to just try. No one is expecting you (or me) to save the Earth on our own, that’s impossible. But we are all responsible for playing our part.
I know it’s scary and daunting when we hear that our planet is in trouble and the easiest thing is to bury our heads in the sand and think it’s not our responsibility. But it is, whether it’s the bare minimum you can offer or dedicating all your free time, we all need to do SOMETHING.
Has this post inspired you to do more? Please share some of things you do to help make a difference to this world.
Amber x
P.s If you liked this post, you may also like Why It’s Okay To Be Female And Fail As A Feminist.