am far from it. The hats I wear daily: parent,
husband, business professional, citizen, brother,
reminders of how imperfect I am as a human being. But
knowing this makes me strive to improve. We all wear
many hats, and this can feel overwhelming at times, as if
we wear none of the hats very well. Something always
seems to get "shortchanged"; yet we trudge along through
our days hoping that our situations will improve. Finding
a sense of belonging and balance in your life requires
patience, humility, and endurance. Sustainability offers
a foundation, frame of mind, and actionable approach
toward living a lifestyle with purpose and impact, and
for pragmatically achieving balance in your daily life.
And in the process, it is a doorway to a better you and a
better world as a result.
daunting goal to pursue. People, and our relationship with one
another and the earth, are the common denominator to a more
or less sustainable world. Seven billion people now occupy earth,
competing for a fixed amount of natural resources. We all need
access to clean water, food, and shelter for survival. Yet these
seemingly basic life needs are underserved or altogether unmet
daily for billions of people. The survival and consumption needs of
seven billion people intensify each year as more and more natural
resources are consumed, and natural resource damages and
declines in ecosystem services perpetuate. To add insult to injury,
the disparity between the "have" and "have not's" is increasing,
resulting in greater disdain, frustration, and anxiety among the
99% of the global citizenry feeling helpless within their own life let
alone challenges in global sustainability.
on, is that "we the people" have the power, passion, and
be an indefinable complex topic for academic or political elite.
Sustainability is actually about the billions of behaviors and
decisions, taken and made by seven billion people daily toward
improving upon and bettering their "life context". At birth we may
not be able to influence where we are born, how we got there,
or the world which we are born into. However, as we grow and
mature throughout life we can take action in our daily lives
to create a better world through our personal decisions and
behaviors. The seven billion people living on earth today represent
The Sustainability Generation. Our fait and that of earth are very
much one in the same.
of political, environmental, economic, education, healthcare, and
other large systems that have become disconnected with the
needs, goals, and current context of the "99%" of the population
who feel disconnected. Personal accountability means taking
action to live your life with a sense of balance, purpose, and
continuous betterment for yourself and those around you. It is not
something that can or should be mandated, regulated, or legislated.
Sustainability is about finding your life passion and pursuing it to
the fullest with the resources available to you. Sustainability is not
about achieving more or working with less. It is about achieving
balance, continuity, and happiness with ourselves and in the
context of the physical world around us. That context in which we
live is always changing. Influences on your daily context include
the geopolitical and religious conflicts, war, terrorism, disease,
natural disasters, changes in political leadership, uncertainty in
financial markets among many others. These influences shape the
world around us, and too often, who we become.