I notice people rarely talk about themselves and the environment. They’ll express outrage, recount facts, and say what other people should do, but not about themselves. So I’m thinking more about why. Seeing the overlap between behavioral addictions like social media, binge-watching TV, and gambling, and behavior that requires polluting reveals the overlap with why talking to addicts about their addiction goes nowhere. Addicted people resist acknowledging hurting people and[…] Keep reading →

I recently wrote about how Trying to lead an addict to admit their addiction or that they are hurting others (or themselves) is like trying to catch a fish with your bare hands. I’ve been thinking about why. Generally addiction means you’re acting against your own values, hurting others. An addict may say he or she doesn’t see that he or she is hurting others, but likely some part of[…] Keep reading →

I pledged on Flight Free USA to avoid flying. Then last year, I inspired someone to avoid flying, which led to the Washington Post quoting her. At December’s year-end meeting of organizers, I pledged to inspire five people in 2024 to pledge. I inspired five to pledge in January alone! A few cited my influence. All took my sustainability leadership workshop. I recommend it! Check out their pledges. Here’s Evelyn‘s[…] Keep reading →

Here’s the last trashed tree I expect to see this season, which I saw Sunday evening, February 4. It’s a wrecked wreath next to a portable toilet, not the only one in this post putting something presumably people considered holy or sacred plopped next to a box of poop. Stay classy, Christians! Here are more:

When I was in college and traveled abroad, I packed my stuff in an internal frame backpack. No big deal. It didn’t make me special. I remember most people my age traveling with them. It just held my stuff and by putting most of the weight on my hips, allowed me to carry it far over most terrain. I don’t remember the last time I saw someone with an internal[…] Keep reading →

This week I couldn’t use the computer much so read more than usual, including two long books and one hard-to-read one. I finished: The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America, by Richard Rothstein: I confess I recorded my podcast episode with Richard before reading the book, initially motivated by my mom’s sharing (on her and my podcast episodes) about growing up in a mostly[…] Keep reading →

I have spoken and written at length how I see our relationship with polluting behavior as qualifying as addiction, a view that I think helps frame the challenge of sustainability. Overcoming addiction is harder than creating new technologies or taxing things. It takes powerful internal social and emotional skills. Just acknowledging one is addicted and harming others is a big hurdle, let alone acting on it. Not seeing the huge[…] Keep reading →