Environmental Sustainability and Ecopsychology - Essay Example

? ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY Inserts His/Her Inserts Inserts In modern times, sustainability has taken an important stage in the world’s politics. Despite being a worldwide issue, many people have yet to instill sustainability practices in their daily lives. While it is important for big companies to be responsible for the environment, the burden of enacting this change ultimately lies on each and every human being. I have been working as a nanny for the past several years. In the past few months, I have been commuting to and from work by bicycle at least twice a week. I chose this mode of transportation as it is good for the environment through reduction of harmful emissions and minimal waste, while also improving my health by providing a way to exercise. While reviewing my journal, I realized that while riding my bicycle to work offered a lot of benefits, I faced various challenges in my day to day life. Most of these challenges were due to the people around me and the culture of my neighborhood. Due to human interconnectivity, each action we take is influenced and also influences others. Although I try to commute to work using my bicycle as much as possible, I noted that on Mondays, and Fridays, I usually use my car. I also noted that I usually used my car for shopping errands wherever they arose. Most of the time is because I have a baby accompanying me but in other times, I simply choose to travel using the car with no thoughts whatsoever, it is just part of the job. While I usually attributed this trend as due to simplicity and simply my decision, I realized that this choice might have been influenced by what the people I associate do and expect. In my neighborhood, people commute daily, to and from work or shopping errands, using vehicles. This is what people consider as normal and thus expected (introspection allusion). It is thus instilled into me that I should engage in this culture and in order to fully embrace sustainability, I need to break this norm. One of the major challenges I faced daily was social norms. Social norms exist in two forms: descriptive norms or injunctive norms (Koger & Winter, 2010). In my neighbourhood, the main mode of transportation is through traveling by personal cars. My friends and neighbors use cars for to accomplish their needs and have a problem understanding why I use my bicycle as a mode of transportation. Most of my neighbors and friends admit that they cannot imagine commuting without their cars. This descriptive norm at my neighborhood and place of work has challenged my view of riding my bicycle many times causing me to hesitate due to various reasons. One of the reason is that riding my bicycle to work takes longer and leaves me either dirty or sweaty necessitating the need for a shower when I arrive at my workplace. Riding in the morning cold and during the dark is another factor that causes me to hesitate as my friends point out it is risky to ride alone and foolhardy to face the cold in order to reduce one car on the road. Despite this, many environmentalist as well as my closest neighbors, preach the benefits of environmental sustainability and how riding the bicycle is not only good for the environment, it is also good for personal health as well as the health of others (injunctive norm) (Koger & Winter, 2010). One of my favorite hobbies is riding my bicycle on the neighborhood trails during weekends together with my friends. This habit was not due to a bigger picture but simply enjoyment and on realizing its potential to During my daily ritual of riding to work, I noted at least two of my friends picked up riding to work at least once a week. When we chatted, they answered that they needed the exercise as well as engage in environmental sustainability. This is a form of social diffusion, where people pick up practices to follow others (Koger & Winter, 2010). Social diffusion is a very important aspect in enacting social change and through this, I intend to engage my friends into changing their view of nature and how they can help in environmental sustainability. Riding my bicycle to work was mainly due to my personal norms. From my studies and through the media, I have noted how our actions affect the environment. I thus chose to make a positive impact on sustainability and I usually feel guilty using cars when I see others going to work on their bicycles (introjected norms). In my life, I usually enjoy the environment either through taking walks to the local park on weekends or taking up camping when I am free. I am very at home with nature, a remnant of my childhood. It is due to this that I took up riding and thus enjoy it as much as I do. This is part of my integrated personal norm as it is what I know, that is, enjoying nature and protecting it for others to feel this joy. In my research on environmental sustainability, I came upon a group that has been involved in sustainability practices for the past several years. The Sustainable Northwest is a non-profit organization based in Portland, Oregon (Sustainable northwest, 2013). The group mainly engages in strengthening the local environment as well as economies of communities in the Northwest. In their manifesto, they explain that they find solutions through engaging in the long term wellbeing of small communities and regions that they serve (Sustainable northwest, 2013). They help in restoring ecosystems, improving relationships between diverse groups, as well as helping others attain living wage jobs. Through the efforts of Sustainable Northwest, Lake County, Oregon is on its way to become the first county in the country to offset its fossil fuel emission by taking up renewable geothermal and solar powered energy production facilities (Anderson, 2006). The organization has also helped communities in northern California in increasing forest health as well as creating fire adapted communities with people from these communities able to help and take care of forest fires as they arise (Sustainable northwest, 2013). In Oregon, the organization has set up collaborative forest management practices involving local leaders from different communities. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, environmental justice denotes the unbiased treatment and crucial involvement of all individuals irrespective of nationality, race, income or color, with regards to the enforcement, development or implementation of the various environmental laws (Macy & Johnstone, 2012). Sustainability is based on three main pillars, economy, ecology and equity. Various groups of people have different perception of sustainability and thus approach it differently. Sustainability and environmental justice go hand in hand as every person in the states in responsible for their actions and how this action affects others. Through equity, one of the main pillars of sustainability, environmental justice can help people better understand their environment and how to change for the better. In the case of my example of commuting by bicycle, my friends and well as the people in the neighborhood I work in should understand the various regulations against air pollution and the various ways to help stop it. It is only through involvement and collaboration that we can be able to change how people act and maybe a large percent of my co-workers will take up commuting by bicycles. In my study as well as research I came upon the field of ecopsychology. Ecopsychology is a field that studies the relationship between people and the environment through psychological and ecological principles (Kahn & Hasbach, 2012). According to this field, most behaviors that damage the environment are addictive at some level, and therefore can be countered through emotional fulfillment rather by using shame to enforce change. People are addicted to comfort of riding cars and the simplicity of it. The connection between people and their vehicles is so ingrained that most people cannot imagine not riding to work and thus to change this trend we have improve the connection of individuals to nature and thus breaking the hold technology has on them. It is only by helping others notice and accept nature that we can change how they act. It is this that ecopsychology seeks to undertake and thus influence sustainability practices on all people. References Anderson, D. R. (2006). "The critical importance of sustainability risk management." Risk Management. Vol. 53, no. 4 Koger, S. and Winter, D. (2010). Social psychology: Under the influence of others. In S. Koger and D. Winter (Eds.), The psychology of environmental problems (pp. 95-130). New York: Psychology Press. Kahn, P. and Hasbach, R. H. (2012). Ecopsychology: Science, totems, and the technological species. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. Macy, J. and Johnstone, C. (2012). Active hope: How to face the mess we’re in without going crazy. Novato, CA: New World Library. Sustainable Northwest Organization. (2013). Innovative Solutions for Healthy Landscapes and Vibrant Communities. Retrieved from Read More