Hopefulness Today I’m committing to banishing eco-guilt from my life and I want you to do the same. Yes we are facing an environmental disaster but placing the blame on ourselves isn’t fair. You know, if you have been on this blog for more than five minutes, that I am all about taking action so I’m not proposing that we let ourselves off the hook. I just want us to be kinder to ourselves and leave the eco-guilt behind. First of all, although the feeling of guilt can motivate us to act to remediate the consequences of our actions (or inactions), the shame and embarrassment that arise from guilt are perhaps more likely to lead to avoidance and inaction. Furthermore action that we do take as a result of eco-guilt is, I suggest, motivated not by a desire for a healthier planet but to make ourselves feel better. Going back to Simon Sinek’s Golden Circle , continued progress towards our goals is aided by focusing on a deep ‘why’ and I believe that “to make myself feel better” is not deep and powerful enough for sustained action. Photo by Cris Tagupa on Unsplash But that isn’t the biggest reason […]
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