Living a sustainable lifestyle looks a little different depending on who you are and what you have access to. This is because sustainability focuses on a lot of different things. Things like repurposing, reducing waste, and reusing resources, are just a few among many popular sustainable lifestyle practices. One sustainable lifestyle practice that isn’t as popular, is mental sustainability. The mental side of sustainability is too often overlooked, and is a great practice that everyone has access to. So as I continue on the path to living a more sustainable and ethical life, I often remind myself about the positive impacts of a mental approach.
What is Sustainability?
If you look up the word sustainability in the dictionary, you would see phrases like “able to use something without depleting or ruining it”, or “lasting for a long time”. And while both of these definitely help make up the definition of sustainability, they don’t help in explaining what it looks like or it’s mission.
When considering if an action is sustainable or not, it can be helpful to think about the resources, ethics, and economy involved. In fact, some would says that sustainability consists solely of these three pillars; economy, environment, and society. The economy pillar focuses on sustainable practices from the viewpoint of a consumer-led culture. Actions like ethically sourcing goods and the conservation of resources can be found in this pillar. The environmental pillar focuses on the preservation of biodiversity and ecosystems through natural resources, waste, and all other green initiatives. Reduce, reuse, recycle. The final pillar, society, focuses on the quality of human life now, and for future generations. With these three pillars in mind, the mission of sustainability and the steps we can take to achieve it, are clear. But what about the pillar for the mental side of sustainability?
Recommended Reading: Creating a Sustainable Lifestyle: Three Essential Steps
The Fourth Pillar
Economy, environment, and society are very important pillars in the conversation of sustainability, as is mentality. Considering the effects that non-sustainable practices, like fast fashion and over consumption, have on humanity is essential in kickstarting our mental approach to sustainability. Asking ourselves questions like “how do I want to participate in society?”, “what do I hold sacred as an individual?”, and “what are my values and morals?” get this conversation started. Building a mental connection to living a sustainable life can help motivate and hold us accountable.
The time has come to make mentality the fourth pillar of sustainability. And just like the other three, the mentality pillar consists of countless actions that focus on a larger mission. Actions like morality and mindfulness are a few among many. The Journal of Alternative and Contemporary Medicine says ““We postulate a hierarchy of effects of environmental elements ranging from simply nontoxic to safe (both physically and psychologically) to ‘providing a positive context’ to being actively salutogenic.” This points out that the efforts we make in creating a sustainable lifestyle consist of both outward and inward thinking. The outward thinking and actions are found in the first three pillars, while inward thinking and actions make up the mental pillar.
And while mentality plays a huge role in sustainability, sustainability plays a huge role in mental health. As I ask myself questions like “how do I want to participate in society?”, I am encouraged to think about the relationships I have with others and objects. In making conscious choices that help others and myself, I realized that the relationships I have started to improve. For instance, making conscious fashion choices like thrifting and repurposing clothes improved my relationship with money and hand-me-downs. Also, knowing where the food I buy comes from and who made it, improved my relationship with eating habits. There are countless examples of how a sustainable lifestyle can improve mental health, and the recommended reading below explains more about what that can look like.
So when living a sustainable lifestyle improves our mental health, and mentality improves our ability to live a sustainable lifestyle, why not feed two birds with one scone.
Recommended Reading: Developing Mental Sustainability
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