As we are bombarded with negative news on the environment, I sometimes struggle to stay optimistic that humanity can solve the environmental crisis we’re facing. I have to remind myself that bad news sells newspapers and TV spots. We have to go digging for good news on the environmental front. And they do exist; they just don’t get as much attention, so we’re rarely confronted with them.
One of my favourite sources of good news comes in the form of LinkedIn posts by Assaad Razzouk, aka The Angry Clean Energy Guy and author of Saving the Planet Without the Bull***. Razzouk regularly posts positive climate news, and there is always something there to cheer you up, give hope and inspire you to keep going. Just last week, Razzouk reported that 2023 would mark a turning point in electricity generation as fossil-fuelled power generation will start to decline, that new legislation in the US is driving $1.2 trillion into clean energy and that UK windfarms generated 58% of power on Easter Monday. And that was just one week’s good news.
Another brilliant source of positive news is the podcast Outrage and Optimism; as the title suggests, it’s not all good news, but it’s delivered by knowledgeable and inspiring presenters – Christiana Figueres, Tom Rivett-Carnac and Paul Dickinson – who always make you come out feeling hopeful and well-informed.
For me, the best way to stay optimistic of all is to get involved. Feeling that YOU can make a difference, however small that might be. Finding a group of like-minded people, be it colleagues at work or in your local community and taking action, however small, not only has the potential to make you feel more hopeful, but it also might actually make things better. I strongly believe that many people’s apparent indifference to climate change is not because they don’t believe in it but because they don’t know how to deal with it. Once people feel they have agency, even some of the most sceptical can be won over.
Another way of taking action is to donate to environmental causes. Do you really need that new dress? Or that gadget? Will it make you happier? Could that money be better spent giving to an organisation that works for the environment? Chances are, knowing that not only will your donation contribution help solve the problem, but it will also not be spent on something which makes the problem worse will make you happier. There’s no better way of doing that than Big Give’s Green Match Fund. Every pound you donate will be matched, so your donation will have double the impact. How about that for cheering you up?