Keep on keeping on

Unusually, I don’t have a clear idea about what I want to cover in this post. It doesn’t feel like much has changed that necessitates an update. And with all the focus on building up a freelance portfolio, I haven’t been able to put in as much time volunteering for the Carbon Literacy Project as I would like.

However, when I have found time, it has been immensely uplifting and an antidote to the barrage of bad news that we encounter on a daily basis. It is incredibly inspiring and heart-warming to read many of the pledges that people make in a bid to play their own small part in addressing the climate emergency — whether that is a 10 year old determining to walk to school more often or a CEO planning a full review of the company procurement process. Each is trying to make the biggest difference they can within their own immediate sphere of influence.

I know from my own experience that the day the certificate comes through and you are accredited as Carbon Literate is a joyful moment and one that really spurs you on to enact those pledges. It confirms that you have as much information as you need to get started. You may not be an expert yet, but you’ve grasped the basics and the only way to learn more is by doing.

We need to encourage as many people to make those pledges, experience that validation and take action.

So although it seems like such a small thing to do, my own pledge is to resume the volunteering that I had been doing and make it a regular part of my week, not something that I do ‘as and when’. It is so easy for things to be deprioritised in favour of life, work or whatever and just fall by the wayside. And I shouldn’t let that happen as getting involved in the Carbon Literacy Project has been good for me and my mental health and hopefully also for the planet.

So, no time like the present…