Ways to Learn About Sustainable Living

Education Is Key: 4 Ways to Learn More About Sustainable Living

By Cora Gold

Sustainable living means creating societal habits that can last over time, preserving resources and the planetary habitat for future generations. It combines environmental, human rights, and economic factors — many moving parts go into the total picture. The issue’s complexity highlights the necessity of education, but how can you find a teacher? Here are four ways you can learn about sustainability and hone eco-friendly habits.

Why Education Matters

It seems like every week, Earth sets another record for heat or natural disasters of unprecedented sizes. Living sustainably matters more than ever, but even something as simple as putting the wrong thing in the recycling bin can stymie efforts. For instance, certain types of plastics can clog machines, resulting in more loads being sent to landfills.

Education also prevents you from falling prey to misinformation. For example, some people oppose solar panels because they claim they could increase the urban heat island effect. While research shows they can slightly raise daytime temperatures, they drop the thermostat overall.

Combining panels with light colors and green roofs can further the cooling effect. More importantly, solar panels don’t burn fossil fuels, stopping the ongoing rising temperatures caused by carbon emissions.

Four Ways to Learn More About Sustainable Living

Educating yourself about sustainability takes time. Be patient with yourself and try these four resources.

1. Try a Little DIY

You can do many do-it-yourself projects at any price point, regardless of your living situation. For example:

> Install solar devices around your home, such as solar outdoor lights.

> Create a small-scale portable solar system with some panels and a power bank that you use to power your home office equipment.

> Build a simple rainwater collection system.

> Create a compost bin out of old pallets.

> Install a programmable smart thermostat.

> Experiment with window treatments and films to take advantage of passive solar.

If you’re more handy, move on to larger projects. Converting your whole property to DIY solar is tricky — you don’t benefit from a warranty and may be unable to connect to the grid. However, you could power your shed, granny pad, or RV with DIY solar panels and slash your overall fossil fuel construction.

2. Attend Public Meetings

If you want to learn how political, economic, and environmental concerns overlap, attend a planning and zoning meeting. Becoming a regular at these provides an avenue to advocate for sustainability. Once you know the ropes and feel comfortable asking questions, you can freely contribute to the discussion.

Keep an eye on community bulletin boards, continual educational opportunities in your workplace, and local networking events. Often, sustainability experts headline such meetings to teach civic and business leaders how to align profitability with eco-consciousness.

3. Take a Course

Is there any place better than a school for learning something new? Most community colleges and parks and recreation departments publish listings of course offerings that often include those with sustainability themes.

For example, your local park and recreation center might offer a one-day class on constructing a rain garden. Commercial businesses, such as hardware stores, might also provide seminars on performing a home energy audit or fixing leaks.

Of course, your love of learning about sustainability could burgeon into a new career. There’s currently a high demand for professionals in the following fields:

> Wind turbine technician

> Solar panel installer

> Environmental scientist

> Environmental engineer

> Environmental health and safety officer

> Chief sustainability officer

4. Get Communal

Do you know someone who practices a sustainable lifestyle? Such folks are usually passionate about eco-consciousness and are happy to share tips and tricks to help you lower your carbon footprint.

There’s power in numbers, and what starts as a friendly chat could transform your neighborhood. For example, you might team up, start a community garden, or host a weekly meetup at a local coffee shop to bounce ideas off like-minded souls. Getting to know your neighbors and working side-by-side on solutions is also a powerful way to increase feelings of security amid concerns about the changing climate.