2nd May 2025
Rather than finding green and/or ethical alternatives products to maintain our lifestyles, we might rather want to reflect on the idea of ‘enoughness’*. We live in a society and an economic system which sees having a better life and having more to consume as two things that run in tandem. But that may not be so. Having more to consume may make us anxious, may give us more responsibilities, may increase our dependency on things that costs more than we can afford. Having more to consume will likely increase the amount of ‘waste’ be that extra packaging or the single use, throw away nature of the product.
Paper hankies can make our lives easier but they create waste from the tissue that is thrown away, and from the plastic packet or paper box in which they were packed. A cotton handkerchief can be washed and reused giving years of use from a single purchase.
Kitchen gadgets – magi-mixers, stick blenders, spice grinders, soup and ice-cream makers, air fryers, sandwich toasters: the list is endless – can make our lives easier but do we use all of them sufficiently often to justify their purchase? For with each purchase comes the use of more resources to make them, the kitchen space needed to store them, the packaging to recycle and finally the cost of recycling the product itself?
Maybe there is merit in looking at what we already have that might serve the function? The wooden spoon, the grill, the ice box etc.
Joy in Enough, part of Green Christian, believes ‘Christians have a key role in modelling a way of life that respects the environment and serves others, finding fulfilment in what we have and not always wanting more.’ Their remit is to ‘offer study materials, talks and stories about current events, movements and activities which offer a vision of the future we want to see. We provide resources for people to decide what they can do, at a personal, community, national and global level, to challenge effectively our current way of living and bring about the changes needed in our economy, and wider society.’
* https://cac.org/daily-meditations/flourishing-is-mutual/
The Green Tau 