Here is my typical New Years post, complete with goals. I’ve been thinking a lot about how to live more true to my values of sustainability, community, etc while living in an apartment building in the midst of a pandemic, wholly financially dependent on my significant other (for now) and kind of … well, chronically busted. Doing things takes energy, did you know? Energy that I now have to be careful about rationing out to myself.

With that in mind, I’ve made myself a list of (admittedly small) actions to take this year in order to bring myself to live more ethically, and I would like to set them out here for posterity.

1. Ask my apartment management about the company’s commitment to sustainability
   1. I can find this nowhere on their website with an (admittedly cursory) search, whereas my old building’s rental company were almost falling all over themselves to show how sustainable and committed to environmentalism they were.
   2. If this does not exist, send them some pointed emails about why it should. Monthly.
2. Ask my apartment management about resident community: does it exist, where to access it
   1. If it does not, create one online, probably either on Facebook or Nextdoor.
      1. To that end, post some flyers with info on them on the building bulletin boards
      2. This is in the service of creating a feeling of togetherness, neighbourly good feeling, and allowing us to help each other out in these times. A lot of residents here are elderly, and I’d like to get some cross-generational goodwill happening.
3. Get involved in a neighbourhood community garden OR just help out someone with their garden this spring/summer/fall
   1. I’m shit at gardening, esp. now since back surgery, and need help. I want to be useful, though, and connected in some way to the earth around me.
4. Send emails to the customer service inboxes of products I buy that don’t provide sustainable packaging or shipping methods
   1. The squeaky wheel gets the grease
5. Plan a sustainable, low-waste wedding
   1. I’m getting married in October and the entire wedding industrial complex is horrific on many levels, but this is one that I feel I can exercise a modicum of control over
6. Buy local and sustainable as possible
   1. This is expensive. However, inflation is skyrocketing, so things are going to be expensive no matter where I get them, in the end. And my fiancé is on board with spending on good quality food (since we’re not really doing anything else in lockdown…)
   2. Get to know the people I buy from, especially the meat vendors
      1. I’m continuing flexitarian and cutting out dairy products in the NY; I don’t think I’ll ever realistically achieve a totally vegan household, but to my mind the next best thing is buying sustainably, ethically-raised meat from local butchers on an infrequent basis
7. Donate to the local food bank on a monthly basis (figure out this financial strategy with my partner). Life is hard and getting harder out there.
8. Record and upload a talk every two months to my YT
   1. Old conference materials, maybe, and I have a few new ideas, regardless of whether I get them accepted to conferences
9. Continue bringing my best self to the non-fiction editor position at Solarpunk Magazine. I want to see it succeed and want to put in the effort to do so!

That’s all for now.