A Pandemic was needed to slow us down? 

With each passing day, our world had got itself in a much more rush than needed. We had all became a slave to our fast paced lifestyle. Very few, halted and experienced every aspect of their day: the place they live in, the streets they pass by and the people they are surrounded by. Only few sought a sustainable and conscious lifestyle.

Due to the global crisis and lockdown, we see such a drastic shift in the lifestyle of people and thus an improving ecosystem. Today, as we look outside of our window, we don’t see air pollution or waste dumped roads. We can see the shape of clouds, the vibrant colours of the sky. The birds are dancing to the wind and animals are roaming freely. The global lockdown has proved how much influence humans had on climate change, animal extinctions, resources extinction and pollution. Unfortunately, we had to go through a pandemic to learn things which we should have learnt long back.

However, now the bigger question left to ask is, will this sustainable lifestyle survive post lockdown? Today everyone is being sustainable and leading a conscious life by purchasing what is needed, but is this lifestyle a choice or a choice forced upon? Many of us have realised the unintentional damage that we had caused to the environment and living creatures. Five months ago if we had asked ourselves to imagine a world where all the humans on this planet have started practising sustainability and shop and travel responsibly, without causing any damage to the ecosystem, we would have thought this to be impossible. This pandemic proved every one of us wrong.

This state of awareness will encourage many to stick to the routine of conscious life. The majority will start caring for the planet and each other. This global crisis will act as an immense change in people’s life. We are positive that some of these conscious methods will remain with every one of us as we have realised that we are just guests to this ecosystem.

What are the benefits of living sustainably?

• Preservation of resources: When we live sustainably, we tend to use resources that is needed and not desired. This method helps us in limiting the use of resources provided by nature. With the usage limit we are not just reducing waste but also preserving the resources for our future generation.

• Wildlife protection: Our sustainable actions will help us to protect endangered wildlife. These actions will provide them with a place for themselves, that is not encroached and exposed to toxic chemicals. When we dump plastics or expose toxic chemicals, we don’t realise, but we causing immense damage to other species. Check Amazon rainforest fires to understand the harm we had caused to them.

• Reduced waste and carbon footprint: The whole concept of sustainable living is to reduce waste and carbon footprint that we cause by our actions. By buying only the needed and essential products, we are reducing waste disposals on landfills.

• Preventing climate change: Climate change is one of the most important problems that we can solve by just starting to live sustainably. The main cause of climate change is deforestation and pollution, which leads to depletion in the ozone layer. When we start living responsibly and reduce our unnecessary needs, we indirectly will help our planet to survive another day without any danger that might cause because of drastic climate change.

• Durable products: To lead a sustainable lifestyle, one must also shop responsibly. Quality should matter over quantity. This choice of lifestyle means opting for products that not only look good but are also good for your body and environment.

These measures will help us to see a great change in desertification, droughts, pollution and deforestation. Our planet is recovering from all the damage we had caused in the past. So do our Plant a favour and continue to opt for a sustainable lifestyle to help our planet heal completely.