By Margot Sarfas, 16
In light of the second Youth for Climate Change March in the past few months, I’ve been thinking a lot about the little things that I can do in my daily life that make a difference. I’ve become acutely aware of the amount of plastic bags I get when I buy lunch, even though with a simple request I could have a paper bag. I started using paper bags more but even then I have a reusable bag in my school locker. Why have I become so lazy? In order to save my breath and five extra steps in the wrong direction, I have put the planet at expense. I think that it’s really important to start acknowledging these little things that can easily be avoided, like reducing the amount of meat we eat.
Sometimes our actions really do speak louder than words. People’s priorities get in the way of our choices. If my priority is eating lunch quickly, I won’t ask for a paper bag or backtrack to get my reusable bag even though this doesn’t actually save me a significant amount of time. We’re constantly weighing external factors, reducing our choices to decisions. It’s hard not to be lazy or let others choose for us, but, I’m trying to challenge that.
Choosing to use 31st State is something that I feel proud of. I want to choose products that value quality and the importance of lasting impacts. I want to feel proud that I get an amazing product that supports sustainability. I want to feel proud in my actions and have great results. That is why I choose 31st State. These small actions make me feel like I have control over something when all of High School life around me is crazy. It’s nice to have a simple skin care routine to calm me down before my standardized tests and to be proud of the conscious choices and actions I am making.