We’re covering the old adage, “Vote with your wallet.” “Vote with your dollars.” “Put your money where your mouth is,” and other cliches.
You don’t just vote at the ballot box during election season, you vote every. single. day. I’m going to teach you how to harness that power and use it!
Of course, this is only one small piece of the puzzle. We’ll be covering other action steps late in the challenge. But, if you’re feeling a little impatient be sure to check out my blog post and video how to fight climate change as one person.
It’s day twenty-four of the zero waste challenge! Welcome back. The beginning of the challenge is focused on simple swaps like bringing your own water bottle and bags to the grocery store.
The second phase of the challenge is focused on lifestyle changes like learning to make your own snacks, decluttering your life the zero waste way, and conserving natural resources.
Now, we’re into the third phase of the challenge. The activism phase. The phase where you get to get a little outside of yourself and work on bringing change at a whole new level.
(I will say a couple of posts are out of order. We had an activism post earlier in the challenge and we’ll have a lifestyle change in this section, but you can forgive me, right!? Thanks :)
Today we’re talking about voting with your dollars!
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the problem:
We the people. We the consumer. We the demand.
We, surprisingly have a lot of say in what gets made and purchased. Companies simply supply what we ask for. For instance, if we all go gangbusters over quinoa or avocados, companies are going to start supplying a lot more quinoa and avocados.
If we go nuts over cheaply made, plastic clothing - then companies are going to start making a lot of cheap, plastic clothing.
If we go nuts over sustainable products, then a lot of companies are going to start selling sustainable products. We have certainly seen a massive increase in sustainable companies in the last few years. Especially with a zero waste and plastic free slant.
The problem, of course, is that there’s a lot of disconnect. Most people don’t see individual action as a viable course of action. They choose to blame everything on companies, but continue to support the very institutions that are responsible for a lot of destruction.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying companies are blameless. They have a lot of responsibility to hold for this as well. I am saying that there is responsibility on both ends.
The consumer must first act, so policies and businesses can react.
No business is going to start, if there isn’t even some demand in the market.
the solution:
Vote with your dollars! Every day you get to choose what type of world you want to live in with your choices.
I’m not saying you going to be perfect, of course not. We don’t live in a perfect world. But, we can still make strides to do better. We can make better choices.
So, try to make more positive purchasing choices and implement some of the daily actions we’ve discussed in the challenge like bringing your own mug or brewing your own coffee, saying no to straws, and packing your snacks!
When it comes to making purchasing choices, try to buy from ethical brands. Look for brands that give back to causes, brands that pay a living wage, brands that have a mission statement around sustainability.
I love shopping secondhand, because I love reducing my impact by removing items from the waste stream. But, I also really love supporting ethical and sustainable businesses. I want to see ethical and sustainable businesses succeed.
take the challenge!
The next time you’re in the market for something. Go ahead and wait those thirty days to make sure it’s something that you truly need, and then if it is. Try and source it from a sustainable brand.
You challenge is to google the companies you regularly buy from. Pick 5 to start. See if they align (mostly) with your values.
There aren’t many companies that check off 100% of my boxes, so I try to get 85% checked when shopping. To learn more about this practice see my blog post How to Make the Best Choice for the Environment.
Will you take the challenge?
want more?
Just starting out? Have 1,000 burning questions!? Get access to my private Facebook group, where I’ll be hosting weekly lives throughout the challenge and I answer all of your most pressing questions.
I’m the head content creator over at pelacase.com and have partnered with them to create an email version of the challenge. I will be sending out weekly recap letters with Pela if you’d prefer to have this challenge in larger chunks and delivered straight to your inbox.
PLUS! I’ll be sending out a brand new e-book at the end of the challenge called the Game On Handbook. Which is all about individual ways to fight climate change. You don’t want to miss it.
miss a day?
