“My Patterns Could Not Stop Me from Acting”
One day I was talking to my sister’s husband about the environment and the climate crisis, and he asked me the simple question, “What else can I do about the environment?” That led me to investigate more fully, and to confirm that a change in our eating habits can have a substantial impact on the crisis.
After a series of conversations, the idea of a “green gastronomy food festival” at the local farmers’ market was born. The farmers’ market is an open-air market to which farmers come and sell their products, mainly fruits and vegetables. It is a wonderful place to meet all kinds of people of all ages and socioeconomic situations.
Our team wanted to encourage people to talk to us, so on the front of white t-shirts we printed questions that each of us had chosen for ourselves, such as, “What are you going to do now to care for the earth?” “Do you know what food miles are?” “Do you know how long it takes to dissolve in the sea?” (The back of that one had a picture of how much time it takes for plastic, glass, and so on, to dissolve.)
At our booth we spread out our environmentally friendly “laundry” of printed material about nutrition, health, and the environment. (We didn’t provide printed handouts, to avoid creating trash.) Displayed on a screen were videos and slides about the importance of locality, seasonality, and rational food shopping.
A team of young people inspired by Greta Thunberg [a sixteen-year-old Swedish climate activist] joined us and set up a banner that read, “Act as if the house is on fire.” We made sure that their voices were heard during all the opportunities for media coverage. They spoke beautifully, spontaneously, and to the point [with a clear focus on the most important things].
We tried to ensure that the companies that offered food at the festival didn’t use disposable items, and we achieved that to a large extent. We also invited people to bring their own cutlery.
Our team had a WhatsApp group for communicating, and we held a few meetings to get organized. At one of the meetings we started by saying what connected us to the environment.
After the event, everyone wanted to continue the work, and we thought of new ways to be active.
For me it was important to break through isolation by doing things together with others. It was important to ask for support, participate in an environmental support team, and have Co-Counseling sessions. Even though my patterns tell me, “Whatever you do isn’t enough,” they could not stop me from acting.
Zakynthos, Greece
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