Hi, friends.

I’m going to take a moment to just be honest: This Earth Day, I felt a little (okay, a lot) worn down. Maybe it’s the blast of 30 degree weather in late April that sends me shivering back into the house instead of lounging on our back porch, or the sheer exhaustion of green-washing messages from corporations and a flood of emails offering me “special Earth Day savings.”

But I’m willing to bet that you’re feeling it too. So I just wanted to send a gentle reminder that there is no purchase that you can— or should— make to signal your “eco-friendliness” to the world, and no swipe of your credit card will make you “green.” Certainly, there are items that can help meet a particular need, such as shampoo bars or silicone bags (and I recommend products from time to time because I know just how hard I searched to find them!). But there is nothing— absolutely nothing— you can find on a store shelf or marketing e-mail to “make you green.”

Instead, I try to care for the Earth, on Earth Day and every day, in just a few ways:

1. Bringing only the things that add value in to my life— the “greenest” gadget in the world sitting unused in my closet does more harm than good, both to my sanity and the Earth’s resources.

2. Sourcing them in ways that feel sustainable to me— including a mix of second-hand items, small-businesses that I would like to support, and companies that are making serious strides to manage their environmental impact (not just sending “We ❤️ the 🌎 ” emails on April 22nd).

3. Trying to pass things on to a second life, whether through gifting to my Buy Nothing group, re-homing to a charitable organization, or recycling.

It’s that simple.

Ultimately, we will need the millions of people with reusable water bottles and totes, companies that have re-invented the way they source and sell their products, and tangible action from governments and non-profit organizations to combat the climate crisis. But, you are only one human, so it’s okay too if your “journey” is a few steps forward, and one step back. Give yourself grace if your best effort today was take-out containers or Amazon Prime. There’s always tomorrow to try again.

And, to celebrate, just a few “good news” Earth stories that made me smile:

​Ocean Re-Wilding: England’s largest seagrass restoration project gets under way​

​Recycling Your Empty Beauty Products Just Got Way Easier (Spoiler Alert: It’s a Nordstrom + Terracycle Partnership)

​US and China Agree to Work Together on Climate Change​

Plus, Pela launched a funding campaign for the Lomi, a home composter that can break down food scraps + bio-plastics. They exceeded their funding goal with 7,775+ backers (and I’m only one of them 🤣) so far. You can learn more here.

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