If you are feeling overwhelmed and helpless due to all this end-of-the-world talk, you are not alone. The global media images of millions of people out on the streets protesting has certainly brought that fact to light!

I’ve had moments in this past year in which I’ve struggled to even get out of bed. Knowing that the planet is falling apart around us has at times led me to feeling that there is no point in, well, anything at all.

And watching those around me passionately fighting for all kinds of other causes or personal goals has been infinitely frustrating. Vegans chaining themselves to things and storming supermarkets in protest of animal cruelty seems ludicrous when we are currently losing 200 species per day due to climate change. There will be no need to fight against animal cruelty if all the animals are gone! By all means, protest, but inform people that eating animals is majorly contributing to the end of the world, would you please?!

It’s crazy isn’t it, how the thought that humanity (and all the animals) might completely disappear, can somehow so deeply impact our present day-to-day lives. Equally as crazy as the fact that the majority of people seem relatively unaffected by the impending doom.

Many people, I’m supposing those who are not blessed with the gift of hyper-sensitivity, are simply brushing it all aside with “well we did this to ourselves” and “I’ll be dead anyway.”

I wish I could think that way, but frankly, what have the chances of that ever been (from someone who couldn’t even continue to eat meat after about the age of four)?

And then there are those who are content to live in complete denial. But let’s not even bother going there.

The question is: How DO we keep getting out of bed every day and continue going to our jobs, which are for the most part contributing to the problem?

Where do we even begin? Do we give up and just continue consuming because there is no real hope anyway? Do we rage against the governments and corporations to blame?

I’ve essentially gone through an entire grief process: denial, anger, depression, acceptance.

Only, thankfully, in my acceptance, I am still doing my absolute best to battle against what is happening. That is because I have to in order to stay sane.

Attending the climate strike last week was a non-negotiable for me. No one else from my job went. I’m so thankful that I was there, surrounded by other people feeling as I do. It gave me real hope. And not just hope that after I’m dead the kids will figure it out. Hope that right here and now, people care. They care about each other, the planet, the animals.

The earth is our home, and we belong to it; not the other way around. The feeling of connectivity was stronger than I have ever felt before.

Let me share with you some of the other things that have helped keep my head above water (pun intended).

First and foremost: Eckhart Tolle

Whenever I’m at a total loss to understand this world, Eckhart helps. Thanks mate!

On Oprah’s Supersoul Conversations last month, Eckhart talked about acceptance of troubled times.

He confirmed what I’d already been thinking; that the worse the trouble, the stronger the people become. We rise to meet our challenges. And we grow spiritually as we do so. Eckhart always talks about the evolution of humanity. And as the only spiritual teacher Oprah has ever met who appears to be completely egoless, I’m inclined to believe him.

Humanity is currently very clearly dysfunctional. We are spiritually broken. Selfish and hollow. Seeking to fill ourselves up in all the wrong ways. Every time a catastrophic tragedy occurs, it pushes us to grow. It erodes our egos and forces us to come together.

It’s sad that we have to hit rock bottom in order to get there, but then again, isn’t it nice to know that there may well be a divine reason for all of this: the end of individualism, race and religion, and a whole new era of unconditional love?

Knowing that as individuals we CAN make a difference

For a while there I was convinced it was hopeless. We know that 100 companies are responsible for 71% of all greenhouse gases. So what the f@*! can lil’ ol me possible do?

Then there are our governments; bound by economic responsibilities, under massive pressure from said companies. Even in the world’s best democratic systems, through which we elect based on environmental policies/promises, it seems that very little comes to fruition.

A few quotes

Joseph de Maistre, a French diplomat who died in 1821 – “Every country has the government it deserves.”

Franklin D Roosevelt – “Let us never forget that government is ourselves and not an alien power over us. The ultimate rulers of our democracy are not a President and senators and congressmen and government officials, but the voters of this country.”

Or Abraham Lincoln – “The philosophy of the school room in one generation will be the philosophy of government in the next.”

Although many of us are inclined to believe that our systems are broken and corrupt and ruled by an invisible empire of 1%ers, our votes or lack of votes, or our rebellion and uprising, does indeed impact upon the governments we have.

A great many New Zealand and Canadian people are outraged by the lack of follow-up from our leaders. We are sick of empty promises. We spoke with our feet and took to the streets last week. At the same time, those who did not join spoke too. Based on this, it appears our governments ARE representing the majority of the people in our countries. Although the turn-outs were massive, the proportion of people who remained silent was as well.

I can’t speak to those countries with truly broken electoral systems, but those countries with the best ones have not exactly revealed climate change to be a top priority for voters.

This means that we need to educate and inform. We need to talk about the issue ad-nauseam. Share the science. Have our facts straight. Raise our children right.

Protesting not only sends a message to the government, it gets those people who aren’t protesting talking about why we are. The other day I saw a farmer post a long eloquent rant on facebook about the plight of New Zealand farmers and how sick of all this environmentalist vegan rubbish taking over the news she was. “Great!” I thought. People are talking.

No one who is going to be economically impacted by the coming changes is going to be happy about it. But being unhappy and prepared is far better than being in total denial.

We are making progress.

The more people become aware, the more power we have to change things.

Those companies contributing the 71% of greenhouse gases – WE are the ones buying from them. WE are keeping them in business. WE buy the petrol for our gas guzzlers. WE buy the clothes made in the fossil-fuel fueled factories. WE eat the meat fed with the soy grown in the burning Amazon. It’s all US.

So WE have the power to change things. I feel empowered now! Do you?!

Here’s what we can do. Let’s get specific…

Start with this: Learn what your environmental footprint is.

There are many things you can do to reduce it. Even switching from beef to chicken helps.

  • Ideally, go plant-based most of the time and limit your meat to three times a week maximum (recommended by eco-friendly governments as a sustainable amount).
  • Walk more. Move closer to work if you have to. I hardly ever drive these days. 
  • Insulate your house. 
  • Buy second-hand clothes.

Here, watch this mind-blowing talk on the fashion industry. You’ll never go back.

  • Stop flying so much! If you can afford to fly everywhere, you can afford an electric car.
  • Stop buying goods wrapped in plastic.
  • Buy local.
  • Grow your own food.
  • Tell your friends.
  • Tell your friends in China.
  • Vote green. There are lots of great sites to help you know which of your local council members have the best policies. Here are a few NZ  ones: The voting climate,  Score Card Auckland
  • Follow Greenpeace and sign their petitions

Time to put pressure on those polluting industries by not buying what they are selling.

I’d rather see the economy of New Zealand go under than the literal land mass go under, wouldn’t you?

The economy will bounce back in time, once we develop more sustainable solutions and products. Humanity, and our animal friends, won’t.

Once more for the record: Animal agricultural is a big biG BIG part of the problem. It is why the amazon is burning. It is why we have no clean water, and why we are running out of water.

Here, watch this documentary:

Arm yourself with the facts and get out there and spread them. I do it every single day. There are many more to be found than the simple few I’ve included in this post. And knowledge is power.

I promise you, you’ll feel better. This is all just growing pains. The good news is, we’re all in this together, and the potential to connect is immense.

Aroha (love) to you all.