Fridays and Families for Future
In the 1990s, I was actively involved in the major environmental issues: I was involved in the Berlin environmental summit, Greenpeace's toxic waste campaign and the first laws in the European Parliament against genetically manipulated plants and animals. I travelled through Polynesia in an outrigger canoe to save coral reefs and cycled through Hamburg to protect birds.
Twenty years later, I drive a mini-van because it was the only way to fit the whole family in. I didn't have our home converted to the Minergie standard, it was simply too expensive. And I choose my work projects pragmatically rather than idealistically - after all, I have a family to support. So far, there have always seemed to be good reasons to live a little less sustainably and with less commitment every year.
But since the forests around the world have been burning, my interest in the environment has been rekindled. I ask myself: shouldn't we as parents do more than just drive diesel, recycle a little and usually take cloth bags with us when we go shopping?
Christoph Meili from the World Wide Fund for Nature, Switzerland, answers me with an urgent yes. «If we carry on as we are, the earth will warm up by three to four degrees. That alone will mean crop losses of over a third and the extinction of around 40 per cent of all animal and plant species. Four out of five glaciers will have disappeared by the end of the century,» he warns.
New initiatives: Parents become active for their children
Most mothers and fathers are well aware that this is a bleak outlook for our children, even if there have been no studies in Switzerland to date that specifically examine parents' environmental awareness, says environmental psychologist Dr Hannah Scheuthle from the Federal Office for the Environment. But when I start looking for concrete initiatives, I meet many parents who are motivated by precisely this. To become politically active throughout Switzerland, Jonas Hostettler from Zurich, Petra Schmidt and Victor Garcia, for example, started the «Parents for the Climate» group. Over 2000 members joined in just a few months.
To ensure that environmentally friendly products are available locally, Sonja von Känel and three other mums are working to revitalise the weekly market in Therwil BL. «Not everyone can make it to the farm shops and the market is a centuries-old way of shopping with minimal packaging,» she explains. «With the support of the municipality and a donation from the local Brocki, the project is now being realised in our village.»
Product designer Ingrid Sanguanini was also motivated by the desire to shop locally and ecologically. She sells organically produced products and clothing in the oldest chalet in Appenzell. «We couldn't find anything sustainable with a beautiful design in the countryside - so now I just sell them myself,» she explains. Other families plant and harvest herbs, fruit and vegetables together in modern cooperatives.
They have their household appliances serviced and mended in one of the 156 Swiss repair cafés. Many parents rent baby and children's clothes instead of buying them and go shopping in unpackaged shops, which can already be found in over forty places in Switzerland. And they are endeavouring to act sustainably in their everyday lives.
But what does it actually mean to live sustainably? I remember from my organic studies that the term «sustainability» comes from forestry: In a sustainably managed forest, only as much wood is felled each year as will grow back. For us humans, this means keeping our own consumption of nature within the limits set by planet Earth by using and recycling resources sparingly and efficiently.
How can we start with sustainability as a family?
We also need to stop consuming more than the planet can give us. To find out what exactly we as a family are doing to pollute the environment, I first determine our ecological footprint using the WWF's footprint calculator. And I realise that our mobility, electricity consumption, heating and food cause a particularly large amount of greenhouse gases.
These «big three» are typical, explains the inventor of the calculator, Christoph Meili from WWF. In order to achieve a better environmental balance, we should use technologies that do not require fossil fuels such as heating oil, petrol and diesel. Electricity should come from solar and wind energy, we should maintain long-distance contacts online or by public transport and greatly reduce air travel. Our consumption of animal products such as meat and cheese should be reduced by at least two thirds.
My youngest daughter, who has just attended a course with environmental educator Barbara Schumacher with her class, brings home even more ideas: «I'll never take packaged snacks to school again, we need to make much more compost in the garden and not throw away so much rubbish!». Mrs Schumacher is glad that the environment has one more young but enthusiastic protector.
She teaches hundreds of kindergarten and school children every year and realises time and again that children quickly become enthusiastic about practical activities. Buying eggs on the farm where the chickens are happily pecking outside. Composting and discovering all the exciting creatures in the soil. Packing cloth bags and containers for every purchase.
She gives us a tip for the family: «Simply organise environmental protection like a game of discovery! Lay out your rubbish and see what it consists of, what can we reduce? Go through the rooms in the evening and see where the lights are flashing and glowing, what do we need to switch off? Ask yourselves, do we have to take the car or can we discover completely different ways to get to the shop, to the outing, to the grandparents?»
Barbara Schumacher advises us parents to scrutinise our own actions every day anew. We need to critically examine whether the way we have always done things is really the right thing. Or whether we could change things without sacrificing comfort?
We learn to question prejudices
Talking to committed families and experts makes sustainable living seem easy. But my everyday worries are still holding me back: we already lack time and money - where are we going to find it for the environment?
I travelled with Professor Ernst Ulrich von Weizsäcker to the Berlin Climate Summit in 1995. When I contacted him, the 81-year-old thought leader and member of the environmental researchers in the Club of Rome was delighted at my renewed interest. He reassures me and pleads for pragmatism: «Ulrike, just do what you can. With my two crutches, I can't even walk or cycle to the organic food shop. Then I'll just take the weekly shop back in the car!»
As far as costs are concerned, he advises us to be more critical and consume less, and to favour durable, repairable and maintainable products. We shouldn't constantly buy the latest thing, because new goods account for a large proportion of our consumption of natural resources. We should see through the «cheeky lies» of marketing and not buy more than is good for the environment and the family budget.
As a father and grandfather himself, he understands our time problem, but encourages me to take a completely different perspective: «The idea that the fastest always wins is a disaster for our civilisation. For families, there is great value in not getting on the speed carousel in the first place. Take it slowly, but consistently.» Wise advice.
Our children are committed to the realisation
When I tell my family that we are finally getting serious about sustainable living, I realise that the children are way ahead of us. «It's about time,» says our eldest son and reads us the latest facts: On 8 May 2020, our «Swiss Overshoot Day», we had already used up all the natural resources that the earth can regenerate within a year. Each of us produces 14 tonnes of climate-damaging CO2 per year. We would need almost three planets if every person on earth lived the way we Swiss do. We have one.
My son wants to know if he can finally go to Fridays for Future after corona. And whether we would actually get Greta's message and how urgent it is? We had already understood the need for environmental protection when Greta wasn't even born, I want to defend myself. Then I realise how badly we have protected our planet and how many years we have wasted. «Sure, you can go to the demos,» is all I say. And I resolve to go too.
What can we realise as a family immediately and in a budget-friendly way?
- Leave the car at least one day a week. Instead, walk, cycle or use public transport.
- Plan your next holiday in Switzerland or nearby countries, preferably without flying.
- Switch to a green electricity provider and consistently switch off appliances and lights.
- Make an appointment for an energy consultation; many municipalities, suppliers and Energie Schweiz (0848 444 444) offer this free of charge.
- Only buy things that you can enjoy for a long time and that can be repaired. If a new purchase is unavoidable, choose the ecologically recommended option.
- Eat meat-free at least every other day and focus on healthy, varied, plant-based foods.
- Buy regional, seasonal and organic produce once a week, preferably at the market, farm shop or organic box.
- Only buy as much food as can be eaten. If the best-before date has passed, rely on your own senses and utilise leftovers.
- Bring your own carrier bags and containers to avoid packaging waste.
- Use second-hand shops, clothing exchanges, rental and swap opportunities instead of just buying new clothes.
- Why not also get involved in the environment as a volunteer?
- Environmentally friendly voting.
About the author
More about environmental protection as a family project
- Environmental protection as a family project
What does everyday life look like when you decide to live ecologically as a family? We visited three families. - «Environmental protection should become a family project»
We know that the global climate is in a bad way - environmental psychologist Hannah Scheuthle explains why we still find it so difficult to change our behaviour. The environmental expert talks about entrenched patterns, the desire to spend Christmas on the beach and how families can manage to live more sustainably.