Additional insight into hyperconsumption
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Ten Minutes with Colin Beavan, the No Impact Man
KS: What was (were) the deciding factor(s) that made you decide to reduce your impact, ultimately becoming the No Impact Man?
CB: In 2006, we had both the Iraq war and news of the melting of the polar ice caps. This was terribly depressing. On the one hand, we were fighting a war for the oil to power our corporatized way of life. On the other, we were melting the planet as a result of burning that oil for the same way of life. In between we had the way of life itself, which didn't seem to be making people happy. Americans are stressed. They work too much. Twenty-seven percent of us suffer from anxiety and depression. It just didn't seem like a way of life to fight a war and kill a planet for. So what if we could possibly discover a way of life that was both happier for the people and happier for the planet? That's what I wanted to discover.
KS: How were the first stages of reducing your impact? What were the initial steps you took?
CB: When I began the experiment, I stockpiled my family’s trash for a week to figure out what disposable items they could stop consuming and throwing away without sacrificing their happiness or comfort. Three months into the year-long experiment, I stopped consuming new goods (except food).
KS: Are you still continuing to live this way today?
CB: It makes sense to eat food with no unpronounceable poison chemicals in it, so we still prefer food from our trustworthy, local farmer. Rather than take a taxi to the gym so that we can then run in place on the treadmill, it makes sense to get our exercise as part of the day by biking and walking. It makes sense to save money so we've cut our power consumption.
KS: How has altering your lifestyle affected the way you think about the world?
CB: When we at the No Impact Project [link to website, www.noimpactproject.org] first launched our immersion program in extreme environmental living—No Impact Week—I didn't dream that more than 15,000 people would participate in only a year and a half. After all, we’re not talking about 15,000 people taking a couple of hours out of their day to attend a political rally or protest environmental issues. We are talking about 15,000 people who have taken an entire week out of their lives to experiment with socially and environmentally responsible lifestyles. That’s a lot of people taking on a big commitment. It’s a lot of people with big hearts, who care about how we live and are questing for a better life. It’s humbling how many individuals around the world truly want to take responsibility for our planet’s problems and find a better way to live—a way based on human values rather than economic ones.
KS: What is the number-one thing consumers can do to lessen their impact most efficiently?
CB: Some people are political so they can become activists. Others are self-conscious, and so they can change the way they live and help others to do the same. Some are business people, and so they can help change business. Be you. Use your skills, passions and interests to help each other and the world. KS: What do you see for the future of the earth?
CB: Which of us knows whether we will become a Martin Luther King or a Mahatma Gandhi or a John Kennedy when we first start? But also, these famous people would have gotten nowhere without the thousands upon thousands of anonymous people who tried to make a difference. Society is an illusion. It is only the average outcome of the masses of individuals. Change in the masses of individuals begins with one of that mass changing. The question for all of us is this: not whether we are able to make a difference, but whether we want to be the type of people who try.
For more information on how to get involved with e-waste, check out these resources:
Information provided by Katelyn Schiavone and Jennifer Ingles
Cell phone picture by Brittany Myers
Photo of Colin Beaven courtesy of Jesse Jiru Davis
Cell phone picture by Brittany Myers
Photo of Colin Beaven courtesy of Jesse Jiru Davis
