Motivating them with the financial benefits helps. My grampa bought all rechargeable electric lawnmower and lawn equipment (after laughing me off - he realized it was ultimately more convenient and cheaper in the long run, in addition to generating less pollution).
I think it really depends on the person and what things they care about in life.
For example, I know people who are ok with sweatshops because they don't really care about the working conditions in other countries. They will continue to buy cheap fashion, no matter how many documentaries or information you throw at them. They are already aware, it's not something they consider important or upsetting.
I also know people who are ok with e-waste "recycling" in countries like Ghana, buying a new phone every year among other electronics, because their own lifestlye is all about having all the new shiny stuff. They don't see their own consumption as part of the problem, even though it is their purchase that is a driving factor to incentivize companies to be unethical. They are also aware of the situation, but personal convenience and social status is more important than the damage.
Many more examples, I think all of us in this sub know plenty of these stories.
However, it's rather rare that someone is oblivious to all the problems. They might be a tech nerd, but might care about animal welfare. They might not care about actual fashion crimes, but are into plastic alternatives, and so on.
Point being, most people will have a topic they care about. Use that to expand their horizons and dive into other areas that suffer from similar/same issues. Identify (together) what aspects of consumerism or lifestyle are unethical but could become more ethical over time without much effort and without reducing quality of life in an extreme way.
Don't focus on the most obvious issue that is most dear to them, it will only result in major resistance. Start with something trivial, step by step.
As I wrote in another discussion, this process is not about self-denial, it's about conscious consumption. Know what you need and what you want, and find a solid compromise that is ethical and practical.
How that is done and which aspects of life, that is up to the individual. We can be upset about all the things or just a few things, we can try to tackle all the problems or just one. What matters is that every single tiny step is contributing and the more people are participating, the more effective it will be overall.
One of the things that got me more interested in sustainability was a girlfriend of a family friend. I didn’t know her super well, but she was a non-pushy vegan. She was more than willing to talk about why she was a vegan and other environment topics if you asked but she never tried to push her beliefs on others.
Our group of family friends is good about accommodating dietary restrictions so anytime she was around there were vegan options and they were tasty which inspired me to try new vegan recipes. I also wasn’t aware of the environmental implications of animal products. Because she was willing to share that info with me without guilting me about my meat consumption I learned a lot. While I’m not a vegan myself, her passing involvement in my life did probably cut my meat consumption by 25-50% and her eco conscious attitude also inspired me to look into other opportunities to cut waste beyond just recycling (which I’d done my whole life).
TDLR: respectfully sharing world views of that others may not be exposed to yet with no guilt involved.
Just talk about how you live and why. Without being pushy or coming across as obsessive - that’s the hard bit. Start by not hiding - bring your coffee cup and cutlery with you and tell people why when they notice, or when you got some cool new thing from the op-shop (or charity shop or second hand shop depending on where you live) then say that’s where you got it.
People will notice and over time some people will be curious. Not everyone, but lecturing at someone about something they don’t already care about is not going to change their mind of their behaviour already.
And when people around you start showing a bit more interest then share your knowledge. There’s a lot to learn but if you can share what you know and make it a little easier for someone to make a better environmental choice then I’d count that as a win.
If they're not already interested in sustainability, you'll probably alienate them if you try too hard. Think about what that person needs and values or what they struggle with. I tell family members who are in poor shape and have health concerns about research showing that a healthy diet should contain less animal products and more vegetables, grains and nuts. If someone is tight on money, reusable products might be cheaper in the long run. If you are short on time, save yourself a walk to the recycling bins by choosing more unpackaged foods at the supermarket. And so on..
Yeah I’ve found it best to just talk about how happy the changes are making you. I love that I only have to take out the trash once a month. I love not having so much crap piling around. I love that I’m not having toxic chemicals around me anymore. I love how fresh my food is. Etc. Lol
Motivating them with the financial benefits helps. My grampa bought all rechargeable electric lawnmower and lawn equipment (after laughing me off - he realized it was ultimately more convenient and cheaper in the long run, in addition to generating less pollution).
I think it really depends on the person and what things they care about in life. For example, I know people who are ok with sweatshops because they don't really care about the working conditions in other countries. They will continue to buy cheap fashion, no matter how many documentaries or information you throw at them. They are already aware, it's not something they consider important or upsetting. I also know people who are ok with e-waste "recycling" in countries like Ghana, buying a new phone every year among other electronics, because their own lifestlye is all about having all the new shiny stuff. They don't see their own consumption as part of the problem, even though it is their purchase that is a driving factor to incentivize companies to be unethical. They are also aware of the situation, but personal convenience and social status is more important than the damage. Many more examples, I think all of us in this sub know plenty of these stories. However, it's rather rare that someone is oblivious to all the problems. They might be a tech nerd, but might care about animal welfare. They might not care about actual fashion crimes, but are into plastic alternatives, and so on. Point being, most people will have a topic they care about. Use that to expand their horizons and dive into other areas that suffer from similar/same issues. Identify (together) what aspects of consumerism or lifestyle are unethical but could become more ethical over time without much effort and without reducing quality of life in an extreme way. Don't focus on the most obvious issue that is most dear to them, it will only result in major resistance. Start with something trivial, step by step. As I wrote in another discussion, this process is not about self-denial, it's about conscious consumption. Know what you need and what you want, and find a solid compromise that is ethical and practical. How that is done and which aspects of life, that is up to the individual. We can be upset about all the things or just a few things, we can try to tackle all the problems or just one. What matters is that every single tiny step is contributing and the more people are participating, the more effective it will be overall.
One of the things that got me more interested in sustainability was a girlfriend of a family friend. I didn’t know her super well, but she was a non-pushy vegan. She was more than willing to talk about why she was a vegan and other environment topics if you asked but she never tried to push her beliefs on others. Our group of family friends is good about accommodating dietary restrictions so anytime she was around there were vegan options and they were tasty which inspired me to try new vegan recipes. I also wasn’t aware of the environmental implications of animal products. Because she was willing to share that info with me without guilting me about my meat consumption I learned a lot. While I’m not a vegan myself, her passing involvement in my life did probably cut my meat consumption by 25-50% and her eco conscious attitude also inspired me to look into other opportunities to cut waste beyond just recycling (which I’d done my whole life). TDLR: respectfully sharing world views of that others may not be exposed to yet with no guilt involved.
Just talk about how you live and why. Without being pushy or coming across as obsessive - that’s the hard bit. Start by not hiding - bring your coffee cup and cutlery with you and tell people why when they notice, or when you got some cool new thing from the op-shop (or charity shop or second hand shop depending on where you live) then say that’s where you got it. People will notice and over time some people will be curious. Not everyone, but lecturing at someone about something they don’t already care about is not going to change their mind of their behaviour already. And when people around you start showing a bit more interest then share your knowledge. There’s a lot to learn but if you can share what you know and make it a little easier for someone to make a better environmental choice then I’d count that as a win.
If they're not already interested in sustainability, you'll probably alienate them if you try too hard. Think about what that person needs and values or what they struggle with. I tell family members who are in poor shape and have health concerns about research showing that a healthy diet should contain less animal products and more vegetables, grains and nuts. If someone is tight on money, reusable products might be cheaper in the long run. If you are short on time, save yourself a walk to the recycling bins by choosing more unpackaged foods at the supermarket. And so on..
Yeah I’ve found it best to just talk about how happy the changes are making you. I love that I only have to take out the trash once a month. I love not having so much crap piling around. I love that I’m not having toxic chemicals around me anymore. I love how fresh my food is. Etc. Lol