In February, the amazing Milky Chance team invited Action for Conservation's Communications & Digital Campaigns Officer Hannah to give them a little sneak peek into AFC's programmes and chat about climate, nature and youth environmental action. This blog is a recap of what Hannah and Philipp discussed during their Instagram Live chat.
In a little scavenger hunt, Hannah asked Philipp to collect 3 items from around his house. Below, she explains how those items are connected to the topic of environmental conservation.
The 3 items were:
1. Your favourite shoes.
2. A packaged food item.
3. Something that reminds you of nature.
Hannah: "So why these three items?
Simply, they all link to environmental and social issues.
Our shoes and clothes are made from different materials (such as plastic, cotton or leather), these are made, grown or farmed, all coming from raw materials. Our packaged food is manufactured using ingredients imported from across the world, then packaged in plastic or cardboard or plastic coated cardboard! This packaging is often non-recyclable and finds its way into landfill and oceans. Finally, things that connect us to nature are personal and important to us, this could be a plant in your home (like Phillip) or the birds that visit your garden, or the greenspace you visit with friends.
When working with young people, we explore topics like these and their environmental impacts on land and marine systems, but we also express the importance of thinking about their impacts on people.
For the first two items, when we look at a product we should ask ourselves some questions, how ethical and sustainable is the product? Who made it? Were their working conditions safe? Was the farmer that grew the food paid fairly? Where does our discarded packaging end up?
For the last item it’s important we think about equality. Do all people have access to beautiful green spaces equally? Do we respect different ways of engaging with nature?
Social issues and environmental issues go hand in hand, so in order to tackle issues like the climate crisis, we must also tackle social issues to create a fairer, greener and more equitable future for people now and for future generations."
Thanks for reading!
This blog was originally posted on Milky Chance's sustainability website Milky Change exploring the band's systemic approach to creating a better future. You can read the original blog here.