I often hear debate over which is more important for the environment — individual change or systems change. You only have direct control over individual actions, but systems change seems inherently more impactful. This is a false dichotomy. One isn’t at odds with the other. Instead, individual change paves the way for systems change. This refreshing mindset helps keep us more focused and motivated in our individual actions.
Individual Change
Individual change comes from actions you take to benefit the environment. You have control over your own decisions, so this is a great place to start making an impact. Try cutting down on the amount of waste you produce when doing something that you do often. For example, composting is a great way to deal with the daily problem of food scraps. Diverting food scraps from landfill is a powerful individual change with real impact.
When working to reduce your own environmental footprint, it’s easy to get discouraged. Many people don’t make the same effort, so you might think “why should I?” The small scale of individual actions compared to the change that’s needed can also be disheartening. If we’re to avoid the worst effects of climate change, we definitely need systems change. So does change on an individual scale even matter? These are valid concerns, but they overlook the trendsetting ability our personal choices have and the phases of adoption necessary for systems change.
Paving the Way for Systems Change
Systems change generally comes from governments or international organizations. Governments in particular have huge levers at their disposal to shape behavior: taxes, laws, incentives, tariffs, and educational programs. But remember that systems change doesn’t come out of nowhere. Governments usually lack social creativity. In order for a government to incentivize a habit with laws, taxes, etc., there has to be support for it. So participate in that activity as best you can, and support others who do too.
Returning to our composting example, don’t get overwhelmed by doing it on your own. Instead, try to find others in your area that already compost. You might even be helping them out by increasing the size of their operation. Crucially, you’re now part of a group of composters, and you have much more influence together.
It really helps to be vocal about your support for environmental issues. Maybe there’s a local proposal for city-wide composting that you could support. If not, your group could propose it. You don’t necessarily have to convince others to adopt your practices, but at least show that they’re feasible and desirable. Big changes originate from small groups. Why not from your small group?
Phases of Adoption
Your individual actions can build up to something that goes far beyond your own impact on the environment. There are five phases to the adoption of any new practice. The critical phases are the first two, the “innovators” followed by the “early adopters”. These are the people that are bucking trends and showing reasonable people that the new practice is viable. After these trendsetters there is the “early majority” followed by the “late majority” and finally the “laggards”. The sooner you get on board with a new eco-friendly habit, the more you’ll accelerate its widespread adoption. This blog post goes into a lot more detail on the phases of adoption.
Do you think you can be a trendsetter like the “innovators” and “early adopters”? That can sound stressful or lonely, but it’s often the opposite. Imagine knowing you’re part of a dedicated group of people working toward a better future. And how amazing will it be when your group reaches critical mass! That will set off a tipping point where you unlock systems change. If you want to dig deeper into the dynamics of tipping points, check out this podcast by Katie Patrick. She interviews Prof. Jan Willem Bolderdijk who says that tipping points tend to come around 25% adoption.
Identify as an Environmentalist
Do you identify as an environmentalist? You can decide to in a flash. Imagine a mechanic. Being a mechanic is probably a part of their identity. They don’t have to be evangelists about automotive work. But their profession probably comes up often in regular conversation. Similarly, if your climate actions are part of your identity, you’ll share them with others. Having a social element to your individual actions is how you get them to lead to systems change.
I consider myself an environmentalist. So I run a meetup group in NYC where we go to low-waste cafes and talk about sustainability. One woman that comes has an amazing track record for getting her coffee in a reusable cup. She doesn’t work in the environmental field, but being an environmentalist is part of her identity. So at our last meetup she was annoyed when her coffee came in a single-use cup. If you’re wondering how a mug stacks up against a single-use cup for sustainability, check out our earlier post on that.
She politely told the owner that she was at the cafe with an environmental group that champions reusables. That didn’t change how her drink was served, but another group member ordered the same drink later and got it in a reusable cup. Identifying as an environmentalist drove her to make a small comment. That comment had an immediate impact. If that switches to reusables permanently, that’s thousands of single-use cups diverted from landfill!
Call to Individual Action
What should you do with your newfound identity as an environmentalist? Start with something small, enjoyable, and above all social. I created a sustainability app to help people find cafes based on how eco-friendly they are. EcoRate makes it easy to find an eco-friendly cafe near you. Why not invite a friend to join you? Tell them you want to intentionally support sustainable businesses. At the cafe you can reflect for a moment on what they do that makes them green. You can even leave a sustainability review of the cafe on EcoRate so that everyone in that area has more complete information on that cafe. Now you’re working together with people you’ve never even met. Did you ever think being an environmentalist could be as easy as getting a coffee in a nice cafe?
You can even track your progress and compare notes with a friend. EcoRate keeps track of some sustainability metrics for you based on your reviews. What’s the longest streak of reusable cups you’ve ever had? How many reviews have you contributed to the community? If there are other metrics you’d like to see on the dashboard, let me know and I’ll try to add it.
I hope you have a blast doing whatever individual actions you try to take for the environment. Imagine how gratifying it will be when an activity you were an early adopter for goes mainstream! Then you’ll know that your individual change led to systems change.
