In the Year 2050

                As an optimist, I am very optimistic about the future of our planet. The “Thinking Ahead” article states “belief that one can positively affect the future is critical to optimistic thinking.” I believe that sustainability is becoming increasingly popular and that by 2050 it will be a part of our everyday life. In my life, I have seen a pattern of friends and family members encouraging and influencing each other to use sustainable practices. As I mentioned in a previous post, I convinced my parents to recycle. I have friends who have convinced each other to reduce the amount of plastic they use. It is important that this continues so that future generations can enjoy all our planet has to offer.

                My vision of a sustainable future is characterized by recycling, reduced consumption and education. In order for this vision to come true, it is important that people have the right beliefs. First, in order to recycle and reuse products, people should believe that they are getting something out of this process. This could be done through a compensation program like receipt of a coupon when turning clothing in to a reuse program. That is not the only belief that will help though. People should believe that products are reusable and that others can gain use out of them. In order for consumption to be reduced people should believe that they have enough. In the article “Living for Consumption,” the author states that living with enough instead of having excess things means that we actually care for things instead of just caring about having things. Finally, in order for education to be a character of the future, the government, retailers and manufacturers must be willing to inform consumers about how products are made and discuss other sustainable topics. As time progresses, more and more sustainable practices will come about and the only way consumers will know about them is through education.

                While these aspects of sustainability are a possibility, people are going to have to overcome certain beliefs in order to accomplish them. In order to bring my vision into view, people will have to give up some things. As I mentioned, there is a great problem with over consumption. In order to fix this people have to be willing to live with less instead of more. The media is constantly telling us to purchase new products, but do we really need them? If we use education to tell people what they really need then over-consumption can be reduced. Over-consumption is also a problem because people believe that their importance is shown by the number of material items they own. It will be very difficult to change consumers’ mindset on this. If the media changes its course and shows that we really do not need an abundance of items, then people’s minds will change. There will be less need to have the newest and greatest electronic in the market. Another belief that consumers will have to overcome is the idea of owning used items. My sister is grossed out by the idea of GoodWill because she does not know who had the product before her. Many used products are perfectly fine and can be used again. By recycling and reusing things, there will be less waste.

                To engage people into following my vision, I must first show them what it is like. The “Visioneering” article mentions that as leaders we must first live our vision continuously in our lives. This allows people to see how the vision affects our lives and what it does to the surrounding environment.  Also, word of mouth is a great way to get people on board the sustainability ship. Like I mentioned earlier, friends can play an important role in this. By telling someone about how you live your life, you are influencing theirs. The media is also a great way to get your vision into the public eye. Blogs are playing an increasingly important role in consumers lives and will be an important tool in showing my vision.