A relative said to me, "I want to see the barrier reef before it's too late."
A work colleague commented on how important travel is. A friend said, "I care about the environment but I still want to LIVE."
It's hard to buck the trend. As a clinical psychologist, I understand that it is possible for us to care about the environment but then jet off on exotic holidays and not acknowledge the contradiction.
It's human to make convenient divides in our consciousness to avoid guilt or other unpleasant feelings, but it's not going to move us forward with the climate crisis we are all facing.
Climate change can seem far off so we can find it hard to feel a personal responsibility.
As yet there's no powerful social pressure to live sustainably. Yes, it's nice to line up your mason jars on an attractive shelf, and wear an eco branded hoody, but if we're really going to accept some personal responsibility in all this we have to make some tougher choices. Not flying this year, or next year, or maybe ever, is one of those choices for our family. It's one way for us to be part of the solution to climate change and not part of the problem.
Not flying is one way for us to be part of the solution to climate change and not part of the problem.
Once you've made that choice it opens up all the joyful local opportunities. We've embraced camping and going to friends and families for holidays. I've had people comment on what our kids might miss out on by not flying but I have learnt that putting "holiday" in front of any kind of trip = holiday to them. I don't think they are missing out. Maybe once they are older we'll feel the need to get them abroad to widen their horizons but there's always boats!
