Let’s change our habits together!

Ida Skov Nielsen and Sif Juhl Jacobsen (Danish Board of Technology) – 19th of December 2023

Transforming our habits can be quite a challenge. Yet it’s a crucial step towards a greener future. Despite the widespread understanding of climate science, we are many who struggle to get down to action and actually change our personal habits.

In GreenSCENT, we want to ignite mutual inspiration and reshape our habits – and we want to do it together with the next green generation! During our engaging GreenSCENT youth assemblies, we asked our young participants what steps they plan to take for a sustainable future. Their ideas for action offer inspiration for those seeking to push boundaries and cultivate new sustainable habits!

Below are a few of the actions our young participants intend to pursue before the end of February. We encourage you all to follow their example. Whether it’s small changes or significant shifts, every step towards a more sustainable lifestyle count. What habits are you looking to change or improve?

👊 Educate myself and read all the election propaganda even if I don’t want to vote that party.
👊 I want to try to be more conscious about the food I am eating.
👊 Have clothes that have broken fixed or use them for other things that I need.
👊 Get permission to have a stand at university about food waste.
👊 Start with reduced meat consumption, and gradually switch.
👊 Firstly, I would identify my possibilities and ways to improve. Instead of blindly buying new goods, try to buy secondhand. Of course, the barrier here would be that not every item is sold second hand. By hosting a garage sale, and spreading the word, more people would get involved and not throw out their clothes.
👊 TedTalks: Finding People who put the extra work in. Include people for diversity measure (multidisciplinary).
👊 Buy food from farmers from your town or that are near you (Km 0 products)
👊 During next board meeting I’m going to start conversation about vegan and environment friendly food.
👊 Take part in the change by participating in conferences and seminars and making sure that I vote for political parties who want to make a difference on climate change
👊 Use more homemade cleaning products, learning about food labels and how you can recognize if an ingredient is sustainable.
👊 Be more conscious of how I sort and get rid of any of my garbage.
👊 Get more involved in my city’s politics, learn more about candidates’ ideas regarding conservation of natural resources/environment
👊 Have a default mindset of going to secondhand shops when actually needing something.
👊 I will not buy something at Black Friday and find greener alternatives to Christmas presents.

Empowering Change on the 6th workshop of the GreenSCENT Youth Assemblies

At our 6th online workshop within our Youth Assemblies in November, the young participants defined their course toward sustainable habits and community-centric initiatives. Along the way, the young participants drew inspiration from Lise Coermann Nygaard (25), Danish Youth Delegate to the UN on Climate & Biodiversity. Lise’s unwavering dedication has centered on amplifying youth voices in the global discourse on climate and biodiversity.

Lises remarkable efforts inspired the young participants to act towards tangible change for the climate and the environment. Witnessing Lise’s passion and commitment encouraged our young participants to embark on their own transformative journeys. Lise even inspired some of our young participants towards creating institutional change and mobilizing their communities toward a greener, cleaner future!

Anita from Serbia plan to advocate for ‘improved infrastructure that prioritizes pedestrians and cyclists.’ 🚲 Meanwhile, Marta from Barcelona wants to promote environmental care and community building by ‘organizing trash clean-ups with various groups meeting in a central point at the end of the day. These groups can include local schools, scout troops, or other organizations.’ ♻️

Our young participants’ commitment never fail to delight and inspire us! Let’s give them a round of applause for their contributions! 👏
What habits are you looking to change or improve? 👊 Start changing your habits today!