Why I Care About the Environment Even If I Don’t Always Act “Perfectly”

Recently, someone close to me accused me of not caring about the environment. They know me well and, in their view, my actions don’t align with my supposed concern for climate change and sustainability. To some extent, they’re right. If you judged me solely on small, individual actions, you might wonder where my concern truly lies.

I don’t panic over oil spills. I run the shower before I get in (like a good 15 minutes. I like the bathroom steamy! 🤣). My wardrobe, while mostly secondhand, is not made from natural fibers. I drive to the gym fifteen minutes away if I’m running late instead of walking. By conventional standards, some of these choices may seem hypocritical, even careless.

But here’s the thing: I know the climate crisis isn’t solved by guilt or perfection. It’s not fixed by the sum of individual acts alone, no matter how virtuous they are. The real drivers of environmental destruction are large-scale, systemic, and corporate; the result of industries, policies, and consumption patterns far beyond any one person’s control. I refuse to fool myself into thinking that personal sacrifice alone will save the planet.

That doesn’t mean I don’t care. On the contrary, the natural world is central to who I am. My entire being thrives outdoors, in forests, on mountains, by rivers, under the open sky. I care deeply. But caring doesn’t always look like constant individual vigilance. Caring can also mean focusing energy where it can make a tangible impact: seeking real-world solutions, influencing change at systemic levels, and thinking critically about how we interact with the environment on a larger scale.

Yes, I recognize the apparent hypocrisy. I see the moments where my choices don’t align with my ideals. But the criticism that I don’t care about the environment is wrong. My care isn’t performative; it’s real, it’s thoughtful, and it’s strategic.

I share this because I think we need to broaden the conversation about what it means to care for the planet. Environmentalism isn’t just about small, individual acts of virtue. It’s about understanding the scale of the problem and directing our energy toward meaningful solutions, not personal guilt.

So yes, I care. Profoundly. I just care in ways that are intentional, pragmatic, and rooted in reality not in a constant treadmill of performative ECO-GUILT.

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