My philosophy is that in order to get good habits that save the climate and environment there has to be non-ideological benefits. Money, laziness, reliability, etc.
Reframing actions is in my opinion the right way forward. At least to help others into doing the right things. I am excited to hear your ideas.
FYI: Norway
Repair Avoid the work of finding the replacement, period of not being able to use it, getting rid of the packaging/trash etc. Not being able to use a smartphone or PC is incredibly frustrating. Repair is faster than sending it in to the seller. Money is also a bonus.
No car No car is simply to avoid stress, maintenance, parking, and of course money.
Buying used Used is often nice as it saves me the time to build the IKEA furniture, delivery to my door, cheaper etc.
Selling used Can get rid of large items without carrying it out. Not having have to take it to the recycling center.
Growing herbs Simply higher quality, and always having it available
Public transit Able to focus on something else than driving. I prefer playing games, reading, etc. Safer. Cheaper. Also more walking which gives health benefits.
Apartment living Close to no maintenance, a house is soooo much work. Not something I am willing to spend my life doing (I have tried).
Airtravel Meh, too many hurdles. Should be a really good reason or very long distances on rare occasions. For shorter distances trains is a lot more comfortable. An airplane is far from the hour you spend in the air. It includes the waiting, security, boarding, travel to airport etc. I’d rather travel and stay a place for multiple weeks, not going through all those hurdles for a weekend or only a week, atleast 2-3 weeks, preferably longer.
More ideas?
I think this is super important. While I wish people would get into solarpunk stuff because it’s the right thing to do, generally speaking, people don’t have the capacity to think about idealogical stuff constantly, or plain just don’t want to. I finally built a habit of brushing my teeth twice a day because I love how my nice clean teeth feel and that I can read a book on my phone while I do it, not by telling myself about cavities constantly.
Sewing your own clothes - it’s fun and you can make it exactly the way you want it, suiting your exact body type!!
Using devices until they’re dead-dead - if a little tinkering can make them run longer, why waste the money? I could spend that on so many video games. Plus when you get a new laptop or whatever you have to go through the whole process of setting it up and transferring all of your stuff over…
Reusable mugs/water bottles - they’re cute and fashionable and I can coordinate them with my outfits + tbh I find it extremely annoying to look around trying to find a trash can for a plastic water bottle or Starbucks cup. Or they pile up in the car which is also annoying af
Using bar soap instead of liquid hand soap or body wash - it’s SOOOO much cheaper which means that you can either buy more of it OR spend that money on wonderful artisan soaps, which is what I do. I love my special goats milk soaps with all the wonderful smells and designs you just can’t get from Walmart
I recently started having both liquid and a bar of soap. I found some research papers about the efficacy of both, and they are pretty much equal.
I prefer the feeling of a good bar of soap. It makes me feel cleaner and its more comfortable.