大象传媒

It鈥檚 all playing out exactly as expected here in Canada: Inaction and ill-preparedness leading us full-speed into a second wave that will neatly coincide with the onset of cold weather, drastically cutting off social opportunities and sending people back to their sourdough and sour moods. Harrumph.

After reading  on how to make this cold reality more bearable, I鈥檝e been looking at vintage ski suits on eBay (what is a ski suit but a jumpsuit with benefits, really?) so that I can romp in all seasons with impunity. The piece talks about all the little things you can do to get ready for a few months that may be less than ideal. Writes Rachel Miller, 鈥淲hat small-ish things do I wish I had done in January 2020, that I can do some version of now?鈥�

Miller鈥檚 examples include little gems like making sure you know how to cook a favorite meal, and have cozy socks.

Do you have a plan for how to get through whatever the next few months may throw at us, with climate and COVID piled on top of the feeling of impending chill? I make snide comments about self-care but only because I still can鈥檛 scrape the last vestiges of cynic off my person. (Maybe there鈥檚 a spa treatment for that?) In truth, I鈥檝e been working HARD to become someone who doesn鈥檛 roll her cucumber-covered eyes whilst taking care of herself.

Taking care of oneself can be as simple as recognizing the guilt you feel (for me it鈥檚 the propane firepit we bought to prolong our outdoor hangs, and the weekly takeout) and giving yourself some grace. Yes, I鈥檓 trying to not be wasteful. Yes, I鈥檓 also trying to stay healthy.

Taking care of yourself can also be as simple as working to eke out a bit of time to take stock of where you are and how you are feeling. At the beginning of the pandemic, we were all checking in a lot 鈥� frontloading meetings with mental check-ins, calling old pals to see how they were holding up, Zooming our second cousins twice-removed. Now that we鈥檝e acclimated to the low hum of threat, some of these important check-ins have been lost. It would be great to reintroduce them to our daily personal and work lives.

( from @realsarahpolley is forever in my brain)

I鈥檝e been seeing many a climate activist displaying their anguish on Twitter of late. Which is normal when you鈥檝e watched the world sleepwalk into tragedy. Many of these activists are scientists, scholars, and writers who have been covering all of this for decades. The pain of seeing their predictions comes to light (and fire) so forcibly has only illuminated their grief. If you are likewise feeling such grief, I hope that you are taking the time to find the help and strength you need. 

In the last week:
-Europe indicated it will tighten it's 2030 CO2 target
-California announce a 2035 internal combustion vehicle phase out
-China announced a 2060 carbon neutrality target

Things are changing quickly. Company strategies should too.

— Colin Mckerracher (@colinmckerrache)

Climate and COVID have both exacerbated the need for mental health supports. Are there resources in your part of the world? I hope so. 

While hope is a trope, I would love to end this newsletter with some bright starts, because despite IT ALL, I am lately full of more hope than I鈥檝e had in a good, long time. Why? Because BIG THINGS ARE HAPPENING. I鈥檓 going to devote next week to positive climate news, but here鈥檚 something big to chew on: . And these guys don鈥檛 screw around when it comes to commitments. 

Life is rarely like that movie with the last-minute plot twist. And then a global superpower and the  make huge climate moves, and you think maybe, just maybe, we can turn this thing around. If not, at least we鈥檒l have comfy socks.

TALK CARBON WITH ME

At work I commissioned  to get a better sense of how Canadians feel about emissions labeling. Spoiler alert: they are into them to the tune of 71%. . It is MUCH EASIER to explain carbon emissions and externalities with pictures. As always let me know your thoughts!

THIS WEEK

What are you doing to stay cozy? Please tell me! (And if you鈥檙e in a different hemisphere. (Hi Australian readers!!), tell me where you鈥檙e at as well.

PEOPLE DANCING

(And the world鈥檚 most beautiful bougainvillea).

https://twitter.com/buitengebieden_/status/1307795126513795073?s=20

Hope you are happy and healthy,
Sarah

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P.P.P.P.S. This is my newsletter for the week of September 24, 2020, published in partnership with 大象传媒 Media. You can sign up to get Minimum Viable Planet newsletter emailed directly to you at .