“I wanted to show how much waste there is nowadays, in this society where money is God and unbridled consumerism is sold as the remedy for every cure.”
Rob Greenfield is a common guy, who until 2011 lived fully immersed in the global consumerism. He wanted all the advertised objects and bought dresses to impress other people. One day his life completely changed, and his life philosophy became “less is more”.
A new life style
He got informed of all environmental matters, and then he decided to change his life style, and embraced the new “less is more” philosophy.
The young guy realized not only it was possible to live without wastes, but he understood also he used to live better with less things.
Rob’s challenges
In the role of a modern Hercules, Rob faced several hardships. In some of them he crossed all the USA by bicycle with no money. Furthermore, he ate food by nature only.
He also moved carrying on all wastes of a month.
For the last challenge he decided to live in a little cottage built by himself for a year. He used to eat autoproduced food only.
Less is more
“When I discovered all the environmental problems of our planet, I realized that there is always someone who pays for the items we buy. Forests, clean air, water. The nature”
Rob’s “less is more” is a big cry, to attract the attention of a society devoted to consumerism. And he wants to teach us how to compensate and show us how far we can go.
We need just few rules to change the world:
- Try buying nothing, neither personal hygiene.
- Buy food only, better if it is local and organic.
The essential is invisible to eyes
Rob’s challenges don’t say the whole world has to live in the same drastic way. But it is surely a defiance to show how many useless wastes we are able to produce. The provocation wants us to think: if someone can live with almost nothing, how many superfluous things may we avoid saving our planet?
Furthermore, we have just to think that reducing purchases it is possible to save money for unique experiences.
We shouldn’t think we want big things in life, rather small things that make our life great.
Gianluca Gotto tells his story of changes in a new book “Le coordinate della Felicità” (The coordinates of Happiness), and he explains his new minimalist lifestyle.
There are several people who changed their life for a new sustainable lifestyle.
Now it’s our turn. We can try not buying any superfluous things for a month or a couple of weeks. We will understand our own impact on the planet, and we start to appreciate more what we have. Furthermore, we may find the coordinates of happiness.
Cover photo by Prateek Katyal on Unsplash
