It’s a great feeling to say I completed my Sustainability Challenge. There were a few obstacles along the way, but nothing prevented me from achieving my goal. When I reflect on the last thirty days, it gives me a great sense of pride to know I have adopted some changes that are not only positive for me but are kinder to the planet as my carbon footprint has dramatically reduced.

I’m thankful that the challenge pushed me out of my comfort zone, as it’s helped reinforce why I chose to call it a day on my former career and return to college. Also, the challenge has given me the confidence to sign up for new things, such as applying to be a Climate Ambassador with An Taisce & joining the DCUSU Sustainability Working Group.
Going back to the values I admire in other people, as mentioned in my first blog post:

A) Passion for what you do.
B) Honesty.
C) Striving the be the best version of you that you can be.

The 30-day challenge has allowed me to practice working on these core values personally. By putting these values into practice, it made it easier for me to complete my goal.

There’s no doubt in my mind that I’ll continue with my challenge for the foreseeable future as I look forward to creating the rest of my Sustainability journey.

So, I still haven’t directly convinced anyone to cycle instead of driving. Still, I am hopeful that as the streets around Dublin become friendlier to cyclists, with improved infrastructure, more people will take it up. Maybe I’ll look to an old sales trick I once learned of selling the benefits instead of the features when encouraging people to try it out. As mentioned in a previous post, my classmates have inspired me as I am now a fully-fledged vegetarian. By echoing some of the other challenges to friends and family along my journey, less plastic packaging comes home in the grocery shop. Also, one friend has started trying out vegetarian meals. Throughout this experience, I’ve learned that ripple effects occur directly and indirectly, and change can happen through conversation and understanding. There are some wins to be found here!

Does anyone remember the toy Stretch Armstrong from their childhood? For anyone with no idea what I’m talking about, Stretch is a rubber action figure filled with a gel substance. This allowed you to pull his four limbs out of shape and stretch his body out of proportion. You might be wondering, what does Stretch Armstrong have to do with sustainability? Let me try to explain.

At the start of my challenge, I committed to cycling to and from college (limb one pulled). I then decided to cycle everywhere unless a car journey was necessary (limb 2). With both arms fully stretched, I could wrap them around my body twice, things were still looking rosy, so I went vegetarian (limb 3). With both arms and one leg now firmly pulled, mental and physical fatigue has kicked in massively this week. How can I take that extra Stretch with all these new lifestyle changes on top of adjusting to college life? Over the last few days, I’ve thought about this question a lot. Eventually, it occurred to me that there is not much point in making so many positive changes if I cannot maintain them. After all, this is a sustainability challenge. I decided that the best way to take that extra step is by continuing to work on the changes I have already adopted (limb 4).

Three weeks have gone by, and I feel like a fully stretched out, well-worn Stretch Armstrong action figure. However, I’m sure that the fatigue will ease over time, and I will be better accustomed to my new lifestyle choices.

So far, so good with my challenge. Cycling from A to B is now a regular part of my routine, and long may it continue. I am now considering selling my car as it is just sitting on the driveway. I am also looking at upgrading my bike to an electric version to make those long commutes, especially those involving hills, that little bit easier.

Regarding standing up for something I believed in, one memory comes straight to mind. In my previous job, I pushed for my company to introduce a wellness committee. At the time, I managed a team of 12 people in customer care, and as time went on, the initial enthusiasm from my team began to disappear. Working in customer care can become disheartening at times, especially if you get a bad run of phone calls where customers aren’t the happiest of campers for one reason or another. Trying not to take things personally is easier said than done in those scenarios.
I received tremendous support from my manager, but the board were not so supportive initially. I continued to push for the set-up of the committee, and I got my wish in the end. I presented an argument on some benefits I believed the committee would bring to A) my team and B) the company.

The board gave me the green light to set up the wellness committee. My employer introduced a free counselling service and made it available for all staff as part of this. We also held fun events each month focused on wellness and team building. Some of the events included yoga, meditation and a bake-off competition. Without the initial support from my manager, I don’t think I would have been able to pull that off and together, we were able to introduce positive change to the business.

A positive systemic change can only make achieving a goal easier, right? As I’ve mentioned in previous blog posts, Dublin is miles behind most European capital cities when it comes to public and active transport infrastructure.

I checked out a new podcast recently called «The Climate Alarm Clock» hosted by Darragh Wynne. At the beginning of the first episode, there was a focus on Ireland’s National Development Plan. One conversation stuck out to me. Eamon Ryan, the leader of Ireland’s Green Party, came out and stated that the price of public transport on a national level would not be reduced until more people use it. This is a statement from the leader of a political party that should be focusing on a radical change in making our country more climate friendly. Surely this is a counter-productive way of encouraging change?
Currently, a one-way train ticket from Dublin to Cork costs €26. Compare this to Austria where you can purchase a «Climate Transport» ticket that costs €3. With this ticket, you can use any form of public transport in the country to get around multiple times a day.

I find that I’m asking myself, why is there such a resistance to change in this country? Especially when now, more than ever, change is needed to solve a lot of the crises we face. Is it due to heavy lobbying from lobby groups? Is it a resource issue? If so, why is there a resource issue? Or is it just down to an old Irish mentality of «Ah sure, it’ll be grand»?

I’m halfway through my challenge now, and having support from family, friends and colleagues is encouraging. However, without adequate support from the people at the top, I wonder how long will it take for us to get to where we, as a society, really need to be?

Up until now, some aspects of my challenge have been in line with how I expected it to go. Some of the positives include improved wellbeing and fitness due to adding that extra physical element to my daily routine. The negative aspects have included some safety issues when it comes to cycling around Dublin. As mentioned above, I expected these coming into the challenge but now I have a heightened awareness when on the roads.

One thing I’ve noticed when cycling is the poor air quality, especially in comparison to the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic when most people left their cars at home. Diesel and petrol fumes are an acquired taste, and I can’t see myself ever becoming accustomed to them.

I’ve had a few opportunities over the last week to talk to some family and friends about my challenge and why I’ve chosen it. I don’t think I’ve managed to convince anyone to leave their cars at home and hop on a bike just yet. I don’t exactly blame them at the same time as it can be quite the challenge to get from A to B on a bike without bumping into some obstacles on your journey. Pardon the pun.

With that in mind, I tried to tell them about some of the other challenges my colleagues have taken on. For example, going vegetarian/vegan and reducing plastic waste. This has been a success! When talking to my Mam over the weekend, she told me about some of her shopping trips where she has refused plastic bags and consciously made an effort to buy fruit and vegetables without plastic packaging. Even the dog has joined in with his biodegradable poo bags.

I too have been influenced by some of the other blog posts. Now, on Sundays, I batch cook a big vegetarian dish, portion it out, and store them in the fridge. This does me for the week and it has saved me a few bob on the food shop at the same time.

Lastly, as I’m writing this post, a friend of mine text me looking for some recipes for the veggie dishes I’ve been cooking. What a success story this has been so far. Thanks to everyone for the inspiration!

Change really is social!

Okay, it’s time for me to come clean and admit that I’ve made two car journeys since I started my challenge. However, I couldn’t take the bike as the trips involved me buying some new furniture.

Otherwise, I’ve surprised myself at how easy it has been for me to leave the car at home. The old habit of grabbing the car keys and going about my day hasn’t cropped up. The unseasonal weather we’re experiencing over the last few days has made it easier for me to take the bike, although the near 20-degree heat in October is a little unsettling.

As my challenge has a big focus on reducing air pollution, I signed up for the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Clean Air Together programme. Over the next 30 days, I am joining 999 other citizen scientists in Dublin to measure the NO2 levels in our areas. There is a sticker on one of the windows at the front of my house to let the neighbours know why there is a test tube dangling out the window.

I look forward to having a chat with my neighbours to tell them about why my challenge is important to me when I bump into them and hopefully I can leave a positive impression with them.

Well, it’s been just over a week since I’ve started to cycle as my primary commuting method. It has been an eye-opening experience, to say the least. This past Monday I was hit by a car as the driver made a left turn. Fortunately, no damage was done to me or my bike. As the saying goes, when you fall off your bike, you have to get back on it, so I did.

A big thing that I’ve noticed about some of the cycle lanes on my commute to college is that the lanes tend to just end all of a sudden, making it dangerous when you’re forced back onto the main roads.

Before I started the challenge I took the necessary precautions of purchasing front and rear lights, a decent helmet and a high-vis backpack cover that reads «Be Safe Be Seen». Hopefully someday soon in Ireland, high-vis clothing or accessories won’t be a necessity as safe cycling infrastructure is improved as outlined in the governments National Development Plan 2021-2030.

For October, I have chosen to use my bike as my primary mode of transport. My car runs on diesel fuel and over the last few years, I have become increasingly aware of the high CO2 emissions diesel cars produce. In the past, my car has always been the main way of me getting from around.

There are two aspects that I think I’ll find most challenging;

A) The unpredictable Irish weather in the Autumn.

B) The lack of protected cycling infrastructure on my regular commutes compared to a lot of other European capital cities.

Putting these points aside, I feel that the benefits of cycling definitely outweigh the negatives. Cycling is much better for the environment as a whole, it decreases traffic congestion on our streets, making them safer, and cycling can be better for a person’s long-term health and wellbeing.

There are a few qualities that I admire in others. Some being:

A) Passion for what you do.

B) Honesty.

C) Striving the be the best version of you that you can be.

If I can demonstrate at least one of those qualities in myself over the next month, this challenge will be a success.

PS. Best of luck everyone!!