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Earlier this month, my family and I camped near a lake not far from home. We listened to loons, hermit thrushes, and harrumphing bullfrogs. We went on long swims, slow rambles, and meandering paddles. We sat around. A LOT.
I’ve been trying to cultivate that same sense of rest and ease since returning home. Taking an hour for a mid-day swim. Going berry picking after dinner rather than sitting in front of a screen. While I've had mixed success in achieving that slower pace, I’m glad to be trying.
Our high-rest vacation was also pretty low-carbon. That’s a sort of multisolving, isn’t it? More wellbeing but not much climate pollution.
We not only avoided the stress of crowded airports and long-drives, we did it with a high HPCE ratio. That’s Happiness Per CO2 Emitted, an acronym I just made up!
I know that camping and canoeing aren’t as fun for everyone as they are for me. Not everyone lives in a place that has access to wild berries and ponds for swimming; not all livelihoods provide paid time off like mine does.
But slowing down, finding ways to rest, and discovering pleasure in simple activities can be done in many ways. Visiting parks and libraries close to home. Making art from simple, reused materials. Singing in the local choir. Getting together with friends to tell stories or make food.
Collectively, we can design our communities to make high HPCE activities accessible to everyone. We could have slow streets where children play while grown-ups sit on porches watching. We could follow shady riverside paths to work instead of hour-long commutes by car.
We could have rooftop gardens for apartment dwellers; they'd be squeezed between the solar panels and the rainwater collectors, of course!
We could have a solidarity economy where all workers have paid vacation and sick leave. After all, rested and supported workers will speed up the pivot to a clean energy economy.
By the way, that camping trip of ours? It was at a state park, a great example of collective infrastructure for rest and recharging.
There’s a lot to do to respond to climate change. But in the midst of it all, there will be moments for rest. And, if we are smart and prioritize equity, the changes we create will make not only for a safer world, but a more restful one, too.
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