To ask - what TF are we going to do about it?

[Leypt1]

There have been lots and lots of threads and comments from people rightfully worried that shit is hitting the fan. Austerity, Brexit, COVID, climate change, inflation, the energy crisis, spiralling cost of living, Ukraine, corruption, a zombie government and probably a worse one to come - the list goes on.

For me, it's been good to read these threads and see that others feel similarly. But they also make me feel a sense of despair and, to be honest, fatigue bordering on apathy. I feel like we're all boiled frogs, totally burned out by the constant stream of bad news.

I'm desperate for the conversation to move on. So I wanted to start a thread where we could share ways to push back.

They don't have to be the best ideas, or even good, but for the sake of my own wellbeing I'd like to start thinking about what power we might have to influence our lives/society for the better.

Some caveats - making change takes time and resource, and it's a privilege. I don't want people to read this as a criticism of whatever they're doing, but rather a call to do what we can (even if that's nothing!). And I'm not fussed about this whole thread being seen as naive or utopian. Put simply, I disagree.

I'll start:

Campaigning and lobbying:

-Reflect - What is your ideal (within reasonable limits or not) for what society should look like in a year's time, or 5 years' time? What policy ideas do you think should be implemented to make this happen? Discuss your ideas with your friends, family, and co-workers. Start to build a coalition
-Identify people or groups who care about the things you care about, and/or are actively campaigning to make change happen. Go to meetings, take part in activities, set up direct debits to support them.
-Go to protests (yes, even though it's now illegal)
-Write to your MP (use Theyworkforyou)
-Call into the radio
-If you're a member of a political party, write and ask what they're doing about it. Put forward suggestions if you have any
-Door knock, leaflet, work phone banks. Either with your chosen campaign/support groups, or your political party.
-Fact-check, always. Be a paragon of accuracy and constructiveness in your discussions and debates. Show the politicians how it's done. Use fullfact.org
-Cherish your local landmarks. If someone's about to knock it down to build a car park or whatever, submit a planning objection on your council's planning portal

Solidarity and mutual aid:

-Be nice to your neighbours. Build a neighbourhood of people who look out for each other. Take their parcels, lend them your tools, give them extra biscuits, invite them to have coffee.
-Volunteer, for a big national charity or a small local community garden or anything in between
-Donate to food banks. Keep questioning why they're necessary.
-Be kind to people who are struggling to make ends meet. This is a lot of people, and it's not always who you think
-Take part in surveys by community groups or the council asking what improvements you'd like to see in your local area. Think bigger than "bins", councils are already well aware of the bin situation!
-Unionise!! Dear god, unionise. Both at work and a renter's union, if you're a renter
-Take in a refugee, or a young homeless person (via an established scheme please, see Nightstop as an example)
-If you see someone sleeping rough, use Streetlink to alert homelessness outreach services. Say hi, ask them what they need, and - if you can - give it to them with no strings attach

This is all my brain can come up with right now. I'd love to hear everyone else's ideas.

I'm so happy to see everyone's suggestions, lots of ideas and I'm feeling more positive!! Next on the to do list is the sewage attack 😈And using my inevitable sky news appearance to remind everyone that Thames water leaks 24% of their supply every year...

And to get involved in their local watershed maintenance efforts!!

@Leypt1
Do as I say eh 😂apologies! I do think it's fair to say though that the state has much more leeway re the reasons for which protests can be limited.

😂 😂😂
A lot of that the police could already do most of this in practice but I accept it's a facer when you see it written down in law.

However ...Be a paragon of accuracy (...) Show the politicians how it's done...., maybe you're more like a politician than you think. 😉 Make a career out of it and change the law! Another positive for your list.
Don't talk about politics, stand in local or national elections and effect change.

This is a great list, thank you for posting. Voting tactically is probably the most important thing we can do. And encouraging our friends/relatives to do the same.
I'm also trying to be kind wherever/whenever I can. So being kind to friends, colleagues, neighbours, bus drivers and others in the community. Also random strangers. We are in for a rough ride in the next few years. We must do everything we can to retain our humanity and help others in need.

Push back against the consumerism of Christmas, birthdays and weddings. Think about what really brings you joy. Tell people you love them, give them time and attention rather than plastic tat.

Great thread and much needed. Can't comment now OP. But will check in later.

I found this very helpful, although Steve Bannon decided he liked it and people lost an appetite for this theory. Which is a shame. I dont think these theories are bang on, but it does remind you of cycles in history and it is all around you in everything if you look for it.

Cliodynamics, is also interesting. I think we are in a state of elite overproduction now.

Thr good thing about these theories is they do predict things will get better. I have been royally shafted by the era I was born in though 😂

What is interesting is that both theories predicted a chaos phase in the 2020's and I'm sure there was another one too.

Oo, very good for me- 20, no hints.

As PP said public servants (including politicians on all sides) want to make the world a better place. Hate gets us nowhere.

I think the cost of living has been artificially low for a long time, fuelled by cheap labour, both overseas and wages of immigrants in this country, and this led to a consumer society where you can buy a T-shirt from Primark for £2.

Fuel aside, though that's contributing to rise in costs too, we are starting to have to pay the true cost for the items we buy.

When I was young - no one would wash clothes after just wearing them just once, and no one would ever throw food away. At best it was given to the dog (people didn't buy separate food for dogs and cats).
People didn't shower multiple times a day, wash towels after every use etc.
They bought children's clothes big enough to last several years and everything was handed down inside or outside the family.
Not many people had central heating. We did, but upstairs radiators were never used. My GPs heated one room on their house with a coal fire.
Shopping in IKEA wasn't a day trip on a Sunday.

We've become consumers, spendthrifts, and wasteful.

All our habits are contributing to climate change, and it's about time we changed them

Ooo, @MrsOwainGlyndŵr . Fighting talk. But I agree with you.
When I used to go abroad, Europe, USA, Caribbean, Australia, I was shocked at the price of food. It was so much cheaper at home. I was looking at the rise in prices at the weekend and realised it was like shopping in a foreign country. So imagine what their food prices have risen to.
For a long time we've had some of the cheapest food in the western world and we've gotten used to it. Think of how much food is wasted and the constant campaigns to change those habits. Maybe the food actually costing more will succeed - although that will be no comfort for those who barely have enough to feed themselves.

-Go to protests (yes, even though it's now illegal)

It is not illegal to protest

@MajorCarolDanvers not heard of the new policing act ? Doesn't make it illegal but sure makes it harder.....

The op already accepted that perhaps she was a bit sloppy with the truth there. 😁 She got a bit carried away with her post.

Stand for election - parish council, district etc. Don’t rely on others to do so - appreciate this isn’t necessarily as easy as it sounds.

Look after yourself as far as possible so society can concentrate on those who can’t. Eat well, exercise and look after your health - basically act like a responsible grown up.

Consume less.

I don’t think the world will be changed by localism to be brutally honest. Use you paid employment to drive forward more systematic change. In charge of office supplies for your building? Buy from a carbon neutral supplier. In charge of HR policy for a large multinational? Make sure your policies don’t reward people being dicks.

Start with one thing, however small. Maybe use less water for your washing up or use your towels for another couple of days.

Once this is a habit, introduce another one e.g. switching from bottled shampoo to solid bars.

If you see someone being extra nice or kind, compliment them.

Sorry! Semantle 😬

I like the suggestions of being more responsible on here, but we are forgetting that a lot of large companies are reporting huge profits yet dumping sewage in the sea and screwing the country over by artificially keeping prices of housing and utility high. I think we need to turn our attention towards them. There are options out there which means we don't have to all live how we did 70 years ago and still protect the planet. We can have progress if the powers that be let it.

But yes, I do think consumerism is a bad thing for the planet and people's mental state. That needs to change, but I don't think it should all totally be down to us mere mortals to save the world either. There are lots of very, very wealthy people out there who preach one thing and do the opposite and actually their contributions to the world (in business and on a personal level) contribute more to climate change than us individually. Yet they have the power to change a lot, but dont want to as it affects their level of extreme comfort too much.

I agree with you about localism and doing what you can through your career.

This website takes a really in-depth look at the idea that your career is the best way to have an impact on the world 80000hours.org/ Obviously, it is not for everyone, it is rather aimed at high flyers and high earners, but I found the ideas about the number of hours in your career and leverage are interesting. I think your examples of buying supplies and policies for in with their ideas about getting and using leverage.

I was in central London last night and all bars and restaurants almost without exception were packed. I do think the media and Mumsnet forum is focusing on the other end of the spectrum but plenty of people won’t be affected at all.

Tbh, protests don't achieve much and groups like ER and IB just piss people off and doing more harm than good imo.

Groups like Client Earth which use the justice system to hold the government to account seem to be able to punch above their weight. I honestly think the legal route is the best way to force change.

@Notlosinganyweight
I found this very helpful, although Steve Bannon decided he liked it and people lost an appetite for this theory.

i cant stand this mentality:

I like this thing.
Someone I don't like also likes this thing.
Therefore I don't like this thing.

@MarshaMelrose @DazzlePaintedBattlePants yes! I think we have in our heads a "type" who is a councillor. There's a good reason for this (it's mainly wealthier retired people who have the time) but it shouldn't be seen as some super exclusive club!

Here are some great resources for anyone who's toying with the idea - we need you!!

www.local.gov.uk/be-councillor

I don't know that I agree with you on protests necessarily, I think ER achieved their objectives around getting more visibility for climate change...but yeah, probably did some long term damage to the overall view of direct action (not helped by hostile media)

Hard agree on legal action. It's also been inspiring to follow the Good Law project, and of course there are the stalwarts like Liberty

So many easy things to do that dont cost anything or very little. Please:

• stop buying handwash, use soap bars
• reduce your water consumption by switching off the shower whilst you lather
• stop buying new clothing
• cycle on short journeys or walk, or take the bus
• stop washing clothes so much, totally unnecessary unless they are stained or smell
• stop using a tumble dryer, line dry your clothes if possible
• eat less meat and dairy
• stop buying plastic
• use your local market for fruit and veg and take your own bags
• swap clothes with friends
• give outgrown children's clothing to friends or to your foodbank if they also have a clothes bank
• use refillable containers for buying ecover, rice, pasta etc
• give unwanted things away or leave them outside your house with a note on
• don't buy laundry products in plastic bottles, use powder from boxes
• stop ripping out perfectly serviceable kitchens and bathrooms and adding to landfill
• buy only natural products where possible i.e. our local farm sells goose feather pillows and cushions after xmas
• do you really need to buy make up and creams in plastic bottles?
• leave behind packaging in supermarkets where possible. Alcohol packaged in bottles and cartons, toothpaste in tubes and boxed, plastic containers the veg comes in. Make disposal the supermarkets problem and cost, they may start taking notice now . . .
• use digital resources rather than paper.
• save ribbons, bits of string and use to wrap gifts.

So many simple changes you can make.

So many basic things we can do to help prevent climate change

The most effective way for individuals to tackle climate change is to support efforts that keep fossil fuels in the ground. They cannot be safely extracted and burned. And we will have a fight on our hands because fossil fuels yet to be extracted are currently worth trillions of pounds and those invested in them do not want to lose out.

Pressurise politicians to support change. Write to your MP, sign petitions, go on protests, stand as a councillor or MP, whatever you are comfortable with. Support legal actions such as those brought by Client Earth. Write letters of support for new renewable energy projects that require planning permission. Write letters of objection for new fossil fuel infrastructure.

Campaign for decarbonisation where you work or in companies you buy from. Divest investments that contain fossil fuel company shares. Call out arts sponsorship by fossil fuel companies. Switch your energy tariff to a green company or add renewables to your home if you can afford it.

Help shine a light on cronyism. Who is getting subsidies and who is lobbying government. Who funds what? Call out greenwash. If it’s your expertise, read company accounts. Whistle blow. Tip off investigative journalists.