How Environmental Awareness Influences your Daily Life

Written by Alexander Ahn ’28

​Every morning when I wake up, I fill my metal water bottle that I've used for three years. It's scratched with dents and covered in fading stickers, yet it's considered a small symbol of commitment towards the environment that I promised myself. Being environmentally aware has reshaped my choices in life and how I see the world. However, I didn't exactly always think this way. A few years ago, all I thought of when I heard the phrase "climate change" was something theoretical, melting glaciers and rising sea levels, which don't exactly connect with my life in Los Angeles. This changed when I started paying attention to my surroundings. They were small things like how some neighborhoods had nicely cut trees and compost bins while others, usually lower-income areas, were boxed in by highways and power plants. I realized that these issues weren't distant, but they were all around me. And they weren't affecting everyone equally. This realization led me to co-found the “Green Earth Society” club. As a student-led volunteer organization based in California, our environmental club is deeply committed to driving meaningful change in the global response to climate change. Since our launch in 2022, we have focused on both local engagement and broader advocacy, working with communities, schools, and businesses to raise awareness and inspire action around the urgent challenges of human-driven global warming. Green Earth Society manages food-waste collection programs to turn scraps into nutrient-rich compost. Local organic farms then can use this compost to grow fresh vegetables, creating a sustainable closed-loop system. We also lead organic gardening projects where volunteers plant vegetable beds using recycled fertilizer. Our club works with local organic farms to foster direct connections between sustainable agriculture and youth activism. Being more aware about environmental issues in our community and being part of this student-led club helped me now consider the social and environmental impact of my actions in my everyday life. At Covenant House, I participated with volunteers to recycle and help with fundraising by leading and supporting projects that combine service and sustainability. Many people think that to protect the environment you need to do something big. That's usually not the case. You can start by turning off the lights during the day and using a reusable water bottle. This awareness doesn't make me perfect. I still sometimes take too long of a shower or forget to compost. However, environmental awareness has changed how I think during my daily life. It's made me more thoughtful before my actions and more committed to a future that's greener.