The Otesha Project

I had the pleasure of hosting a sustainability in action group called "The Otesha Project". Otesha means "reason to dream" in Swahili. This group of young adults from across Canada are cycling from Vancouver BC to Calgary Alberta to tell, live, sing, dance, act their message about being the change they want to see in the world. In many communities along the way, they present a humorous, informative play about how to live in a sustainable way.

Their message was full of possibilities and opportunities, without the guilt thrown in. At the end of the performance they gave out postcards, (on recycled paper), with the word Hope on the front. The idea is to write down 1 thing that you want to change in your life to make it more sustainable, do that thing for a week and then send the postcard to The Otesha Project office.

What was so refreshing for me was that this group, (wearing old t-shirts, turned in side out, with The Otesha Project put on them), was walking the talk, but not in arrogance. They believe that making these individual changes in their lives will make a difference in our world.

A few Otesha Project suggestions: Put rocks in your toilet tank so that it doesn't fill up with so much water; don't flush if it's yellow, only if it's brown; turn water off in the shower while sudsing up and then on again to rinse; eat organic, fair trade, local, not processed, not fast food; decrease amount of meat you eat, particularly beef; buy used clothing; cycle instead of drive; buy alternative energy cars; recycle; use cloth bags when shopping; take the bus or train instead of flying; and on and on it goes.

I have to admit that I have been a bit sceptical and depressed about the little difference I can make in slowing global warming and contributing to sustainability. My energy towards this has been flagging. Since participating in the Otesha Project in a small way, I feel rejuvinated and my "reason to dream" has been reinstated.