“It is not that we don’t live. Indeed we do, but whether we live rightly, whether we live fully, that is he question. Unless one is conscious, one is not alive. To sit in a room and meditate is not the way to become conscious. To read books is also not the way. We must, in the midst of our day-to-day life, learn to observe, to contemplate, to measure our response, our movements, our words, our thoughts- which are more important than words. We must develop the sensitivity, the urge to appreciate the soul of beauty, a sense of order and harmony. We must find and create beauty everywhere.” 🌿🍃 This year in April, I visited Auroville; a Utopian and sustainable city south of India. Besides having a breathtaking and eco-friendly architecture focused on the synchrony of the universe, there was no single dominant religion (all are practiced and accepted), no politics, and no currency. They live blissfully, respecting nature and humanity. This quote by The Mother (the woman who gave birth to Auroville) describes my view of life completely. See, respect and create beauty everywhere you go. Don’t destroy but add value to places and people. Especially when it comes to nature. Our earth is aching, guys. Badly. It’s heartbreaking to watch. Forests are burning, glaciers are melting, air is becoming unbreathable, animals- crucial to our survival- are dying faster than we ever imagined, and trash has become an overused word in our vocabularies and lifestyles. If I tell you that YOU can change this, will you listen? Will you do something about it? The solution is at our fingertips. It’s in the way we do our day-to-day lives. How we shop, eat, think, move. Simple daily baby steps that can have a huge impact! Here are a few:

1) Say no to plastic when you go out to eat or shop. Take your reusable utensils (I have them and love them! Bamboo and metal straws) and cotton shopping bags. I'll be selling bamboo cutlery sets that benefit two nature-preserving non-profits I've partnered with on my blog's shop. Give me a few more days and I'll share details with you :)

2) Switch the car for a bike, bus ride, or electric transportation. (I surrendered my car 2.5 years ago. Best decision ever. I’m thinking of getting an electric scooter now. Yes, they exist!)

3) Offset your flight carbon impact. (Yes! That exists too!) I use ClimateCare; a B Corp offsetting your carbon footprint by using a calculator to tell you how much you need to donate to different nature-preserving projects. For example, to offset the 18,000+ miles I traveled from Miami to New Delhi roundtrip, or the 4+ tones of CO2 I emitted, I donated $42.48 to ClimateCare's projects that range from planting trees to preserving rainforests to purifying water in Kenya and many more. Use their calculator to do the math. It's very simple!

4) Shop wisely! Consciously! Read labels. Choose fair-trade, vegan, rainforest alliance certified, organic, natural and eco-friendly (packaging especially).

5) Set Ecosia.org as your search engine. They plant trees with each search. So far, 17million+ trees have been planted.

6) Go vegan. I know it sounds crazy and difficult but it is the only diet that can save and preserve our planet. Besides, if done well, it is one of the healthiest diets! Take your superfoods, eat your fruits and veggies, and watch how your health and our planet bloom back to life.

7) SHARE the knowledge. We are in this together!