Yes! And!
I’ve never been in an impro troupe but apparently one of the first rules is that you never block a suggestion, you say ‘Yes, and.’ This means that you add to ideas rather than tearing them down. Usually, this doesn’t appeal to me, but I’m starting to think it might have useful applications in every day life.
Most people agree that climate change is serious and we need to do something about it immediately.
A lot of us have realised that individual actions like recycling, flying less and wearing bamboo won’t be enough to prevent catastrophic changes to our environment. Big government led system changes are needed. There are other ways to push for government change, and one of them is protesting. Not everyone is able to attend protests, but I think they are very necessary in the circumstances.
Some people don’t like protests though. Facebook post commenters like to give advice on what people concerned about the environment SHOULD do with their time instead of marching in the streets. Some of them are good ideas but they can easily be done alongside protesting.
In the spirit of “Yes! And!” I’m going to compile a list of real-life suggested alternatives to protesting from commenters on the internet. Some of them are a bit weird, but I’ll try to see the good in them. Yes! And!
“They should do something useful like picking up rubbish!”
Yes! And…one of my favourite things to do is to pick up rubbish while waiting for a tram to go to a protest. Never felt smugger. Recommend.
“Don’t have long showers“
Yes! And…I mean, not much to say really. I agree, don’t have long showers unless you need to for medical reasons. Not having long showers will give you more time to protest.
“Plant a new tree every day.“
Yes! And…you are going to need somewhere to plant all those trees. One a day per person will get quite crowded in urban areas. I feel like this is exactly the sort of thing a government serious about climate change could help us with; land for tree planting.
“Maybe you all could go help the firies.“
Yes! And… make sure you’re welcome and qualified. Don’t just drive towards fires with some sandwiches.
“Turn off your air-conditioner”
Yes! And…you might be able to do this at work as well. Heaps of people don’t like wearing jumpers inside in summer because the AC is turned up so high in the office. On the other hand, some people really need air-conditioning to stay healthy and alive, so that seems fine. The good new is you won’t need the AC on…when you’re at the protest!