Sustainability and I - Week 2 Entry 2


After last week’s lecture, I found myself reviewing my lifestyle and habits. How sustainable is my lifestyle?
My daily routine consists of water consumption within the range of 1 to 2 litres, two showers of 10 to 15 minutes ranging the water usage from an average of around 80 to 120 per shower, and using the toilet which comes up to an average of 35 litres. This results in an average consumption of 240 litres per day. This is excluding weekly or monthly routines of basic chores. The average Australian uses an average of 295 litres of water a day, while mine might be slightly lower than the average, the Cape Town limits of 25 litres per day makes mine seem extravagant.
Electricity usage in my daily routine usually consists of nearly an entire day either on my phone or on my computer, keeping lights on primarily at night, occasionally forgetting to switch off the lights. Staying alone, it comes up to an average consumption of 8.2 kWh. I have also never attempted to use renewable resources, such as solar energy.
Recycling has been pushed by the government quite significantly over the past decade, but thinking over my habits, I have not been recycling as much as I should. Recycling is a key point in contributing to a sustainable world, however, I have not developed a conscious habit to recycle. I have also not shied away from using plastic bags while grocery shopping, I do not go out of my way to purchase locally sourced produce, and I purchase bottled water on a regular basis. As an architecture student, paper usage has been excessive for the past two years, at the same time, I often forget to reuse scrap paper.
Over the past two years, my main form of commute is primarily driving, public transport despite being a more sustainable form of transport, has been rejected because of its inconvenience.
In summary, I regrettably say my lifestyle has been rather lavish, and a conscious habit of maintaining a sustainable lifestyle has to be developed. While my lifestyle alone may not contribute much to the sustainability of the world, I believe with awareness, people would too take into consideration their lifestyles, and attempt to help contribute to the future.

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