Author Juliet Schor imagines a solution for decreasing CO2 emissions, while simultaneously increasing jobs and wealth in her book “True Wealth: How and Why Millions of Americans Are Creating a Time-Rich, Ecologically Light, Small-Scale, High-Satisfaction Economy.”
Schor’s central message is that we can work fewer hours, buy fewer things, enjoy life more, help save the earth and even drive down today's high unemployment rate, says GreenBiz, an online resource that helps companies integrate environmentally responsible actions.
Government incentives could encourage companies to reduce employee’s hours rather than laying people off, or provide tax breaks to companies that reduce employees’ workweek to 4 days.
Companies could hire more people, rather than hiring fewer people for longer hours. Everyone would have more time to engage with their community, cook and make ecofriendly choices, such as walking and biking instead of driving, and find more time for friends and family.
There are of course, numerous obstacles to this plan, Schor points out. From employee-base health insurance and changing the way we think about more hours equaling greater commitment.
But, the general idea of Schor’s plan is one many of us can resonate with: trading material wealth for other kinds of wealth, such as time, community, nature and doing things to reduce our carbon footprint.
We also can’t forget that during those hours we’re in the office, there are plenty of opportunities to make decisions for the planet, such as reducing paper use and using paper made from post-consumer materials. EcoGreenOffice’s Green Education section provides more ideas for how to be thoughtful during the “nine to five.”
Being more attentive during our working hours can carry over to our nonworking hours, enriching our time off, even if reducing those working hours currently isn’t an option.
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| Read Juliet Schor's book "True Wealth" to discover different ways of thinking about how to spend the hours of your week. |
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