Welcome
A little bit about how we got here
Hi! My name is Michelle Lasley, and I have been passionate about making this world more sustainable since I was 11 years old. It was a little after my mom married my stepdad, and I got a new family. One new family member, my Aunt Betsy, gifted OUR FAMILY 50 Ways You Can Save the Planet, and I was floored.
I grew up in rural Michigan to that point, with a jaunt to the city and then settling in a small town after my mom remarried. I loved sitting in trees, playing in parks, and being at my grandparents’ farm. I loved watching birds, butterflies, and flowers. So, how could all of these beautiful, lovely things need saving?
I also grew up poor. My dad left when I was five years old. (He had his journey to figure out what’s important to him, and my siblings and I reconnected with him when we were in our early 20s. He’s been in our lives more than not now, and a part of my story is relevant to shaping who I am.) He left my mom and three kids, five and under. My mom had no job. So, what was she going to do? A kindly landlord told her about the social safety net (aka housing assistance, food stamps, and more).
Even though many of the services that ensured we had basic needs (food, shelter, clothing) lessened after my mom remarried (about the only way women got off social services in the 80s and 90s), we still qualified for free and reduced lunch. Our new blended family of 7, and I couldn’t have an extensive wish list for any birthday or holiday because there wasn’t enough to go around.
Growing up poor (and white) was my experience. Growing up with a love of nature was a base. And, when my Aunt Betsy gifted us that book, it put me on a path to sustainability.
I define sustainability by the triple bottom line, which means we “balance” people, the environment, and money in equilibrium. I believe we know how to balance money and the environment but do not know where to begin with people. A lot of what I talk about with sustainability is equity and justice. And, I now believe the only way to get our world sustainable is by (hyper) focusing on the people most disproportionately and negatively affected by our world: Black and Brown women and women of low incomes.
Join me on this journey because it will truly take all of us to figure it out.
Eventually, I’ll have paid articles. Right now, I want to play with this forum and see where it goes. So, you’ll see cross-posting in my email list and here, eventually having meatier posts in the paid column.
Let’s do #BalanceShared. Let’s #healwomenhealtheworld. Because truly, we are better together.