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Sustainable thinking is connected with responsibility, creativity, and resourcefulness.
“Sustainability” defines the human capacity to meet “the needs of the present generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”. It is a challenge that is not limited to production methods but also implies a greater focus on the environment overall. Equilibrium must be restored, beginning with a more aware and shared way of thinking that is capable of engendering new strategies of development and co-existence.
The idea of the Sustainable Thinking project comes from an exhibition at a museum in Florence, Italy, in 2019. The idea was to make people reflect on these themes through visions of art and fashion.
Numerous artists are looking at sustainability, some focusing on recovering our relationship with nature, the use of organic materials, the need for creative re-use of materials or relations between nature and technology, while others are looking at the importance of a collective commitment to refounding society overall. The fashion industry, for its part, embarked upon the path towards sustainability some years ago, not just through a new generation of designers but also through innovative approaches adopted by luxury brands with a consolidated market presence, using new high-performance ecological materials and optimizing production processes.
Museo Salvatore Ferragamo, Florence
Responsibility
Responsibility is one of the most important aspects of human existence and personality. It is the responsibility for one’s actions that makes a human. Responsibility is one of the traits of our character which means that a person is able to respond for his actions, is able to take some duties and to face certain consequences of the actions that may occur. Definitely, people are not born with the sense of responsibility and it does not appear at once by a magic clasp of the fingers. Responsibility is something every person should cultivate in themselves; it should become a part of one’s personality. Lack of such a trait of character or even its absolute absence was never considered to be a positive feature. When you are responsible it is easier to gain the respect of the people and to take a decent place in society.
Responsible living is about how you think, buy, plan and prepare, and where. Whether you go around the world or to the market around the corner, thinking ahead helps. Start questioning where things come from, how it has been made, and by who? Where do things go after we throw it ‘away’? By making a shift in our thinking, and putting our inspector hat on, we can better engineer our lives to reduce our environmental impact. The most fun and effective way to make a change is by finding out yourself.
Creativity
Creativity is the act of turning new and imaginative ideas into reality. Creativity is characterised by the ability to perceive the world in new ways, to find hidden patterns, to make connections between seemingly unrelated phenomena, and to generate solutions. Creativity involves two processes: thinking, then producing.
Creativity is the fuel for innovation and new thinking. It is the raw ideas and the mess that turns into something new and different. In addition, creativity has a lot of different facets. It is not just about groups getting together. In fact, the creative process must include time for reflection and quiet—moments of rumination and time for ideas to be on our brains’ back-burners. The individual needs time alone to make creative ideas to grow.
Creativity has traditionally been defined as the ability to respond adaptively to the needs for new approaches and new products, or as the ability to bring something new and valuable into existence purposefully. The Modern concept of creativity emerged in the Renaissance and has expanded and changed in the last few decades. Postmodern scholars have problematized such basic concepts as originality, and “the author” or creative person. The rise in networked information technology, among other factors, has led to an increased awareness of collaborative and networked creative processes. In the sciences, the machine/clockwork view of the Universe was unable to account for creativity. Today creativity is increasingly viewed as a fundamental characteristic of existence. There is an emphasis on interactions and emergence rather than essentialism and an exclusive focus on the individual. A new emphasis on “everyday, everywhere, everyone” and “networked” creativity is shifting the focus from creativity as a phenomenon confined to the rare individual genius to one that also includes collaborative creativity in everyday life [1].
Creativity is an essential aspect of teaching and learning that is influencing worldwide educational policy and teacher practice and is shaping the possibilities of 21st-century learners. The way creativity is understood, nurtured, and linked with real-world problems for emerging workforces is significantly changing the ways contemporary scholars and educators are now approaching creativity in schools.
Nowadays, the benefit of developing creativity in classrooms is widely recognized by education professionals. Introducing creative teaching in classrooms can bring benefits such as developing children’s imagination and increase the probability for major discoveries and economic development for the future. Also, creativity is considered as an important component of personal well-being and in a classroom, the context may develop curiosity, openness, and communicational abilities.
Resourcefulness
Resourcefulness is the ability to find quick and clever ways to overcome difficulties. Resourcefulness is a mindset and is especially relevant when the goals you have set are difficult to achieve or you cannot envision a clear path to get to where you desire to go. With a resourcefulness mindset, you are driven to find a way. Many have tried to describe elements of resourcefulness. Here we will use an example from Psychologist Sherrie Campbell. She says that we can describe resourcefulness with six elements [2]:
Open-minded
As open-minded you must be passionate about breaking boundaries and redefining what is and is not possible. You must possess the unique talents necessary to leverage and fulfil the immediate goals set out in front of you, and remain open when considering new ideas and differing thoughts from your own. Open-mindedness is critical when taking the actions that will lead you towards success.
Self-assured
Believe you are capable of handling any problem placed in front of you. You must wholeheartedly hold the belief that you are competent and adequate enough to achieve what you desire. This belief is the first step you take in getting things done. When you are self-assured you like and trust yourself. You know your value, appreciate your talents, work ethic and your ability to consistently follow through on your every word, deed and action.
Imaginative
Resourcefulness is having the mindset to look at what’s in front of you and to optimize what you have to work with. Being imaginative is not always about creating something new, but also, with a little ingenuity making old things work better. Reach far into the depths of your mind and come up with outlandish possibilities as well as practical ones. Allow your mind to wander. Never stop your creative process, as you may talk yourself out of a great idea. Creative thoughts quickly move you from one idea to another and to another. One of those ideas may bear the fruits of a genius idea or solution.
Proactive
There is no such thing as procrastination in the mindset of those who are resourceful. To be successful you cannot put your dreams on hold and wait for the right resources or people to show up. There is no waiting. Get out there and create your own resources and networks. When you are resourceful you do not allow outside circumstances to determine when or how you take action, or you will always settle for less.
Persistent
To be resourceful you can never give up. If you stop trying before a problem is solved then you haven’t accomplished anything. If you don’t succeed at first, get up and try again. Try a dozen things a hundred different ways if that is what it takes, but don’t give up the fight simply because obstacles present themselves on your path. Trust that every “No” puts you that much closer the “Yes” you are looking for.
Hopeful
Possessing a resourceful mindset requires you to stay positive. There is a solution to every problem, even if that means a change in direction. Train yourself to see the positive benefits in every situation. As you cultivate a positive outlook you will see it is easier to come up with solutions. Fear and frustration block innovation.
Resourceful mindset
To develop a resourceful mindset be willing to constantly improve yourself. Be open to learning new things and do all you can to keep current with what is happening within your industry. Even if your business becomes more successful your learning must continue because learning provides enrichment to your life. Know and embrace what your personal strengths and weaknesses are and learn how to control and overcome them. You cannot manage every situation you encounter effectively if you do not have the ability to harness your fears and/or weaknesses.
Sustainable thinking
Sustainable thinking is connected with responsibility, creativity, and resourcefulness. Sustainable thinking is a mindset when you show responsibility, when you use your creativity, and when you are resourcefulness.
References
- Alfonso Montuori, Nature of Creativity, ResearchGate 2017
- Sherrie Campbell, 6 Characteristics of Resourceful People That Bring Them Success, Entrepreneur Europe March 2016
Lucubrate Magazine January 2020
The photo on the top of the article: Karl Skaar
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