Using Letter Writing in Activism – Pushing the Boundaries
Letters have been used to communicate one’s ideas and spread knowledge for thousands of years. There is evidence that letter writing existed in Ancient Greece, Rome and even further back. Today most letters are written via email, rather than with pen and paper. Either way, it is the writer’s hope that the letter will be received, read and responded to, if required.
As a little girl, I would write informal letters of thanks to friends and family after the holidays or my birthday. With the advent of email in most homes and businesses in the 90’s pen to paper letters gave way to emails. Today, our society more readily uses informal letter writing for day to day correspondence. For more serious considerations, a formal letter is required.
As part of my sustainable mission, I’ve begun to use the art of writing formal letters, to connect with suppliers to ask hard questions and to hopefully invoke change. Using letter writing as an agent of activism feels right. Instead of waiting and hoping for things to change, I’ve decided that it’s my responsibility to communicate that change needs to happen rather than to sit by and wait.
Don’t assume that change can’t happen. It always has and does when individuals have the courage to speak up and share information. In the case of my industry, I’ve started reaching out to businesses who are making change and to find out their secret sauce. On the flip side, I’ve sent letters out to others if I see a policy or product that needs reinventing to better meet environmental and sustainable standards.
I used to worry that I needed to be an expert in an area before I could speak up. If we all wait until we become experts, nothing will happen. Let’s just say, I’ve put my imposters syndrome to bed and so should you! If you’re concerned with how something is made or what it’s made of, speak up. If you want to see it made another way, speak up.
As part of my weekly writing process, I’ve added writing a letter to activate sustainable change to my list. I figure, with 52 weeks in a year, that’s 52 letters that I’m speaking up. The more that we talk about change, the more likely it will happen.
As the great Maya Angelou once said, “I'm convinced of this: Good done anywhere is good done everywhere. For a change, start by speaking to people rather than walking by them like they're stones that don't matter. As long as you're breathing, it's never too late to do some good.”
Let’s all speak up.