Small Actions Create Chain Reactions That Change The World
It feels counterintuitive in such difficult moment in world history. But thinking small is our way out of this mess.
When I doom scroll, I become the biggest optimist you’ve ever met..
Sometimes, I’ll read an article titled something like “Antarctica is Losing Ice Faster Than We Thought,” and then bookmark it for later as if to say, “That’s the next problem I’m going to fix.”
I am never more arrogant in my problem-solving abilities than when I click “bookmark.”
Are you like that too? Are your Twitter bookmarks filled with articles that will inform your master plan to save the world?
The age of the internet makes it really hard to think small, especially for those of us that live comparably privileged lives in the West. How can I focus on the seemingly trivial problems in my community when people are suffering in such drastic ways across the globe? Especially when I’m so constantly reminded of that suffering every time I look at any sort of media?
It almost feels like a little voice on your shoulder is saying “Oh, so you care more about having your own special lane for your bike than this starving child?”
To build better cities in our own backyards, and a better world altogether, we need to learn to reject this voice. And we do this by understanding just how interconnected everything actually is.
Here’s what I mean:
A few weeks ago, I shared about a pair of entrepreneurs that started a recycling facility that turned shattered beer bottles into glass that’s rebuilding the coastline in New Orleans, Louisiana.
If you were to describe their niche, you’d probably say they’re environmentalists, redemptive entrepreneurs, or something like that.
But their impact is felt across the country and around the globe, in sectors ranging from shipping and manufacturing to energy and transportation to agriculture and national security.
And this is the kind of perspective we need to take with our own work in our own communities.
When you help your own town become car-light, you’re starting a chain reaction that can spread throughout your region, then throughout your state, then throughout the country.
When you take an entrepreneurial risk and open up a corner pub or bakery, you give dozens, hundreds, or thousands of people (depending on your context) access to a more walkable way of life. Each of them is a potential evangelist for better places just waiting to be unleashed.
As hard as it can be at times, we need to resist the temptation to believe that small, local actions are in some way a way of saying we don’t care about the struggles of the broader world around us.
Start creating chain reactions in your own backyard. If we all do, the impacts will be felt all over the world.
One Thing to Get Excited About:
A new plan has been released in Brussels, Belgium that would discourage through-traffic and promote a more pedestrian-friendly city center. The potential for another car-free or car-light downtown is always worth getting excited about!
One Action to Get You Started:
This week’s action is an accountability check-in.
What’s one action we’ve covered over the last several weeks that you’ve been dragging your feet on?
Maybe it’s contacting a local official about that bike lane in a key area in your town.
Maybe it’s sending a DM to someone you’re trying to connect with on Twitter.
Whatever it is, go get caught up. That’s your homework for the week.
One Resource to Check Out:
My new favorite Twitter account is one called AI-Generated Street Transformations. As the name suggests, the account posts concept photos of underwhelming places transformed into thriving neighborhoods using AI.
It’s a great tool to help you open your imagination and train your brain to see potential in every part of your own city.