Posted on 21/12/11
Tuesday morning sees me walking to school, pushing along the
bike with K in the baby seat. A big bag of unwanted clothes
and shoes for a collection at school pushed into the bike basket,
though it threatens to fall off any moment. I'm making M
carry her bags herself today - I just don't have the hands and the
bike can't take any more. 20 minutes later I'm peddling hard
down to the train station having dropped her off at school and K at
Mum's. At my desk here at BB by just after 10. It's all
precarious but Trying to Being A Good Me works today. Ok, so
I feel smug that I've managed this.
Glancing at the BREEAM Sustainability checklist, I've got points
for most. I always think thought that BRE should also add
Sanity to the list - of course I'm applying this to my life here
-but it's valid for building projects too. I wouldn't have
tried to do these things (walk/cycle/train, recycling, looking
after my children and working, employing local people (Mum!)) if in
the process of spinning these plates, I wasn't mentally keeping it
together.
BB employees, by and large, are active, hands on folk,
exercising body, mind and soul. Typically for Cambridge we
must be quite high on any list of companies with percentage with
green commutes from home. We car share or train it typically
to our sites. Of course, it's financial reasons also that
drive us, sense of community too, but remember that sustainability
is, so much more than the environmental reasons.
We're certainly not as sustainable as we might be - for a
company that promotes low energy. Our products need work in
terms of material choice but we minimise waste in their
manufacture. In terms of our wellbeing, people don't stop for
lunch often and have to be reminded to go home; on site we stay
till the job is done and more. But it's because we want a
successful BB, content clients and stakeholders, our environment to
be a little more balanced as a result of our work and who isn't
proving themselves a bit more in this economic climate?
There are days where I have to ask myself if all that I do is
worth it. I find myself picking fights at home because I
haven't left myself enough time to hang up the nappies, throw
scraps into the compost, collect bathwater, before getting us out
of the door. It doesn't take long to admit yes it's hectic but I'm
doing it all because I want to. Some days the house is quite
as clean as it might be, I've feeling guilty about not being able
to put in all hours with colleagues in the midst of crises, I've
not had proper conversations with anyone- but ultimately how
sustainable my life in work and home is down to how much I want it
to be. It's not just about paying lip service. And yes
please, BRE, add that extra category to the checklist.