A few moments of gratitude & love for you and the planet 💚
You know that feeling when you’re packing for a trip, obsessing over how little it feels like you’re packing, only to come home and realize you didn’t come close to wearing all of it?!
And then suddenly, your closet — all your stuff — feels excessive and overwhelming?
That’s been my reality lately.
We’ve been living a lot more van life (pictured above) which naturally has me thinking about how much shit we acquire, usually without even trying.
Van life recently took us to Joshua Tree where I was fortunate enough to spend a day working (a weird dichotomy, I know).
Something about the open space and ancient rock formations that have witnessed millions of lives put things into perspective.
It was surreal and humbling and a reminder of just how much of a blip in the timeline we are.
Speaking of blips in the timeline — my youngest already graduates high school in a few months — soon we’ll be empty nesters!
It’s the last few pages of this chapter.
Freedom. Nostalgia. Excitement. Fear. It’s a lot.
But it has me thinking about what we leave behind just as they’re beginning their lives.
What actually matters? What lasts? And more importantly, what shouldn’t?
This is why ( r e ) ˣ even exists — and why you’re here. You, like me, don’t need or want your legacy to be a space billboard (a joke I fear we’re inching closer to every day).
But we would like to do good, be good, and inspire at least one other person to think about what should and shouldn’t last.
For our 7-10 minutes of non-doomsday content:
- The Department of People Who Work For A Living
- The impact of cotton v polyester v regenerative cotton t-shirts
- Some good eco news.
As always, shop strong & recycled hangers if you need 'em
march's sustainable superstars: the department of people who work for a living
Are you feeling paralyzed watching Project 2025 come to life?
Yeah, same.
But the other day I was listening to Assembly Required, Stacey Abrams’ podcast, and had the wonderful surprise of listening to Liz Shuler, president of AFL-CIO speak.
AFL-CIO (American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations) is the largest federation of unions in the US representing the rights and wages of 15 million active and retired workers. They fight for fair wages, labor rights, and policies that actually serve working people — not just the billionaire class.
In this ep, Liz was discussing the newly formed Department of People Who Work For A Living (DPWL) — created in direct response to an unelected billionaire ravaging the government.
Their exact words were “If Elon Musk can make up his own government department, so can workers.”
The DPWL is a rallying point for those of us who actually work for a living and are watching essential services and jobs get destroyed.
They're cutting through the chaos to help make sense of what’s actually going on, continuing to work for fair policies and practices, and helping us fight back.
Check out DPWL:
march's blog: polyester vs cotton - which t-shirt is worse for the planet & why
You wear them, wash them, and Goodwill has an overflowing amount of them. The climate industry is always talking about how many gallons of water go into creating a cotton t-shirt. But polyester is plastic so… which is the bigger environmental offender?
- one sheds microplastics
- one guzzles water
- both have ethically-questionable labor practices
In this blog we’re breaking down the true cost of your favorite Tee so you can decide what’s worth wearing.
march's earthly eco matters
We’re not as divided as it feels: Colorado College’s 15th annual poll reveals 72% of people from 8 western states and all 3 political parties want congressional representatives to prioritize water, land, and wildlife conservation > maximizing oil, drilling, and energy production.
Environmental youth competition creates real world effects: 17 year old Earth Prize finalist, Ryan Honary, has created a product for early wildfire detection that is being deployed across the Irvine Open Space Preserve. The product, SensoRy AI, uses infrared sensors, AI and a camera to detect sparks at a smaller level and improve early detection.
Look to neighbors for inspiration: Canada is building the largest urban solar powered projects in all of North America. The project will span 1,600 acres with 600,000 solar panels installed on contaminated, radioactive land. Once completed the project will be able to power the entire city — residential & industrial — offsetting an estimated 350,000 tons of carbon emissions per year.
how we made van-life more sustainable: turns out, having a step-son who knows his way around van builds is a serious advantage. With his know-how and my sustainability obsession, he built a van that’s not just functional—it’s one I feel damn good about.
We swapped out heavy wood for aluminum cabinet framing to keep things lighter and more fuel-efficient. The cabinet doors - PaperStone (recycled paper) and the countertops - Fenix, made from recycled paper & carbon neutral.
For flooring, we went with Chilewich — plastic yes, but it’s basically indestructible, meaning we’ll never have to replace it like wood or carpet and it cleans like a dream.
The best part? Almost everything was sourced from U.S. suppliers. Less shipping emissions, more support for local businesses—a win-win. Look at that beauty ⬇️
That's all folks - until next month 💚