When people hear the word environmentalist there can be a lot of misconceptions. Misconceptions like we don't use plastic at all or that we are all vegan. Or even that we must bike everywhere and do everything right for the environment. And then when one of us is seen eating a piece of meat or driving a car powered by fossil fuels then they criticize us for not being an environmentalist and being hypocrites. But I'm here to tell you that being an environmentalist is not about being perfect. The definition of environmentalist is, “any person who advocates or works to protect the air, water, animals, plants, and other natural resources from pollution or its effects.” Did you see the phrase, “and does it perfectly,” in there? I didn’t. We all do what we can. Some are able to afford solar panels and an electric car others can only cut out meat once a week. And that is okay! Some can go almost completely zero waste while others just do their best to eliminate single-use plastics. It's often said, we don't need 8 billion people doing it perfectly, we need 8 billion people doing it imperfectly. That simply means we all need to try our hardest and do whatever we can, not be perfect at it. Start small. Cut out meat once a week. Say, “no thank you,” to a straw or plastic cutlery at a take-out place. Then add to it. Bring a reusable water bottle or coffee cup with you. Try to drive less and use less electricity. Set a goal to save up for an electric car or a solar panel. You need to work your way up to the big things. And sometimes those big things are just out of reach because of price or lifestyle restrictions. Think of it like running a marathon. You don’t just decide one day you’ll go run a marathon and just do it right out of the gate. You have to train. You have to start with shorter runs and work your way up. Being an environmentalist is very similar. You need to educate yourself on what you can do and start making little changes every day then build up to bigger changes. We highly recommend starting with our 30 Day Going Green Challenge for Kids. This is a great way to get simple ideas on how you can change your daily routine to be more environmentally friendly. Other articles that may be helpful: Get Involved - Doing a Litter Cleanup The Spooky Truth About Halloween Pumpkins - How to go eco for Halloween Also, check out the rest of our HOW TO series in the articles section.