What We’re Thankful For This Year: The 2015 Edition

We try very hard to practice thankfulness at Postconsumers every single day. But it’s become somewhat of a tradition to post a list each November of things and people that (or whom) we’re especially thankful for this year. Postconsumers has been chugging away for years now slowly but steadily educating the public about addictive consumerism, the industrial marketing machine, and how to fall in love with enough. Along the way there are plenty of people and organizations who have lifted us up, and there are also some events and people in the world who have helped raise awareness of the cause that we’re so passionate about without knowing that they were doing it. This year, we’d like to make a special mention of the following boons that we’re, as ever, thankful for.

John Muir and Rachel Carson: We promise that this is not an excuse to promote our own blog pages! Promise! But earlier this year we decided to take two months to feature the quotes of famed environmentalists John Muir and Rachel Carson. When we did, we were reminded just how passionate and beautiful the words of these two activists were and we were inspired for the rest of the year (and likely beyond). While they may not be physically here for us to thank, we’re certainly thankful for the words and observations that they left us with.

The Story of Stuff and the Post Growth Institute: In addition to the important and powerful work that they’re doing every day, both of these fantastic organizations helped to raise awareness of Postconsumers.com by sharing our content on social media. We’re both honored and thankful.

The Pope: Before you flame us, we know that he is not perfect and he certainly also says some things that we disagree with. But if we all aimed for perfection only, nobody would ever be thankful for anything! Step back for a moment and think about when the last time that somebody who was the leader of such a powerful, traditional and far-reaching social (and political, let’s be honest) institution was willing to go against the grain of accepted canon and speak out about issues of consumerism, climate and social ails. His support in addressing climate change could truly, in the end, be one of the things that actually begins to turn the tide from denial to action. No matter what you may think, we appreciate his conviction and frankly bravery in speaking on the matter.

Mike Swofford: Every year, Hollywood animator Mike Swofford is gallant enough to create new Get Satisfied cartoons for our popular Postconsumers Cartoon Gallery. Not only do we, as always, appreciate the kind contribution of this successful Los Angeles animator and illustrator, but we appreciate his unique creativity and sense of humor as well as other talents.

Donald Trump, Ted Cruz, Ben Carson and a Host of Others: We can’t help it. There’s no way for us to not think that this collection of crazy is truly going to draw attention and motivate action to elect government officials who want to make changes (the good kind). Also, we have to admit that part of us has enjoyed the entertainment value.

Stephen Colbert and Jon Stewart: If you fact check them, they’re not always as accurate as you’d hope, but we’re thankful for the attention these two draw to not only political issues but also social issues that would slide under the radar without them. This year, we’re particularly grateful for the time Stephen Colbert protested Amazon.com and by doing so increased awareness of and much needed revenue for independently owned and operated book stores. Both neighborhood books and local shopping are causes near to our heart and he did an important deed by promoting them. Also, if you have not read the book he recommended during this campaign, California by Edan Lepucki, it’s a great read!

Life: This year our Postconsumers Content Team leader gave birth to her first daughter. What we all realized is that nothing will make people understand the need to move away from addictive consumerism and toward a more sustainable future more than thinking about the world and the life that they would want for their children. In fact, it’s what inspired our entire parenting series of articles.

Of course, there were so many other smaller, miraculous things that we were thankful for this year, but we’ll enjoy those memories ourselves. We’re always curious to hear what others are grateful for, so feel free to stop by the social media channels below and share your thankful list with us!