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Food for thought

  • Earth Day, Big Dreams, and Small Beginnings

    I recently had a conversation with the global team behind Earth Day, and I left that call completely blown away by the passion and meticulous organization behind the event. They are behind tens of thousands of Earth Day events worldwide, including one right here in my city. It got me thinking about how far I’ve come from those humble days of orchestrating little movie theater sessions for kids at a local fair in Brazil. Back then, I never imagined those early experiments would someday lead to coordinating large-scale Earth Day events with city partners (which always brings back memories of dealing with Brazilian politicians), churches (even though I’m agnostic), and sponsors (since I admittedly suck at pitching).

    Cine Ratones
    The biggest little cinema in town.
    Ratonarte, Florianópolis, Brazil (2014)

    I’ve always had this odd notion that I wasn’t cut out to be an event guy, the idea of organizing something only to see empty seats used to terrify me. Yet here I am, spearheading events run by 100% volunteer-based nonprofits, operating on shoestring budgets, or sometimes, virtually none. Every event is a leap of faith, and despite the occasional panic, there’s a thrill in watching it all come together, even if it means sometimes laughing off the worst-case scenarios over coffee.

    The volunteer spirit is at the heart of these events, but even passion comes with a price tag. Sponsorships enter the picture, each with its own mission and set of values. This year, for instance, we were approached by a wide array of organizations, from big sports clubs and banks to electric vehicle companies. It’s a constant balancing act, because while accepting sponsorships can boost our budget and extend our outreach, it can also tether us to partners whose values might not fully align with our environmental or ethical stances.

    Declining sponsorships feels like a double-edged sword; on one hand, it might mean fewer resources and a smaller reach, and on the other, it reinforces the pride I take in keeping our mission uncompromised by external interests that delve too deeply into environmental or political controversies.

    In the end, these Earth Day events are more than just a calendar date; they are a testament to the unpredictable, often messy journey of turning small beginnings into meaningful, community-driven celebrations. And while the challenges are many and the stakes sometimes feel higher than a teenager’s first crush, the shared commitment of everyone involved makes every moment worth it.

    Earth Day at Civic Park, Walnut Creek, CA (2024)

    Here’s to the unexpected paths, to volunteers who show up rain or shine, and to keeping our footprint light on the planet and heavy on authenticity.

  • When ginseng tea isn’t enough, figuring out my bandwidth.

    Bandwidth sounds like a technical term, something to measure internet speed, but lately I’ve been using it to talk about my mental space. Not long ago, I started feeling this low, nagging anxiety, a weird distress that just wouldn’t quit. I blamed it on a temporary mood and went for a run to clear my head. The next day, the feeling was back, kind of like that annoying popup ad you can’t close. While updating my Now page, I realized I was juggling far more than I ever admitted, especially projects that needed my full attention.

    A “Now” page is my quick snapshot of what I’m focused on at the moment, a sort of last page of my journal. Inspired by Derek Sivers, it’s a way of sharing what’s driving my attention and energy right now. I try to keep it fresh, updating it as my focus shifts, even if it means sometimes admitting I overdid it.

    A few years back, I dove headfirst into a bunch of projects. I started volunteering, advising startups, and chasing new business ideas, some that worked and others that, well, ended up being my own little disasters I’m too embarrassed to share. I love diving deep into something, getting lost in the details, and burning the midnight oil until my brain begs for mercy. It feels like an endurance race sometimes, with no official finish line, just me chasing that moment when everything finally clicks.

    I reviewed my goals and initiatives and found that some were simply left behind. That neglect stirred up more stress, so I decided to slow down on a few fronts, pausing projects like learning Korean or switching from cycling (yes, cycling, my beloved sport) to running. These two activities require quite a lot of time. Cycling, for example, isn’t just a quick loop for me. I end up on half-day rides where my legs and schedule both pay the price, but I love the endurance high I get. That feeling of pushing a bit further when my body insists it’s done can be addictive. Even better when it’s a full day of riding, I feel like I’m on a day trip.

    The issue with pausing or reducing some projects is that they’re sometimes social events, and the downside of that is meeting less with those friends. To be honest, switching from cycling to running wasn’t my best idea. I miss the group rides, the banter, and the coffee stops that are half the reason we even ride. It’s a bittersweet trade-off, but for now, it’s helping me keep my stress in check.

    Talking about them, one of my cyclist friends said some people seem to have endless bandwidth, and it got me wondering: do they learn how to manage their energy, or were they just born with extra batteries?

    “Nothing in life is as important as you think it is while you are thinking about it,”

    Daniel Kahneman

    Simple research tells us that our brains aren’t built to do everything at once. Every time we switch tasks, we lose a bit of focus. Experts like Daniel Kahneman (The guy from Thinking, Fast and Slow) remind us that our attention is limited and needs careful management. In other words, having more bandwidth isn’t about some secret magic power, it’s about making choices that protect what little mental space we have, something I’m still suck.

    So, I’ve tried a few tricks to keep my energy in check. I schedule downtime, set clear boundaries, gave meditation a shot and even switch coffee for ginseng (Ginseng helps rats handle stress, so I figured it might help me handle the rat race.)

    Well, none of these turned me into an ultra marathoner (thank goodness), but they did help me realize that trying to do too much just leaves me running on empty. One time, I promised a nonprofit I’d build their website in the same weekend I was juggling another project. By Sunday, I was microwaving my tea for the third time and realized I hadn’t eaten a real meal in 24 hours. That was my wake-up call.

    “Dieguito, I’ve done that before, you are a 3x burnout survivor, pay attention.”

    Me

    Life shifts, and so does my capacity to handle it. Maybe bandwidth isn’t something we master once and for all, but something we renegotiate as we grow. Right now, I’m just glad I’m recognizing those signs of overload before they knock me out. If my future self is reading this, I hope you’ve learned a few more tricks. If not, at least you can smile at how far we’ve come.

    Will I ever fully figure out my bandwidth? Probably not. Knowing me, I’ll keep piling on random projects and then wonder why my schedule looks like an abstract painting. But at least now, I can laugh at the irony while sipping a cup of ginseng tea and secretly planning my next half-baked scheme.

  • World powered by women

    Last month, Nadine Hammer and I organized a series of free sustainability workshops around the city.

    Can you guess the gender ratio of the RSVPs and attendees?

    **99% women, from diverse ages and ethnic backgrounds.**

    Some thoughts:

    • 1. Research indicates that women often express greater environmental concern and feel more responsible for fostering sustainable practices. This situation invites a deeper look into how environmental awareness and activism are influenced by gender roles.
    • 2. Are we conditioning women to assume ‘nurturing’ roles, including environmental caretaking, while men may not view it as their responsibility? This observation challenges us to rethink societal norms and the distribution of environmental duties across genders.
    • 3. What implications does this gender imbalance have for creating effective environmental policies? If one gender is largely missing from these discussions, can our policies truly be representative or effective? This disparity prompts policymakers to explore new ways to engage all demographics in sustainability efforts. Or is it just a matter of electing more women?
    • 4. Could the gender uniformity in workshop attendance lead to an echo chamber where only the perspectives of one demographic are heard and amplified? This situation raises concerns about potential narrow representation in activist movements and the blind spots it might introduce in tackling complex issues like climate change.

  • Tech for Good?

    Friday Morning Hope: See more products that put us back in touch with ourselves, each other, and the world around us. Thanks Humane team, for being persistent and rethinking Human-Computer Interaction.

    Friday Evening Pessimism: I don’t think your first product (ai pin*) will take off. 🙁

    *In Brazil, Aipim means Cassava Root. I used to plant on my front yard, I miss that.

  • Digital Toxic Shock

    Reflecting on the thought-provoking work1 of Sharra Vostral, it’s intriguing to explore how her concept of “BIOLOGICALLY INCOMPATIBLE TECHNOLOGY” can be applied in the current digital age.

    In the ’80s, an innovative product was launched amid much fanfare – a smaller, lighter, and super absorbent tampon.

    Unfortunately, this new product led to an outbreak of Toxic Shock Syndrome (TSS), especially among young women. The company said that the product itself was harmful, but in a complex interplay of variables, it enabled Staphylococcus aureus to reproduce rapidly, producing a deadly toxin. This concept has since been recast as “biocatalyst technologies” in her latest book, “Toxic Shock,” which has truly captured my attention.

    Ultimately, that particular tampon was removed from the market, but its users were blamed for using it “incorrectly,” a notion that persists and contributes to the stigma surrounding TSS today. The prevailing sentiment seems to be that if someone suffers from TSS, it’s her fault.

    Fast forward to the present day, we are surrounded by new digital projects, many of which have unanticipated outcomes. Social media has often been implicated in a rise in depression and anxiety², and thousands of novel digital solutions are emerging. Particularly alarming is the sharp increase in suicides among young women², which brings to mind the young women affected by TSS decades ago.

    These parallels lead me to ask:
    – Are we, as product innovators and leaders, unintentionally developing what could be deemed “psychologically incompatible technology?”
    – Are we fostering an era of anxiety and depression-catalyst technologies? Like a Digital Toxic Shock?
    – Will we blame the users (again) if something unexpected happens?

    We must remember to keep human well-being at the heart of technological advancement.

    For a deeper dive, here are the articles that helped me connect these ideas:

    1. Rely and Toxic Shock Syndrome: A Technological Health Crisis
    2. Jonathan Haidt and Zach Rausch‘s research on the teen mental health crisis
    3. Almost a Third of High-School Girls Considered Suicide in 2021