One-Minute Lecture: Does sustainability mean giving up?
When we talk about the green transition, we often hear: it's too expensive. Katrin Männik, Research Fellow in Sustainable Education at Tallinn University, does sustainability mean giving up?
If we continue on the same course, comforts will disappear one way or another. Resources are becoming more limited and expensive. Take energy or clean drinking water, for example.
We have the opportunity to create a new kind of well-being: as conscious consumers and creators of a new living environment. For example, in the international project BioPackMan, we are working with entrepreneurs to develop bio-based and biodegradable packaging materials—replacing plastic while maintaining its functionality.
In the international project EdTech Talents, we are developing new digital solutions that help increase sustainability competencies in business and education. Smart solutions help us learn more flexibly and sustainably, allowing us to gain new skills while wasting less.
Therefore, a sustainable lifestyle is not about giving up, but about balance—we consume and produce smarter, not more. This is how we open up new opportunities for a future that truly lasts.