It’s not enough to just recycle. I will sign petitions and call my local representatives. I will also engage in conversations about climate change – even with people with whom I don’t see eye-to-eye.

Sent on

November 19, 2017

Elle Pak

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To my future children,

I write to you today on a very cold November day, a little over a year since Trump won the 2016 presidential election. It’s been a challenging year in a lot of ways – both on a global level in terms of what’s been going on in the news but also in my personal life. I think tough times push us in ways we did not expect to be be pushed and sometimes we find out just how much strength and love we are capable of.

This past autumn has been crazy! It was very hot in New York City even into October and we missed the beautiful foliage that normally graces us in the fall. I particularly missed the foliage when I was back at my alma mater earlier this month for the 2017 Yale Environmental Sustainability Summit. Fall on campus is one of the most amazing places and I can’t tell you how many wonderful memories I continue to look back on that had the bright foliage in the background.

The conference was amazing – I heard so many talented people share the incredible work they are doing every day to make the world we live in a more sustainable place. I wish you could’ve been there with me to experience the joy and hope that I felt and to firsthand see the passion that people put into this very important work. It made think that I, too, want to get more involved in actively making this world a more sustainable one – so that when your kids’ kids grow up, they, too, will have the honor and privilege to make memories under the foliage.

As I write this letter to you, I am affirming my commitment to do my part to make this planet and world, in which you will one day live, a better place. It’s not enough to just recycle. I will sign petitions and call my local representatives. I will also engage in conversations about climate change – even with people with whom I don’t see eye-to-eye. I commit to eating more plant-based proteins and reducing my consumption of beef to once every two weeks. I will be a more conscientious consumer and put my hard-earned dollars towards products and services that do not harm this planet in the making.

I hope your generation will grow up with a different consciousness about how you personally impact the environment around you through the choices you make every single day. I promise to embody the energy and power of love in all things I do in gratitude for what the earth has provided up to now and with hope that we can do better in the future.

Much love,
Elle

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More Messages to the Future

Dear Tomorrow,

The only way to survive it, even if you don’t feel like you’re winning, is to keep your hands on the rope.

Dear Tomorrow,

I promise to pick up trash at every beach I visit, use metal straws, take quick showers.

Dear Tomorrow,

I promise to stop using a plastic straw.

Dear Tomorrow,

My climate promise is to use a refillable bottle, bring my own resusable spoon/form wherever I go, use clean personal care products (without chemicals).

Dear Maret,

Right now I want to be hopeful. Right now I want to think that we took action to ensure this beautiful future for you.

To my Children,

As you look through your window, I hope you will see a bright future. I hope you dream big, and that you have the courage, drive, and fortitude to do everything you can to achieve those dreams.

Dear Malasher and Alex,

My goal was to help you grow into better citizens of our planet; to help you care about our natural world and to make everyday choices that reflect concern for our beautiful earth and our own health as well as encourage you to work together to make changes in our community.

My future husband,

I want us to read this in future time and remember all the senses and views we witnessed.

Dear future generations,

It’s never too late to make a difference. Our actions have very real consequences. We can educate ourselves, learn from our mistakes, and take action. We can hold companies like big oil and big plastic accountable for their negative impacts on the environment. We can educate ourselves and others about what causes climate change and what actions we as individuals can take to lower our carbon footprints.

Dear Alba:

There is still a lot of beauty and I will do what I can to keep it from slipping away.

Dear Nafia,

I also hope that your previous prayers have been answered. The way you wanted to create green jobs for your fellow city dwellers have been fulfilled already.

Dear James,

More importantly, what are we doing to better our planet and everyone who lives in it?

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