As a non-extreme minimalist, just watching the film trailer for No Impact Man: The Documentary is rather stressful. What you see is a radical lifestyle change.
“No Impact Man” committed to living one year of his life creating the least amount of impact on the environment that he could. And documenting it on film. He has also written a book, No Impact Man: The Adventures of a Guilty Liberal Who Attempts to Save the Planet, and the Discoveries He Makes About Himself and Our Way of Life in the Process.
His wife seems to be rather reluctantly “going along” with the project. She loves TV, and they can’t have one. It wouldn’t work anyway — they use no electricity. She loves to shop, and that’s out too. Cosmetics are out. Washing machines are out. And yes, even toilet paper is out.
Just how far can extreme minimalist living go? We might get our answers in the documentary. It stars the Beavan family — Colin Beavan, Colin’s wife, Michelle Conlin, and their daughter.
See the official trailer for the film:
No matter how extreme or not your minimalist lifestyle happens to be, you still might learn something from NoImpactMan. Colin explains his blog as “…what each of us can do to end our environmental crisis, make a better place to live for ourselves and everyone else, and hopefully come up with a happier way of life along the way.”
In one of his posts, No Impact Man quotes Howard Thurman. “Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.”
With the idea of extreme minimalism, Colin Beavan seems to have found what makes him come alive. That is fascinating and compelling to me. His passion is there for the taking. What do you come away with from what he shares?
Watch No Impact Man on Demand
Photo Credit: daddy’s footprint by lisajames. Browse Baby Cards
MiMi