Transcriber: Uy Tran Reviewer: Keira White
Hi, my name is Zen Lim.
I was born and raised in Malaysia,
and I’m currently studying about environmental issues in Waseda University.
I’m also a certified yoga teacher and practitioner.
On the side, I run a volunteer led community
focusing on waste reduction, and marine conservation.
And I also started a sustainable, creative lifestyle brand.
I know it’s not like I have a lot on my plate,
but trust me when I tell you that I'm still a lost lamb.
I wouldn’t pinpoint one occasion when I started to think twice about
the environment, but I would like to start with my relationship with yoga.
I know, What about yoga that relates to the environment?
Well I picked up yoga a few years ago, based on health reasons,
but I actually started to deepen my knowledge when
I decided to take my yoga teacher training course in India.
I had a yoga master who once told us that yoga does not start
from your fancy yoga studio or your expensive yoga leggings or yoga mats,
it starts from your kitchen. You are what you eat.
He was right, because throughout the course we were served a Sattvic diet,
which is a vegetarian diet based on Ayurvedic principles.
It was delicious,
it was easy to digest.
I was full, but not feeling bloated.
And it was perfect from when we had to do hours of practice,
but still feeling energetic.
Although I don't follow the same diet now,
his words always stick to me and I would do what’s best that I can,
which is being aware of what goes into my body.
Naturally, I started to choose more organic products or local produce.
I would cook my own meals and eat less meat or dairy
and also cutting down junk food and snacks.
It’s not always perfect, but I realize the relationship of my body and food
has become so much healthier.
Along the way, I finally found the true meaning of trying to be a vegan.
It is self-love,
it is self-care which manifested to the care for the nature.
I used to work trying to be a vegan because well, I'm not 100 percent vegan,
but I think it’s OK.
I think it’s OK to be imperfectly vegan,
imperfectly zero-waste or even imperfectly sustainable.
We are all on this learning journey
and we can only go far if we keep supporting each other
and we keep improving.
We have been impacted by COVID-19 in different ways,
and so have I.
The pandemic brought me back home to Malaysia
when, fortunately, I managed to land a job as a yoga instructor
in a remote island resort.
This is a really beautiful island.
I’m seeing clear skies, transparent blue ocean and wonderful dive sites.
Waking up in the morning and doing yoga
while the sun rises was literally the best feeling.
Yet, living there for 4 months has made me dig through all the dirty secrets,
all the things that travelers do not see,
and most definitely not what I would see in the city.
Plastic bottles accumulating,
villagers throwing trash right into the ocean,
trapped ghost nets, bleached corals, dead corals.
I know it sounds a lot, but honestly, this is just a fraction of it.
It is emotional seeing how beautiful nature is
and how it is being contaminated right in front of my eyes.
I guess I had an epiphany, and I knew that I had to do something.
I met a friend who also shared the same passion towards nature.
And together, we decided to start a community,
first and foremost, to clean up the beach.
We organized beach cleanups every other week.
We collaborated with local organizations,
partnered with local establishments, and raised awareness on our social media.
It doesn’t sound a lot,
but seeing familiar faces showing up each time,
seeing the locals joining, and the kids learning,
my heart was full.
At that point, I knew that this is what I want to share with the world
and this is what I want to pursue in life.
Along the way, with all the knowledge and encounters
that I have learned through nature and my body,
I started to put things together to curate a sustainable lifestyle
that is good for the environment, but most importantly, suits me.
First, I pay attention to my consumer behavior.
For example, shopping, diet, and transportation.
My goal whenever I buy something is to reduce my carbon footprints,
and to contribute to a circular economy that is sustainable.
I stopped buying fast-forward fashion and mindlessly buying new clothes,
but instead, choosing ethical, slow, and local fashion.
Or better, thrifting.
Inspired by a friend, I challenge myself
to not buy any new clothes this year, and it’s going great.
I started to cut down my meat consumption when I know that
it is one of the biggest industries in emitting greenhouse gases.
I try to eliminate single-use plastics from my life as much as possible,
which is one of the easiest, but also one of the hardest.
Second, I always look at product sources.
It became a habit to look at the ingredient list
of the things that I own or buy.
If it contains a whole bunch of chemical terms
or terms that I do not understand,
chances are it’s filled with preservatives
or chemicals that may cause health problems in the long run,
or it might be harmful for the ocean.
So I would do my research or opt
for more natural and ethically produced products,
or certified products like B Corp or cruelty-free.
Slowly, I learned how to make my own products
like Kombucha, lotion, candles, soap,
which actually saves me a lot of money,
but most importantly, I know what goes on or into my body.
Last but not least, I always open up myself
for new knowledge, skills, and conversations.
Besides doing research and reading articles,
I recently learned how to scuba dive,
which brought me to a whole new world, and so much more closer to nature.
I sometimes talk about difficult topics on the dinner table, like climate change,
which could either bring me to a really good debate session,
or I would just be given this really weird look.
And I notice sometimes I feel like it’s never enough
or that what I'm doing is not going anywhere.
But my community always inspires me more,
and reassures me that what I'm doing is creating a ripple effect.
I found my reasons to change my lifestyle,
and to look at things from a different perspective.
This is my story,
but I hope that this voice can inspire you
to find a reason to shift from being unaware to being aware,
from being aware to taking actions.
Being aware starts from listening to yourself.
I would like to end this talk with a beautiful metaphor of the eclipse,
“When the sun, moon, and earth align themselves in a straight line,
it creates a beautiful red moon, or a ring effect on the sun,
which can only happen with the balance position in the universe.
Likewise, our body, mind and soul can also achieve a balanced state, which is peace,
if we align ourselves with who we truly are,
the children of the earth.
Thank you.