Watch the video: New Yorker is self-sufficient thanks to the roof terrace.
There is nothing good, unless you do it. And Joshua Spodek from New York did it: Instead of constantly complaining about how unrealistic the transition to a more sustainable lifestyle is for most people, he just started. Bit by bit. The 51-year-old left out packaged food first ten years ago. It hasn’t flown since 2016 and has produced almost no waste since 2019. In 2021 he pulled the plug on his refrigerator and since 2022 he has not had to buy electricity at all. Spodek uses a large power bank and a foldable solar panel, both of which he bought used. Once a day he carries both to the roof of his apartment building to charge. “A year ago I wasn’t self-sufficient. I was trying not to use more electricity than necessary, but I had no sense of how much equipment was using. Right now I’m using a fraction of what I used before. And now that the winter solstice is behind us, the energy is just bubbling up.” “These are of course sensitive devices that sometimes break. And they are not produced green. They are not renewable. But they allow me to be disconnected from the grid.” To cook, Spodek connects a multi-cooker to his power bank. “Some people think that individual measures are not relevant. But they are. And pollution and resource depletion harm us all.” “Four billion people live in cities, until this time last year I never believed that what I’m doing was possible. And I almost didn’t bother. But I want to show that it’s possible. After all, you can’t make someone live by values if you don’t do it yourself.”
