Wick to Wick
In this section, community members share their experiences, their journeys, their commitments and their tips for a more sustainable and responsible lifestyle. They even embark on the intimate exercise of the Proust questionnaire in La Mèche mode, echoing the video interviews with personalities who took part in the exercise. It’s Alice who opens the ball and spills the beans.
Who are you and what do you do?
My name is Alice, I’m 28 and I’m a product manager in the watchmaking industry.
What’s your current state of mind?
Give 1000% to what I do.
Your main character trait?
My joie de vivre.
What does it mean to be green today?
Conscious consumption (food, clothing, etc.), taking care of our own pollution (e.g. waste generated, sorting, transport, etc.).
Who inspires you? and why?
There’s no one person in particular who inspires me, it’s more the new generation (gen z) who inspire me with their commitment to the environment and their desire to change the world.
How did your desire to get involved come about? what triggered it?
This desire was not sudden, but the result of various exchanges and information about consumer products. I’d say the trigger was wanting to feel better about what I was putting on my skin and in my body.
How does it manifest itself in everyday life?
A very good example is that I now only use natural oils in my beauty products and no industrial creams. I also take care to buy seasonal fruit and vegetables, and I favor clothes from eco-friendly branches.
How do you integrate the notion of sustainability into your work?
In watchmaking, the first battle is to stop using exotic leather (I’m fighting to get rid of it) and to rethink entirely recyclable packaging. The list would be long if I had to enumerate all the examples.
What are the biggest challenges you face?
Watchmaking is a very traditional industry, and it’s reluctant to undergo this kind of radical change, so we’re going to have to be patient to get it to change.
What solutions have you put in place?
Perseverance and conviction.
And how do we get back to the human in this process?
It’s a human being who buys (the end customer), and as time goes on we’ll come up against a clientele that is extremely concerned about the environment (e.g. gen z).
How has the pandemic changed your relationship with the world?
It reinforced my belief that human beings are not invincible and that nature quickly reclaims its rights.
Tell us about your fondest memory of nature…
For me, my fondest memories are of hiking, when you’re alone, lost in nature, with nothing to hear but the sound of nature.
If you were a tree, which one would you be? and why?
I would be a fir tree, majestic, resistant and sometimes prickly!
What natural ability would you like to have?
Autonomy.
If you were an energy source, you’d be…
Water.
Your favorite season? Why?
Spring is the season when flowers come out and nature wakes up from its hibernation.
Your favorite landscape?
The sea.
Preserving the planet means?
It starts with considering her.
What kind of pollution do you dislike?
Garbage on the floor.
What solution for the planet are you looking forward to?
Global awareness.
What’s the one anti-sustainable gesture you find hard to give up?
My meat consumption.
Which green sin do you find most indulgent?
Meat consumption!
What can no longer be found in your kitchen?
Fruits and vegetables that aren’t in season, industrial sauces and yoghurts and lots of other things…
What gesture for the environment makes you feel good?
Waste sorting.
What green prejudice have you abandoned?
The rustic way of life.
Your biggest contradiction?
Skiing…
Your green motto is…
I don’t have a motto, I just want to be part of the change.
Your idea of happiness?
Getting up for something I love to do and with someone I love.
And pleasure?
Pleasure is contrasted by its rarity (e.g. vacations)
What can we do at an individual level to make a difference?
Pay attention to the brands we buy, sort our waste, cook in harmony with the seasons and look at our products in the bathroom.
And on a collective level?
Offer greener products, make recycling points accessible, optimize soft mobility, etc.
What are the 3 things you think are essential to change the world?
Raising awareness (customers and companies), taking action, providing solutions, particularly in developing countries.
What should the new world community look like to you?
A fully circular economy.
We’d love to hear your inspiring stories! If you’d like to try your hand at the Proust questionnaire, or share your experience, commitment, tips or gripes, go to the “Share with us” discussion forum on the La Mèche platform, here:
