Giampiero & Maria Elena are two Italian guys, parents of a 2 years old daughter. They state that the most important thing in their family is growing together. They want their daughter to learn the value of respect for the others and the nature.

After meeting them we wanted to find out about their habits so we asked them: How sustainable would you rate your family?

– I would give us a medium rate, and I recognize that Giampiero is more keen about it than I am, Maria Elena said.
We know we could do better, but we are learning while growing. We started living together two years ago, it’s the first time that we managed a house ourselves and only then we actually realized what are the household costs. At the beginning, the first bills we got were ridiculously high. Now we have a much better understanding of energy, gas and water consumption, hence we pay more attention in order to not waste money. However we know there is still room for improvement.
We could definitely do better concerning the way we manage the grocery shopping, in particular in those weeks when we often eat out. On the other hand, we are very careful about recycling waste and keeping our garbage in the car or in dedicated bags when traveling.
 – Actually, there is something else I’d like to share, Giampiero said.
I love fly-fishing and I often end up in amazing rivers, in Italy as well as abroad, known by few people in the area. Unfortunately not everyone respects the beauty of such places, hence sometimes I encounter trash left by others. I can’t stand it; I always collect it in my garbage bag and throw it away when I find trash bins.

After having informed Giampiero & Maria Elena about some sustainable habits we have asked them: So, what’s your next step for a more sustainable way of growing together?

Surely we are going to improve the grocery shopping planning and start saying to our friends “let’s meet after dinner” when they propose, at the last minute, to eat out and we have food about to expire in the fridge. It’s a matter of habits after all.. We can get use to it!
In addition, we are going to pay more attention in avoiding devices kept on standby or plugs uselessly left in the socket. It’s such a low effort.. Why we didn’t think about it before?!?They ask one another.
We feel that the awareness about sustainability, at least in Italy, is not very high among people at their thirties but we also believe that the gap can be bridged. At least one step forward has been taken: Giampiero & Maria Elena are onboard and committed to raise their daughter with more sustainable habits.