OPINION - Sustainability is a complicated and ugly word, but the lifestyle is great

You know what the issue with sustainability is? The word itself. It’s complicated and unsexy. Thing is, the lifestyle itself is anything but. It actually makes our decision-making clearer and in some ways easier.

I’m 43, a father of two young kids and lead a busy working life in and around London. Being “sustainable” isn’t as reductive as you might think. We are predominantly plant-based at home, but my daughter Imi loves sausages and my son Leo is partial to a poached egg; I’m not going to deny them those.

We enjoy exploring different recipes and try hard not to leave food on the plate (in the UK, we waste a third of the food we buy — think of the savings you can make!), we’re also good at taking shorter showers (current record is four minutes) and doing the washing at 30 degrees (every little helps when it comes to those energy bills). I take public transport a fair bit when I’m going into and out of town, and also drive an electric vehicle, especially to and from Sky where we’re lucky to have plenty of chargers.

Yes, I know the cars aren’t always cheap to buy or lease, but the running costs are a fraction of petrol and diesel, and the peace of mind I have knowing I’m not harming the environment with tailpipe emissions more than makes up for the initial outlay. The used car market is flourishing now, so access at a lower entry price is there too.

You might think driving an EV is anxiety-inducing, but actually it’s wonderfully stress-free. I took the family down to Somerset in my Polestar 2, I had to charge just once, and it was a fast charger that got me from 10 per cent back up to 80 per cent battery in the time that it took to have a loo break and a coffee. You just need to plan your journey ahead a bit, that’s all.

But not everyone thinks like that, and I get it. For more people to truly embrace sustainability, we need more than just sleek designs and impressive marketing from vehicle companies; we need genuine transparency and trust.

Research has found that more than one in five (21 per cent) UK drivers would be more inclined to embrace green technology if concerns were addressed about the environmental impact of making EVs.

If that helps more people make the switch to electric, then we’re definitely moving in the right direction.

You know what sustainability is about? Progress over perfection. And as human beings, we can all get behind that.

David Garrido is a Sky Sports presenter