Travelling made me realise how fortunate I am. I believe that our past has a big influence on us. I grew up in a rich country. It is safe, clean, and has a great polity, healthcare, and educational system compared to many countries. I do not think it is perfect but travelling made me appreciate Switzerland much more. Above all I am incredible grateful for the way my parents raised me. They support me mentally, trust me and let me go my way. This gives me strength.

I grew up in a modest, ecological house. On our roof is a solar thermal collectors and in winter we heat with wood pellets. Our electricity is from renewable energy. We do not have a car (my parents chose to live close to a good public transport connection), no TV but a computer. We never travelled with a lot of things and flew as rarely as possible. The journey itself got an adventure: Playing cops and robbers with other children on a ferry from Venice to Greece, sleeping in night trains and forgetting my little brother outside the train. If this does not happen too much then it is tolerable 😉 The washing machine and toilet use rainwater. My parents even used cloth diapers for us and most of our clothes we got from friends or second-hand (thrift) shops (Most of the clothes were only one year old anyway). Since decades my dad only uses soap for his hair. If something is broken we try to repair it first, after check out second-hand shops and if they do not have it, buy it new.

Minimalism is about quality (mostly more expensive) over quantity. We try to buy most of our food local and seasonal and in small local organic food markets instead of supermarket chains. We are very strong with recycling. Outside we made a big compost. My mum has a big garden with vegetables and fruits and we cook mainly with organic ingredients (not a lot of meat).

I cannot mention enough how grateful I am to my parents!

I am still learning new things and improving every day, but I am ready to share some of my thoughts and knowledge with other people. Most important to me is not to be stuck in one point of view and being open for change.