Guilt, I am well-acquainted with. Though I can’t say it drives me to action as much as what I think of as conscience. To me, guilt feels like the left-overs when I don’t do what’s worthwhile (listen to your conscience).

But shame… for me, shame is the more destructive power. It is the crippler of action. When I allow myself to feel like I just can’t do something right enough or green enough, it kills the urge to try. It’s one reason why I feel like there’s a delicate balance between educating and shaming. I’d rather be shown a better way of doing something than shamed for the thing I’ve done. I try to bring this to my interactions with others.

I think that a couple of years ago most of the people who’s doing things NOW that contribute towards the environmental movement or eco-activism felt like you did at that time. I remember a stage where talks around climate change was very negative and there was an attitude of we-are-doomed-no-matter-what. I was there too – I’ve felt depressed, frustrated and yes, I’ve felt a LOT of guilt.

It’s easy to feel guilty – about ANYTHING. I feel guilty for using time to type this post rather than working on the illustrations I’m supposed to work on today. I feel guilty that I haven’t gone for a walk or jog this morning. I could easily feel guilty for not spending a bit more time with my husband this morning or for not packing his lunch. But where would it get me? Then I’m using my thoughts and the POWER of these thoughts to focus on what I SHOULD have done or what I SHOULD be doing, rather than doing something that ‘matters’, like writing, painting, working, gardening, volunteering…

I think guilt has it’s place as a little voice that tells you that you’re not really doing what you WANT to really do – whether out of procrastination, laziness or a misperception. But I also think that it often tends to take up too much of our thoughts and energy, pulling us down and – like you said – leads us into inaction.

With regards to guilt guiding or motivating us into action, into trying to making a difference and guide through example – I would rather not call it ‘guilt’ but being in touch with what is worth doing. When you’re in touch with what you really want – and I really do think that we all WANT happiness, harmony and sustainability – then guilt just nudges you back onto the right path when you get distracted. And depression follows when you ignore that nudge long enough. Wow, that was quite a mouthful, now – hope you understand and make sense of what I’ve expressed!

Blessings, and keep up the great work!!

‘Paul Goodman speaks from the modern point of view when he says: “No good has ever come from feeling guilty, neither intelligence, policy, nor compassion. The guilty do not pay attention to the object but only to themselves, and not even to their own interests, which might make sense, but to their anxieties”‘
http://www.sciencemag.org/content/162/3859/1243.full

^ I concur.

I’ve seen the same thing with reusable bags at the grocery store. Once it became EXPECTED, everyone started carrying their own bags.

I’m not sure that guilt is productive. But exerting a bit of social pressure can absolutely make people change their habits.

I think the key might be to not spend too much time feeling guilty over things you’ve already done, but rather to focus on doing a better job in the future. I can’t change the number of disposable plastic bottles I’ve used and thrown away or recycled now, but I can make sure I don’t use any more. A little guilt is good for making me think more critically about my decisions, but crippling guilt just leads to apathy and depression.

Peer pressure is different. People didn’t just stop letting their dogs shit everywhere because of guilt, they did it because OTHER people said nasty things to them about it, glared at them, and otherwise held them responsible for their dogs. People do a lot of things to fit in, not all of them motivated by guilt.