I’ve made a personal commitment to only work with individuals and organisations that I feel contribute something positive to the world. I’ve also drawn up a set of commitments for how I can fully align my work with my values.“
Hi folks, it’s great to be part of the ASP. I work mainly as a freelance copyeditor and proofreader.
I’m from the UK, but I’ve been living in the Finnish wilderness for the last couple of years with my partner and our little rescue dog.
After arriving in Finland, I quickly realised (with the complex language and geographical remoteness) that the best way to create an income was to start doing something online. Copyediting and proofreading had been on the periphery as a possible new career option for some years, so it seemed like the perfect time to dive into that.
However, the one thing that weighed heavily on my mind was how to do such work in a way that could actively support positive change – it’s been an essential ‘tick box’ in all my previous work.
I also realised that, in general, conversations around the environment and social justice were very muted in this field. Especially in a freelance role, I think there can be a tendency to see ourselves as relatively neutral or feel that if we don’t take an assignment then someone else will. But, of course, if we are actively supporting individuals or businesses that have an overall negative impact then we are also part of the problem.
As well as making efforts to raise these issues for discussion with colleagues, I’ve made a personal commitment to only work with individuals and organisations that I feel contribute something positive to the world. I’ve also drawn up a set of commitments for how I can fully align my work with my values. This is all available to view on my website: www.naturaledits.com. I hope being part of the ASP will inspire me to further this ‘manifesto’, and I’m always up for insightful suggestions.
In addition to this line of work, I’m also a craniosacral therapist and a bushcraft instructor specialising in wild food. The latter is on hold for the time being, although I’m currently exploring ways to offer some online teaching.
