Gen Z has carved its own vocabulary into a dictionary handed down by generations with wear and tear. Their frustration comes from watching governments fail repeatedly on biodiversity, climate change, and public welfare.

Gen Z wants change, but they want it to be multi-dimensional – hopeful, inclusive, and practical. It must include poverty reduction, social inclusion, and efficient resource management. But justice, as Gen Z understands it, is not a single demand shouted outside a gate – it is a room with failing light, fluttering curtains, and a router whose signal too few can reach.

The dimensions of justice in sustainability

A power outage dimmed the room light, the curtains fluttered, and the next video was loading. I, too, as part of Gen Z, see in this sequence of events a metaphor for the dimensions of justice.

Everyone’s hands on the dimmer

The light is dim, the power is failing, and the wires are worn and torn. The system denied you the chance to decide whether you even wanted the dim light. Then, on the verge of collapse, it denied you any say at all. Gen Z demands procedural justice that is fair, transparent, and inclusive. If sacrifices must be made, everyone should have a hand on the dimmer switch. Everyone must have a say, and the process must be carried out fairly and transparently.

The curtains should recognise me

The curtains flutter in the still, dimly lit room. The government sits comfortably inside while sunlight gently peeks through and settles on the wooden furniture. Yet the room remains dark because the curtains stay shut tight. Representation exists only in fragments. The marginalised remain invisible, their shadows unacknowledged.

Gen Z wants to pull the curtains open completely. They want the light to hit every corner of the room – the differently abled, vulnerable communities, and those historically excluded from decision-making. This is recognitional justice: a form of inclusion that leaves no one behind.

Distribute the bandwidth

The loading screen represents bandwidth being hogged by one device while everyone else – including the environment – goes unserved. Eventually, you alone are left dealing with the collapse of the router.
This is distributional justice. For Gen Z, the benefits of a healthy planet cannot belong to only a privileged few. The signal strength must reach every household, regardless of who pays the bill. Here, the bandwidth becomes a metaphor for clean air, water, energy, and climate security – resources meant to be shared collectively.

For Gen Z, the protest sign and the biodegradable detergent are not contradictions; they are the same argument written in different languages.

Sustainability in everyday life

From the darkened corner of the room, I saw a pile of clothes on the other end. The sweltering heat of the week, the tiredness, had settled into the fabric. I climbed the stairs to the rooftop and unloaded the clothes into the washing tub. The biodegradable detergent mixed with the water; it smelled like honey lemon tea in a botanical garden.

“Excuse me, are you done with your laundry?” It was my flatmate’s voice. I noticed that on the greyish floor, she too used the same detergent. As our conversation flowed, the water swirled, and the sun painted an orange-red hue across the leaves.

While neither my roommate nor I would promote the brand on social media, we would readily encourage others to use it. Gen Z, like you and me, looks beyond the social validation attached to expensive products. What matters more is whether a purchase feels ethical, useful, and collectively beneficial.

These tangible experiences make them reliable repeat buyers.

While Gen Z is discerning and budget-conscious, this environmentally aware generation is still willing to stretch that budget for greener products. But businesses must meet them halfway by making sustainable choices affordable rather than marketing them as luxury products for niche consumers. Once sustainability becomes exclusive, it risks alienating the very generation trying to normalise it.

When sustainability becomes workplace culture

Sunaina, my flatmate, was wringing out her shirt when I asked her what she did. After a month of living together, I sensed that she worked in sustainability; the passion for the environment spoke through her eyes. She had an ESG reporting meeting scheduled for Thursday. Her role involved translating environmental data into something people could confidently present in boardrooms.

She mentioned a new solar panel installation project. She carried a beige tote bag printed with leaves and a monkey hugging a branch. It read: “Go Green.”

For Gen Z, working in a corporate space that advocates sustainability is deeply personal. A sustainability-oriented workplace culture encourages genuine innovation. Sunaina felt ecologically empowered because she was included in the company’s green decision-making strategies. Employees also earned green rewards for participating in sustainability initiatives. One such reward was a pencil embedded with seeds that could later grow into plants.

A flock of birds crossed the sky.

“We want birds in the sky, not cars,” a slogan at the KBR protests read.

No summit required. No jargon necessary. Just birds in the sky. Water in the pipes. Light in every corner of the room.

The author is an intern with The Indian Express.