For me, in just few words, Voluntary Simplicity means to accept a lower income and a lower level of consumption, in exchange for more time and freedom for me.
I need more time and energy to pursue other life goals, such as community or social engagements, family time, artistic or intellectual projects, more fulfilling employment, political participation, spiritual exploration and so on — none of which need to rely on money.
Voluntary Simplicity is a new concept, but it expresses an innate lifestyle. One in which priority is what is natural to be a priority: building autonomy, communication with who we love, personal development, authentical manifestation, producing in a sustainable and friendly way.
Voluntary simplicity does not, however, means living in poverty, becoming an ascetic monk or indiscriminately renouncing all the advantages of science and technology. It does not involve regressing to a primitive state of living. This simple way of life is not just for saints, hippies or eccentric outsiders. After examining afresh our relationship with each other, with material possessions, with planet ecology, ‘the simple life’ of voluntary simplicity become a moral choice.
I don.t want to press anybody to chose this way of living, but I strongly believed this is a moral and healthy/ecological way to live. I'm not against comfort, but excesses. Excesses lead to power games and to destruction of ecosystems. I find it immoral and non-ecologic to consume, as a species, from the ecosystem more than we give back, because that is how we take the chance for others to live. A consumerist mentality request a lot of struggle and leads to depletion of your own resources, time and energy. It leeds also to inequality and not-so-friendly human relations. Voluntary Simplicity avoids too much struggle and give place for joyful and healthy relations with yourself, with others and with Nature.