Lana Condor Reveals Her Tips for Sustainability, Stress Relief, and ‘To All the Boys’ Fandom (EXCLUSIVE)

As the star of To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before and its two sequels, Lana Condor has an adoring fandom that can’t get enough of her friendly, relatable vibe. On top of being an actress and keeping busy with a number of projects in the pipeline, including the rom-com Worth the Wait and the thriller Valiant One, Condor makes a point to advocate for the environment and encourage her fans to live sustainably. 

The star recently partnered with 3M to host the premiere of Green Works, a docuseries highlighting five individuals working in green jobs across various international industries. “I was excited to watch it,” Condor says. “It’s very uplifting, and it shows there's so much room for green jobs in any industry. It makes you really feel like you can operate in that space and do it well.”

Lana Condor spoke to FIRST for Women about the steps she’s taken to lead a more environmentally-friendly life, the enduring love for the To All the Boys franchise, her recent appearance on Abbott Elementary and more. 

FIRST for Women: What are some of the ways that you’ve advocated for the environment in your own life?

Lana Condor: Conservation has been such an important topic and focus of mine for a long time. I've gotten some amazing opportunities to go out in the field to unique places and see the conservation practices that they have to help heal and sustain their communities.

I went to Vietnam recently, and I went into the jungles looking for illegal traps that are often set up on the border in the hopes of catching endangered animals so that they can sell them over the border for bad reasons. 

Obviously, when you're taking away rare animals, it completely impacts the natural ecosystem and the rhythm of that environment. I got to experience that firsthand, and it was alarming and sad, but also incredibly inspirational, because I got to meet and work with the rangers who dedicate their lives to living in the rainforest, and being away from civilization in the hopes of protecting indigenous animals and making the community better. I've done really cool trips like that throughout my career, and there's so much more that I want to be able to do. 

FFW: Are there any everyday hacks you’ve used to become more environmentally friendly?

LC: I like to start with small practices, because if I can make them into a proper ritual, I really get motivated to slowly go bigger. A simple example is that I use an olive oil that’s designed so when you’re finished with the bottle, instead of buying a whole bottle, you buy inserts, so you just get a little pouch and it has the olive oil in it, and then you pour it back in and reuse the bottle. I believe little things like that make a difference. It's my morning practice — I use it every day to make my eggs. In my brain, I'm like, “Oh, this is something I can do.”

On a bigger scale — which I feel very fortunate that I get to do, and I know it's not easily accessible — I was really lucky to put a complete solar power system in my house, so my house’s electricity is all powered by the sun. That’s something I'm very proud of and I love it so much. I get shocked when I see the electricity bill because it's like nothing. And there's a machine that I use in my backyard that collects rainwater and any sort of liquid that comes from the house and purifies it and puts it into the irrigation system of my lawn and plants.

FFW: Outside of your partnership with 3M, you most recently guest starred on Abbott Elementary. How did that appearance come to be?

LC: Quinta Brunson is a good friend of mine. I wasn't working and she called and asked if I was into doing it, and I was like, “Yeah, 100%.” It was really fun to be a part of that show. I had never done a show like that before, so it was very different for me. 

I was just happy to be there to see Quinta work. That show is her brainchild, and she's in the writer's room while she's in hair and makeup about to shoot a scene, and she handles so much. She's just one person, but she's doing a lot more than one person's job.

FFW: What has it been like seeing the devoted following for the To All the Boys trilogy over the years?

LC: It's amazing. Those three movies were some of the most impactful work that I've done. I meet girls and guys on the street all the time who come up to me and think that we're best friends, and they're so nice. 

I'm really proud that those films were received by such kind people. I feel like we created this community of positivity and love, which is something that I really hope to keep doing. I will always be so deeply and unbelievably grateful to those films, and I had the time of my life doing them. 

FFW: With all the different projects you’re currently working on, how do you like to unwind?

LC: I really love watching documentaries. I find that when I'm in a heightened state of stress, if I can watch real people doing cool things for others, it settles me down. There’s a quote that says the only antidote to anxiety and depression is gratitude, so when I'm frazzled, if I watch something inspirational, I feel very grateful. And then I read a lot and play with my puppy and stare into the void, and I'm good. 

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