Reduction Tips – Your role in the fight against climate

Climate change is happening now as a result of rising greenhouse gas emissions. To tackle this, we need to make lifestyle changes to reduce our carbon impact – which means making sure that we do not pollute or use more resources than is necessary, such as fossil fuel, water and electricity. If we take more responsibility for managing our own carbon footprints, we can reduce the possibility of catastrophic climate change and preserve the planet’s resources for future generations.

some practical first steps that you can take to reduce the carbon impact of your daily life:

Be energy aware

• Switch to energy efficient appliances and “green” electricity providers at home and at work.
• Turn off appliances at the wall instead of using standby.
• Turn your thermostat down. Reducing your room temperature by 1°C could cut your heating bills by up to 10 percent.
• Only boil as much water as you need, and make sure your washing machine and dishwasher are full before switching them on!

Reduce your travel impact

• Keep the car parked: use phone and video conferencing to avoid the trip.
• If you need to go somewhere, walk, take the train and bus, or cycle instead of driving.
• If you have to drive, carpool or drive a fuel efficient car.
• Cut back on the number of flights. Consider holidays and short breaks closer to home and taking the train where possible.
• Keep a shopping and errands list in the kitchen, so that you can take care of groups of activities when you are out and save on transport emissions for multiple trips.

Support low-carbon products

• Organically grown and locally produced food is usually less carbon-intensive than traditional products.
• Buy from companies that have reduced and offset their emissions, and that show a strong commitment to social and environmental responsibility, such as taxis offering carbon neutral journeys.
• Recycle more bottles, cans, paper and plastic. It usually takes less energy and CO2 to produce recycled goods than it does to manufacture them from raw materials. If your area doesn’t have a kerbside recycling scheme, send an email to your local representative to ask for one.
• Buy recycled products, such as 100% recycled paper and toilet roll.
• Get creative with gift-giving. The gift of time, services or ethical gifts may be more appreciated than disposable goods that are not to the taste or needs of the recipient!