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Try out 6 actions to fight climate change

Climate action
Climate Action
Climate Action
Climate Action

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Climate change is a proven fact.

Global warming has caused serious changes to the planet, such as rising sea levels, extreme weather events, deforestation, disappearance of species

But, as individuals we can slow down global warming by implementing small more sustainable actions within our community.

1. Reduce emissions
Use your car less, whenever possible.  Instead use sustainable transportation, such as bicycling, or use public transportation more often. In the case of long-distance travel, trains are more sustainable than airplanes.  These cause a great deal of the CO2 emitted into the atmosphere. If you’re into cars, remember that every kilometre that you increase your speed will considerably increase CO2 emissions and expenses. According to the CE, each litre of fuel that your car uses, equals 2.5 kilos of CO2 emitted into the atmosphere.

2. Save energy
Take a look at the labels on your appliances, and never leave them on standby. Always adjust the thermostat for heating and air conditioning. By being careful how we use home appliances, we can save energy and, of course, money at the end of the month.

3. Put the 3 R’s of sustainability into practice

  • Reuse: take advantage of second-hand markets, to give new life to items that you don’t use anymore or find something that someone else has gotten rid of that you need. You’ll be saving money and reducing your consumption. Bartering is also a practical solution.
  • Recycle: packaging, waste from electronics, etc. Did you know that you can save over 730 kilos of CO2 each year just by recycling half of the garbage produced at home?
  • Reduce: consume less, more efficiently.

4. What about your diet? Eat low-carbon
A low-carbon diet results in smarter consumption:

  • Reduce your meat consumption (livestock is one of the biggest contaminators of the atmosphere) and increase your consumption of fruits and vegetables.
  • Eat food that is local and in season: read the label and eat food that is produced in the area, avoid imports which create more emissions due to transportation. Also, eat seasonal items, to avoid less sustainable production methods.
  • Avoid excessive packaging and processed foods as much as possible.

 

5. Act against forest loss
As far as possible, avoid anything that may be a fire hazard.

  • If you want to buy wood, choose wood with a certification or seal showing its sustainable origin.
  • Plant a tree! Throughout its life, it can absorb up to a ton of CO2.

6. Make demands from the government
Demand that they take measures toward a more sustainable life.  Any way that you can: promote renewable energy.  Regulatory measures such as properly labelling products (fishing method used, labels that specify product origins, whether or not they are transgenic, etc.).  Promote more sustainable public transportation.  Promote the use of bicycles and other non-polluting transportation methods in the city.  Correctly manage waste through recycling/reuse, etc….

The population has more power than it realises to demand measures from governments to raise global awareness of the global warming problem.

Think globally, act locally. Your actions are needed in the fight against climate change. https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/climate-change/

Climate change is now affecting every country on every continent. It is disrupting national economies and affecting lives, costing people, communities and countries dearly today and even more tomorrow. Weather patterns are changing, sea levels are rising, weather events are becoming more extreme and greenhouse gas emissions are now at their highest levels in history. Without action, the world’s average surface temperature is likely to surpass 3 degrees centigrade this century. The poorest and most vulnerable people are being affected the most.

Affordable, scalable solutions are now available to enable countries to leapfrog to cleaner, more resilient economies. The pace of change is quickening as more people are turning to renewable energy and a range of other measures that will reduce emissions and increase adaptation efforts. Climate change, however, is a global challenge that does not respect national borders. It is an issue that requires solutions that need to be coordinated at the international level to help developing countries move toward a low-carbon economy.

To strengthen the global response to the threat of climate change, countries adopted the Paris Agreement at the COP21 in Paris, which went into force in November of 2016. In the agreement, all countries agreed to work to limit global temperature rise to well below 2 degrees centigrade. As of April 2018, 175 parties had ratified the Paris Agreement and 10 developing countries had submitted their first iteration of their national adaptation plans for responding to climate change.

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Climate Change Action SDG 13