Scientists and global political leaders will gather this week for the United Nations’ COP29 conference in Azerbaijan, where they will discuss how much money to give developing countries to deal with the effects of climate change. It’s a daunting task even for the most powerful governments on earth.
Gardening or buying vegetables from local farms is healthy for you and the planet.
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The fight to mitigate catastrophic natural disasters and stem biodiversity loss need not rest on governments alone — there are steps we can take on our own to live more sustainably and lower our carbon footprints.
COP29 will also examine ways AI can slow global warming and how global and local policies can future-proof infrastructure and make tourism more sustainable while encouraging governments to further invest in their renewable energy industries.
All of these efforts aim to strengthen the 2016 Paris Agreement. Now, more than eight years later, it’s clear that the best ways to reduce the effects of climate change include systematic and personal commitments to climate solutions.
Lower Your Carbon Footprint
Your carbon footprint is a measure of the total greenhouse gas emissions caused directly or indirectly by a person, organization, product or service. The nonprofit Nature Conservancy offers a free carbon footprint calculator, as does the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Once you know your impact, you can begin to help.
Forbes energy contributor Anna Broughel, a lecturer at Johns Hopkins University, suggests that buying an electric vehicle is one way to reduce one’s environmental impact while also saving money — on gas and from federal tax rebates, at least in the United States.
Choosing nonstop flights when you travel, instead of connecting flights with layovers, is another way to reduce carbon emissions from transportation, Forbes aerospace contributor Ted Reed writes. The American air carrier United Airlines enables customers to contribute to a sustainable flight account when booking trips. “The funds are invested in sustainable aviation fuel research and purchases,” Reed writes, in reference to industry efforts to develop sustainable air fuel.
Buy Vegetables Instead Of Beef
When it comes to making more eco-friendly shopping choices, experts generally advise buying local or artisanal products rather than mass-produced food and fast fashion.
Forbes sustainability contributor David Carlin, a research fellow at King’s College London, and Forbes food contributor Daphne Ewing-Chow agree that swapping high-carbon foods like beef for lower-carbon options, like vegetables, can quickly and cheaply reduce a household’s carbon footprint.
“Livestock are the major source of methane emissions, a powerful greenhouse gas many times more potent than carbon dioxide,” Carlin writes. “Therefore, shifts from meat-based to plant-based proteins in your diet could reduce your food’s footprint by 50-80%, a far greater effect than simply choosing locally sourced beef.”
For people who want to keep meat as a core part of their diets, chicken or locally raised beef are more sustainable choices than factory-farmed beef. For those in the United Kingdom, the Marine Stewardship Council offers tips on choosing sustainable seafood. For folks in the U.S., the Community Supported Agriculture directory can help identify local farmers selling healthy fruits, vegetables, and even meat, eggs and dairy. As for eating out, Zero Foodprint offers a directory of restaurants that contribute a portion of each sale to regenerative agriculture projects.
Wear Wool Instead Of Fast Fashion With Synthetic Fibers
Shopping for clothes can be an opportunity to establish eco-friendly habits. Forbes sustainability contributor Olivia Pinnock, a lecturer at the London College of Fashion, writes that the wool sector has better sustainability norms than other fiber options. Buying a knitted wool sweater, instead of clothing made with synthetic fabrics or mass-produced cotton, is one way to incorporate sustainability into your shopping preferences.
Whether that sweater is designer or thrifted doesn’t seem to matter much. As Forbes sustainability contributor Brooke Roberts-Islam writes, “price is clearly not a proxy for quality, and no product can be considered ‘sustainable by nature.’ However, a challenge remains in shifting consumer perception and behaviors to care for Primark as carefully as it might Prada.”
Invest In Sustainable Business Practices
Reducing your carbon footprint can also provide opportunities to connect with neighbors and colleagues who share the same concerns about climate change.
According to Forbes leadership strategy contributor Anjali Chaudhry, a sustainability professor at University College Cork in Ireland, workers can petition their bosses to create employee resource groups to help coworkers feel empowered to take action rather than be frozen by eco-anxiety. The United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals’ compass offers a practical guide for entrepreneurs and executives who want to promote more environmentally friendly processes at work.
“Helping employees manage stress and uncertainty, brought on by eco-anxiety can be a winning strategy for developing employees as a powerful ally in organizations’ endeavors towards climate action,” Chaudhry writes.
All things considered, Chaudhry says, being more deliberate and strategic about the way we vote, shop and even socialize or work can have a real impact on the environment.
“Employees can lead the charge on disruptive change by advocating policies to reduce environmental impact and improve corporate transparency. At Scripps Health, an employee-led sustainability council brought forth improvements in operations across a variety of areas including construction, energy, food, grounds, recycling, supply chain, transportation, and vendor partnerships.”
Another step could be swapping older incandescent light bulbs with ENERGY Star certified bulbs that can reduce the power consumption of a lighting fixture by 90%, according to the EPA.
From the workplace to the shopping mall, there are ways to express environmental values through everyday choices. Whether you choose to buy hummus instead of a burger, or a sporty electric car instead of a gas-fueled truck, there are plenty of options to make affordable choices that help mitigate climate change.
