We need to act now! Did you know that taking action to decrease the effects of climate change now has never been so important?
As a nation, we have been putting things in place, such as banning plastic straws in the Uk, charging 5p for plastic bags, increasing fuel prices and recycling. But, it’s all just not enough! We’re painfully panicking because our planet is getting dangerously, devoured.
If I told you that your children could grow up in a world where animals are extinct, the air is poor, and there’s barely any vegetation. How would you feel? The world will be as lifeless as an old ghost town if we don’t act now.
Thankfully, you will be happy that there are things we can do about this at home and wherever we go. I am going to give you the solutions that you have been tirelessly searching for…
Delicious diets
Sadly, meat production is horrendous for the planet due to the breeding, raising, and slaughtering of animals as tons of water and land are needed. Plus, the waste pollutes the earth.
What we eat is one of the biggest contributors to our carbon footprint, which means we can only blame ourselves for this.
Here are some tasty vegan dishes from BBC Good Food that will tingle your taste buds:
Vegan chilli, vegan chickpea curry, vegan sausage rolls, easy vegan pancakes and vegan burritos. The list is never-ending and all of the meals are rated 5 stars! Act now and give it a try.
Back in July, I chose to go vegetarian, and I managed for around 2 months. I was gutted as I had to stop due to it affecting my ibs. As a result, I've now gone to not eating meat twice a week, which is still something. So it’s all about working together and doing what we can.
Reuse, reduce, recycle
Bored at the number of times this phrase is used when no action is still being taken? Me too! Sometimes I still forget what I can and can’t recycle. Putting the wrong items in your recycling bin can make your whole bin contaminated, so it will just go to landfill!
As well as recycling, there are lots of other ways we can reuse things at home. For example, composting which is the most environmentally friendly way of dealing with kitchen and garden waste. It minimises pollution of methane, which is 25 times more harmful than carbon dioxide.
Benefits of composting are that it helps your plants grow and you will have extremely healthy soil. Furthermore, other ways you can reuse waste are cutting down on what you buy, turning leftovers into new recipes and researching into what you buy.
In my last project, I found that pineapple farming in Costa Rica is terrible for the environment due to the pesticides used to grow them.
What can we learn from others?
We need to think smarter. Indigenous tribes have hit the nail on the head, using boats and bicycles and even making their homes out of natural materials. I’m not saying go and try to build a home out of natural materials, but even ditching your car for the day to cycle to work would help.
Berlin has more bicycles than cars, and when I went, it was so refreshing to see everyone cycling to work and around the city. Perhaps, we need more cycle lanes and places to lock our bikes onto, like in Leeds.
Also, locally sourcing your food is a great way to cut down food miles. You will get produce that is a lot fresher too and you could help support a local business.
Name and shame
Companies can tell you anything that they want you to believe, and that’s how they sell their products with their dishonest and lousy lies. They say they have your best interest at heart, and they want the best for the planet but what we don’t see is behind the scenes as it’s all just a front.
BP makes advertisements focused on low carbon energy products when more than 96% of its annual spend is on oil and gas.
Coca Cola was ranked the world's number 1 plastic polluter in the annual report break free from plastic.
In 2018, Starbucks released a ‘straw-less lid’ for their sustainability drive, however, this lid contained more plastic than the old lid and straw combination.
Nestle released a statement on plastic packaging which honestly Green Peace reacted to saying it includes more of the same greenwashing baby steps to tackle a crisis it helped to create.
The amount of companies that I could name and shame is disgraceful.
So, before you invest in a brand, make sure you do your research beforehand. There is so much that you can do to help the planet! Why not join a safe, legal protest, use word of mouth, join a group on social media or sign up for Green Peace. Together we can make a change.