Half of Earth’s glaciers could melt by 2100

The study found that global average temperatures are estimated to rise 1.5 degrees Celsius above preindustrial levels sometime around “the first half of the 2030s,” as humans continue to burn coal, oil and natural gas. This would cause half of Earth’s glaciers to disappear by 2100[2]. We evidently still have a long way to go in protecting and preserving our environment from further harm. With World Earth Day taking place this month, it is the perfect opportunity for us as individuals and as a community to reflect on our day-to-day actions and change habits that may be detrimental to the future of our environment. Not sure where to start? Here is a handy guide of ways you can lower your carbon footprint and contribute to slowing down climate change.

5 Ways to Show Our Love for Mother Earth this Earth Day:

1.  Rethink your commute

A 2017 study from researchers at Lund University and the University of British Columbia concluded that going carless for a year could save about 2.4 tons of carbon dioxide[3]. While it’s unrealistic to ditch your car forever, reducing the number of times you drive to work a week can greatly lower your carbon footprint! Opt for public transport or try cycling to work. Carpooling with others is also a great way to split emissions. Regularly servicing your car can also help keep it more efficient, saving fuel and lowering emissions in the long run.

2.  Fly Less

With the world returning to a state of normalcy, everyone has been scrambling to go on vacations, with the number of flights increasing rapidly. However, flying can significantly add to your personal carbon footprint. Try incorporating other activities aside from travelling during your holidays! If we’ve learnt anything from the past few years, it’s certainly that there are endless new things to explore and experience locally. If you can’t avoid flying, the next best thing you can do is to offset your emissions by donating money to sustainable projects.

3.  Turn the lights off

It may sound like a common reminder, but there is still a long way to go in reducing our electricity consumption globally. Turns out, we are using a lot more electricity than we really need! Keeping a light on for bathroom trips during the night may seem convenient, but it will slowly add to a large amount of excess energy usage over time. Try to get in the habit of switching off all lights when you leave a room, or install motion activated lights. These habits can apply to any electrical appliance you use at home. You’ll find yourself saving on your electricity bill while also protecting the environment!

4.  Be Mindful of What You Eat

Experts mostly agree that cutting down on meat, especially red meat, constitutes to a better environment. Studies estimate that beef gives off more than six pounds of carbon dioxide per serving, while the amount created by a serving of plant-based foods likes rice or apples is less than half a pound[4]. With delicious plant-based meats and other vegan products becoming widely available, this is a great time to switch to a more plant focused diet. If we can start incorporating a vegan meal here or there, we can greatly reduce our carbon footprint in the long run. It may possess some health benefits for us too!

5.  Plan Your Meals Ahead

According to the FAO, around one third of all food produced globally is lost or wasted. This is a shocking amount of food, and the waste emissions also contribute to greenhouse gas. To help stop this, we should try and lower our consumption levels and do our best not to waste any food. A great initiative to achieve this is meal planning! Planning your meals ahead can help you control the amount of food you buy and mean you avoid buying things that you don’t need. Choose recipes that are adaptable, so you can use up any leftovers and freeze ingredients in advance so you can extend the lifespan of your food.

This list is by no means exhaustive and only an entry point to considering habits we can adopt which help us to live a more environmentally friendly life. Lowering our individual carbon emissions is an important step to protecting our planet from further damage, and #It’sInOurHands to love the Earth – not just on Earth Day – and preserve our planet for future generations.

[2] https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.abo1324

[3] http://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/aa7541/pdf

[4] https://css.umich.edu/publications/factsheets/sustainability-indicators/carbon-footprint-factsheet