Make a Plan for Climate Friendly Living
There are literally hundred's of actions you can take to slow climate change. They range from simple things like recycling and installing a smart thermostat, to getting involved politically, starting a community group and even eating healthier local food. In the end - they all lead to the same outcome - using less energy from fossil fuels, which is better for all of us.
Because there are so many things you can do, we suggest making a plan, something you can tape to your fridge as a reminder of the goals you are planning to accomplish.
We organized actions into three buckets to make things easy. We start with things that are quick and easy - and can lead to as much as a 10% reduction in your footprint. Actions in Next Steps and Big Impact have, as you probably assumed, greater impact and reward.
As you can see, we like chipping away at things in a step-wise approach. So grab a notepad and let's get started - better living and a cleaner world await.
Quick Wins
If this is your first time looking into reducing your carbon footprint, we are recommend these 'quick wins' to get started. They're easy to implement, impactful and can save money too. If you implement all of them, we estimate that you can reduce your footprint by as much as 10 percent! That sounds good to us!
Quick Wins
Next Steps
If you're already taking actions for the climate but are looking to do more, our Next Steps actions include ideas that will dig deeper into your carbon footprint. Home energy audits, weatherization and eating greener are all here. Following most of these steps can cut an additional 20% from your carbon footprint.
Next Steps
Big Impact
High impact actions include greening your ride, using renewable energy, heatpumps, offsets and more. These actions can significantly reduce your climate impact - for good. Depending on how many of these steps you take, you can reduce your footprint 30 to 50%.
Big Impact
Save Money
Want to save money? Tired of inflated energy bills? Your can save money and slow climate change at the same time. Here's a short list to get started:
Replace all your Incandescent Lights with LEDs
Believe it or not, about 11% of your home energy use goes to lighting! LEDs use 90% less electricity than incandescent bulbs and in some cases 50% less than compact flourescents. They also last (almost) forever - so this can lead to big savings over time.
Use Less Water at Home
The average US family uses a stunning 400 gallons of fresh water a day - and a good portion goes to showers. You save up to $130 a year by installing modern low flow shower heads. They're easy to install and they feel good too!
Complete a Free Home Energy Audit
Completing a home energy audit can help you reduce your home energy bill by 5-30 percent and most utilities offer them for free! Alternatively, follow the weatherization tips on EnergyStar's Website.
Minimize Vampire Power
Many computers and small appliances devices continue to draw power to even when they are turned off or not charging. One easy way to reduce vampire power is to change the energy management setting on your computer, setting to sleep after 5 or 10 minutes. To make things easier, you can also install smart power strips that cut off power to monitors and entertainment systems, when they're not being used.
Power Your Home with Renewable Energy
The price of solar, and other sources of renewable power, has been dropping rapidly. Although we don't offer this yet, we're working to make this part of our store. Sign up for our Newsletter for updates on future renewable offerings.
Quick Wins
Get Involved
There are many ways to get involved to help slow climate change:
- Join a climate action group
- Start or join a sustainability team in your town, religious community or school
- Join or support organizations that are working on climate education
- Start or join a community solar program
- Get involved in a citizen's science project to monitor and better understand the effects of climate change
- Volunteer for a climate preparedness or resilience program
- Start a book group to stay positive, keep informed and progress solutions
- Sign up for one of the many podcasts on the topic
The truth is we need everyone engaged in some form of climate action - no matter how small. And the good news is there are hundreds of ways to make a difference.
See our full list of..
Groups Working to Stop Climate Change
Stay Postive
Big Changes are Coming
Climate Change is real and the impacts are coming for sure. This takes some getting used to and for some people the implications for nature and community - well - can kind of get you down. It's important to do everything we can, but also to keep a healthy perspective as things unfold. And they will.
We look forward to providing actionable resources over time.
Have a book or resource you'd like to share? Send us a note at ideas@climatestore.com.
We'd love to hear from you!
