Climate Action: A Big Change Begins with a Small Step

Every now and then, there are headlines about the rising global temperature, extreme heat waves, melting glaciers, rising sea levels, coastal erosion, droughts, storms, bad crop harvests, and what not. With these daily headlines, we need to understand that climate change threats are no hoax, fraud, or scam. They are, but real. Actually real! The climate disaster is actually banging on our doors. Even though some people might deny it, but with the wide proliferation of these daily threat calls, many people are now coming to acknowledge the seriousness of climate change.

But, however, merely admitting it is not enough.

One can summarise the real cause of global warming by saying that it is caused by ‘increasing greenhouse gas emissions’, which include gases like carbon dioxide, methane, ozone, etc.

All the studies reveal that the two major contributors to greenhouse gas emissions are:

1. Burning of Fossil Fuels, and
2. Cutting down Trees

We can take small initiatives to reduce both fossil fuels’ consumption and deforestation. Let’s see how it can be done.

What can we do to reduce the consumption of Fossil Fuels?

Now, with respect to fossil fuels, we can do the following:

1. To invest in clean energy. This can be done by choosing energy-efficient appliances, such as LEDs, which are more than 85% energy efficient and last 25 times longer than normal incandescent lighting.
2. Use more natural lights than artificial lights.
3. Save energy by turning off unnecessary electronic devices.
4. Looking for alternative ways of travelling, like cycling, walking, or using public transport.

These are some small steps that we can take to contribute towards reducing the usage of fossil fuels. But, honestly, the larger impact in this context can be made when all the governments, industries, and corporate bodies come together to work with real sincerity towards achieving SDG 13, which is combating climate change and its adverse impacts. Without any show of pretence or greed for economic profits, governments all over the world need to invest in clean energy. They have to draft and strictly implement decarbonisation policies.

But, hey! Having said that, it doesn’t mean our efforts don’t matter. A 2020 study in 7 countries in Europe revealed that cyclists in their daily travels had 84% lower lifecycle CO2 emissions compared to non-cyclists. That is, if we switch moderately towards walking and cycling, we would save 6–14 million metric tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions. Now, that’s quite a lot.

So, with just a small shift, we could actually make a significant impact. Besides, cycling and walking are always good for mental and physical health too.

Caring for Trees: Reducing Deforestation

Now, this is where we can actually make a huge impact on the environment. With our individual steps, we can prevent deforestation in so many ways, such as:

1. SWITCHING TO A GREEN PLATE

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We should know that besides the over usage of fossil fuels, the second biggest contributor of the global warming and environmental destruction is “Animal Agriculture”. Livestock Farming creates not just deforestation but also air, water and land pollution.

More than 40% of deforestation is attributed to animal agriculture, so much so that 80% of all the deforested land across Amazon is ascribed to cattle farming. Just imagine that of all the 100 deforested trees in Amazon rainforests, 80 are cut just for the cattle to be raised so that their meat can be transported worldwide for human consumption. Well, it’s not just the declining tree cover that is the problem; livestock farming contributes to climate change in so many other ways than we can imagine. Now, let’s see what happens due to animal agriculture:

1. Trees, we know, store and absorb carbon dioxide. When forested land is cut on a large scale, carbon dioxide is directly released back into the atmosphere. This leads to an increase in global temperatures.
2. When cattle are made to overgraze at one place for a long time without taking a break for the revival of pasture, it can lead to soil erosion. With loose soil cover, the water retention capacity of the soil decreases, which can make it infertile. This, in turn, increases the risk of drought-like situations.
3. With loose soil, the other problem that arises is that of nutrient runoff. That is, whenever it rains, the soil gets displaced and carried into the nearby waterways. Now, you might think that a layer of soil flowing into the water would only make it a bit muddy, and it shouldn’t really sound like a big problem, right? But, no, it’s not as simple as you think. Let’s understand this. Whenever farmers use manure as a fertiliser, it releases nitrogen into the soil. This nitrogen is often found to be in excess because farmers overapply the excess manure to their crops to dispose of it. This increases the quantity of nitrogen in the soil. This excess nitrogen is flushed into the rivers whenever it rains, thereby polluting the water. Nitrogen in water stimulates harmful algae blooms. These algae blooms release harmful toxins, which kill not just aquatic life but also poison drinking water. Humans who drink this water can fall sick or may even die. And all of this happens because of the overgrazing of cattle.
4. Animal Agriculture leads to methane emissions. Due to the natural processes of belching, cows emit methane directly into the atmosphere, which again causes global warming.
5. Besides these reasons, deforestation also leads to the loss of biodiversity. In the process of cutting trees for livestock farming, so many other animals, which were not meant to be harmed, get killed. Some of these animals survive only to realise that their habitat is forever lost.

Also, it’s not just about trees being cut down for animals to be ranched. Cows, goats, chickens, horses, and all the animals of the world deserve to live. We need to take care of the lives of each animal the same way we take care of ourselves.

Therefore, we need to switch to a plant based diet. Hanna Ritchie, in her 2021 article, “If the world adopted a plant-based diet, we would reduce global agricultural land use from 4 to 1 billion hectares,” writes, “If we combine pastures and cropland for animal feed, around 80% of all agricultural land is used for meat and dairy production.” This means that if everyone becomes vegan, the researchers estimate that our total agricultural land use would shrink from 4.1 billion hectares to 1 billion hectares.

2. REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLE, REBUY

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To reduce deforestation, we have to:

REDUCE our use of plastic and paper. Avoid paper and substitute it with electronic devices.

REUSE the products instead of throwing them away.

RECYCLE the products. For example, refashion the interior furniture and decor items instead of buying new ones.

REBUY the recycled products and promote Green Purchasing.

3. Lastly, a small step that we can take is to GIFT A TREE. On every special occasion, let’s celebrate it by PLANTING A SAPLING and NURTURING IT.

Source: Pinterest

With our individual efforts, we can actually create a huge impact. In the realm of environmental conservation, individual actions are crucial. When each of us, at our individual levels, decides to eat green, choose to bicycle, or buy green products, we can collectively bring about a big change.

Therefore, each action, when multiplied by millions, creates a powerful force that can transform societies, influence policies, and inspire global movements.