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Every year, millions of people around the world make resolutions to spark positive change in the new year. Popular resolutions include improving health and fitness, traveling more, spending less, and so on. With 2024 just around the corner, here are six resolution ideas to reduce our climate impact:

Shop More Sustainably. Choose eco-friendly brands and products with minimal environmental impact, including locally-produced goods and reusable items whenever possible.

Switch To Clean Energy. Purchase green power, install renewable energy systems to generate electricity, or switch to renewable resources for home and water heating and cooling needs.

Reduce Food Waste. Food waste is a significant global issue with environmental, economic, and social implications. In the U.S., an estimated 30-40% of the total food supply is never eaten. Meal plan and only shop for what you need. And freeze any leftovers.

Adopt A More Plant-Based Diet. Transition to a more plant-based diet in order to shrink the ecological footprint of food production. Resource-intensive animal-based foods like meat, dairy, and eggs are one of the chief contributors to climate change.

Reduce the Carbon Footprint of Transportation. Opt for eco-friendly transportation and energy-efficient practices in order to lower emissions. Examples include driving a battery-electric car and utilizing public transportation.

Get Involved In Conservation Advocacy. Support and engage in environmental causes, and help promote conservation and sustainable practices.

As we ring in the new year, let’s raise our glasses to a cleaner and greener 2024.

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Photo, posted August 3, 2018, courtesy of Ella Olsson via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

These days, consumers have multiple choices for how to shop for even the most mundane products. There are both traditional and online ways to buy most so-called fast-moving consumer goods, such as cleaning supplies and packaged foods. Price, quality, convenience, and time-frame guide our choices.

In the past, these things were always purchased by going to “Bricks & Mortar”, that is, physical retail stores. But now, we can order them from physical stores and have them delivered directly by the store – which is known as “Bricks & Clicks” – or we can order them online from an e-tailer and have them delivered by a parcel delivery company or the post office, so-called “Pure Play” online purchasing..

The carbon footprint of these three approaches depends on multiple factors according to a new study published in Environmental Science and Technology. The study looked at the impact of transport, warehouse storage, delivery, and packaging.

Overall, the greenhouse gas footprints per item purchased at Bricks & Mortar were higher than those of Bricks & Clicks but lower than that of Pure Players. But the results were highly dependent upon how many items were actually being purchased, and where the consumers lived. The type of items also mattered. For example, clothing purchased from a pure-play online source is much more likely to be returned than if purchased in a store.

Bricks & Mortar shoppers could reduce their footprint by 40% by walking or biking to stores, and Pure Players could cut emissions by 26% by switching to electric vehicles for the delivery of products from parcel distribution centers to consumers’ homes.

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Comparing greenhouse gas footprints of online versus traditional shopping

Photo, posted July 15, 2017, courtesy of Elaine Smith via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Sustainable New Year’s resolutions

Every year, millions of people around the world make resolutions to spark positive change in the new year. Popular resolutions include improving health and fitness, traveling more, spending less, and so on. With 2024 just around the corner, here are six resolution ideas to reduce our climate impact:

Web Links

Online Shopping And Greenhouse Gas Emissions | Earth Wise

These days, consumers have multiple choices for how to shop for even the most mundane products. There are both traditional and online ways to buy most so-called fast-moving consumer goods, such as cleaning supplies and packaged foods. Price, quality, convenience, and time-frame guide our choices.

Web Links