Research shows how we can change our habits
of consumption to stop global warming
You know that outfit you buy on impulse? If you resist this temptation and don't take the item home, you can help reduce your car's gas emissions by 64%. greenhouse effect by 2050. Buying fewer clothing items, in fact, is the most important of the six attitudes listed by the movement Take the Jump for those who want to change their consumption habits to curb these emissions.
The movement is based on a search carried out by the University of Leeds (England) in partnership with the NGO C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group and the consultancy Arup. Its goal is to determine where and how global emissions should be reduced to ensure that global warming is kept at safe levels (i.e. a Earth's average temperature rise which is below 1.5oC per year).
Researchers recognize that governments and companies still have a greater responsibility in reducing emissions, as they can redefine energy matrices and supply chains. But they point out that there is significant potential for people to reduce emissions by adopting a more conscious consumption —especially in richer countries. And the six steps to do this are:
Optimize electronics
Extending the useful life of electronics to at least seven years is a move that could reduce emissions by a third by 2050.
Eating in a balanced way
To maintain healthy eating habits, with a diet rich in vegetables and less meat, would already cut emissions by 45% in 28 years. To the eliminate food waste, the number reaches 60%.
Buy less clothes
The ideal would be to limit clothing purchases to three pieces per year (can you do it?). This alone would reduce the volume of emissions by 64% by 2050.
Leave the car aside
Here the suggestion is to bet on non-polluting modes and leave the car in the garage as much as possible, avoiding using the vehicle for individual transport. With this, the reduction in emissions would be 31% by 2015.
Thinking about a vacation without a plane
The ideal, according to research, would be to take a short flight every three years. Long flights, then, only one every eight years. If the number of flights is reduced worldwide, emissions will fall by 31% by 2050.
Change at least one habit
Finally, the organization asks people to embrace at least one of these habit changes to shake up the system and encourage large-scale change.
Read more:
Consumers want to change habits to protect the environment
Sustainable economy: what it is and how to put it into practice
The future of food: how to feed a bigger world in 2030?
How a delivery business can stop global warming
