ACTION ITEMS: Climate Change and You - What You Can Do

Okay, so you watched An Inconvenient Truth.  And if you’re anything like me, it scared the crap out of you – and seemed expertly focused on awareness and the science, with not as much focus on concrete things we can do to help reduce the dangers of climate change.

Well, this diary is help you figure out what you, yes, you!, can do.  For background, I (along with roughly a thousand others, including several Kossacks) was trained in January by Al Gore to give the presentation he gives in An Inconvenient Truth to audiences around the country and world, as part of The Climate Project.  I’ve since developed a few handouts to give at my presentations – one of which is a checklist of things all of us can do to limit greenhouse gas production.  It's included below, plus a lot of resources.

(And, even if you haven’t seen the movie, or a local Climate Presentation yet, this diary will likely still be of benefit to you.  Much more after the fold.)

My diary of two days ago talks about my motivation for caring about the issue so much, and also goes into some more detail about the scientific findings of the International Panel on Climate Change, released in part on Friday.  I tried to keep this diary on the topic at hand: solutions.  (which, really, is more than enough for a diary by itself.)

Firstly, two things to keep in mind: 1) we already have the technology to fix the problem; it's largely a matter of implementation, and more efficient technologies are being invented every day, and 2) it has often been said of many things, but when it comes to solving the climate crisis, it is again true that "we don’t have a silver bullet - what we have is silver buckshot."  That’s true on a national level and on a personal one.  To make a difference, we all need to start changing a lot of our habits when it comes to energy use.  Luckily for us, being more energy efficient generally means less wasted resources, and thus, often, is a cheaper way to live, in addition to improving health, happiness, and sustainability of our culture.

The guidelines below are divided into five categories: At Home, At Work, In the Car, In the Store, and In Your Community.  I suggest printing the list, giving yourself credit with a check mark in the second column for everything you’re already doing, putting a check in the first column for new things as you commit to doing them, and then check them "done" when they're done.  Keep the list somewhere visible, like your fridge, to help motivate you.  Doing the whole list at once is ...daunting.  But implementing a few (say, 3-5) changes each month can make a huge difference in your carbon dioxide emissions - and I challenge everyone reading this to pick up a few new habits in the next month.  

Think about your energy usage at home in terms of heating and cooling (heat and A/C, refrigeration, hot water heater, clothes dryer), electricity (appliances and electronics and light bulbs, oh my!), and solid waste (C'mon.  "Waste" is right there in the name).

AT HOME:

NEXT:	DONE:
___	___	Set your water heater to 120°F (or to the lowest practical setting)
___	___	Get a programmable thermostat and turn the heat or A/C down/off when you’re not home
___	___	Set the thermostat a few degrees cooler in winter and warmer in summer
___	___	Take shorter showers (~5 min.)
___	___	Install a low-flow shower head
___	___	Recycle green waste, or even better, start a compost bin
___	___	Defrost your fridge and freezer regularly, clean the heating coils, and check door seals for degradation and cleanliness
___	___	Make sure your fridge and freezer temperatures aren’t set too low (35-38°F for the fridge, 0°F for the freezer)
___	___	Set dishwasher to do no-heat or air dry, and avoid "rinse and hold" cycles
___	___	Wash your clothes in cold water
___	___	Air dry your clothes (start with one load/week)
___	___	Wash fewer clothes (one load less/week)
___	___	Keep an empty freezer full of frozen containers to retain cold air
___	___	Turn off lights in rooms you're not in
___	___	Replace incandescent bulbs with compact fluorescents
___	___	Use shades and blinds to maximize heating and cooling efficiency (e.g. open shades during the day in winter)
___	___	Weatherize your living space (install weather stripping, seal windows and doors)
___	___	Recycle everything you can
___	___	Set energy-saving settings on your computer(s)
___	___	Turn appliances off (including computers) when you're not using them
___	___	Shut off your pilot light in summer
___	___	Make your waterbed when you get up; saves 20-30% of the heat
___	___	Run dishwasher, washer, and dryer at night
___	___	Use shortest oven preheat times, don't open while cooking, and turn off promptly (crack door for residual heat)

HOMEOWNERS:

___	___	Get a home energy audit from the utility company (usually free)
___	___	Get a water heating system that only heats on demand
___	___	Limit use of gas powered lawn eqipment (lawn mowers, leaf blowers, etc.)
___	___	Practice "grasscycling" with your lawn (leave grass clipping on the lawn when you mow)
___	___	Give your water heater a blanket, possibly electric, and insulate the first two yards of hot and cold pipes from the heater
___	___	Capture rainwater for your garden
___	___	Replace old appliances with energy efficient ones
___	___	Change/replace air filters in your heating and cooling system as scheduled
___	___	Install energy saving windows
___	___	Plant a tree
___	___	Plant another tree
___	___	Investigate household renewable power generation systems (solar, wind, etc.)
___	___	Investigate household renewable power heating/cooling (geothermal, green design)
___	___	Install a green roof

AT WORK:*

NEXT:	DONE:
___	___	Work from home more often if you can (saves on commuting energy)
___	___	Use recycled paper
___	___	Print only when necessary, and print double-sided
___	___	Start or join the green business movement at your workplace*

IN THE CAR:

NEXT:	DONE:
___	___	Drive 20% fewer miles: carpool, carshare, bike, walk, plan trips well, and use mass transit
___	___	Buy the most fuel efficient car that meets your needs
___	___	Drive at the speed limit, gradually accelerate and decelerate, and don’t idle (most cars are most efficient at 35-55mph)
___	___	Remove excess weight from your car (empty roof racks cause drag, even 100 lbs. of junk in the trunk makes a difference)
___	___	Do basic car maintenance: tune-ups, check tire pressure and filters

IN THE STORE:

NEXT:	DONE:
___	___	Buy local produce
___	___	Buy local products
___	___	Buy products with less packaging and avoid disposables
___	___	Bring reusable bags when shopping
___	___	Use recycled goods whenever you can
___	___	Eat less meat (declare one meatless day/week)
___	___	Buy green power and/or carbon offsets to achieve carbon neutrality**

IN YOUR COMMUNITY:

NEXT:	DONE:
___	___	Contact your elected officials and tell them what you think
___	___	Write a letter to the editor of your local paper, radio, or TV news program
___	___	Watch An Inconvenient Truth
___	___	Throw an An Inconvenient Truth house party
___	___	Educate yourself about the issues in your community***

*Many workplaces today, even small businesses and schools, support groups of environmentally-minded employees who lobby for change within the organization.  In most cases, it lowers costs to increase energy efficiency, and workplaces can start using energy more responsibly with several simple steps.  Check out Clean Air-Cool Planet for a list of suggestions.  If you’re here in CA, PG&E is a great resource --- in other places, I suggest trying your utilities’ websites as well.

**We should all try to reduce our CO2 emissions as much as we can, but it can be difficult to completely eliminate our individual CO2 contributions.  Several programs exist to allow you to offset the carbon (greenhouse gases) you produce from everyday activities like car and air travel, and electricity and natural gas use (for when purchasing green power directly from your utility is not an option).  This is done by investing in climate-friendly projects that reduce carbon dioxide emissions elsewhere.  Living a "carbon neutral" lifestyle can be achieved today!

***Communities have the chance to show real leadership in the fight to avert the climate crisis.  Priorities at the community level (the link is to a dense read, but informative):  Sensible transportation planning provides efficient transportation options as communities expand.  Smart growth and the avoidance of energy-wasting sprawl can improve air quality and reduce the number of miles traveled daily by community members.  Changing street lamps out for more efficient lighting is a great way communities can save energy.  Likewise, converting vehicle fleets to fuel-efficient models reduces carbon emissions.  Communities can offer incentives for public transportation use, plant trees, and encourage garden and green roof programs.  Finally, community government, schools, and organizations can, like businesses and individuals, purchase green power from utility companies.  

So, also, I used to work on Capitol Hill, in a Senate office... my first diary ever on this site was a Recommended Diary™ about how to be the most effective at contacting your national representatives.  Though, you should contact any of your representatives at the local, regional, state, and national level that you can think of.  In the interest of space, I won’t repeat the advice here – but click the link  if you'd like to read more about that.

If you are still looking for more resources, here you go:

• TheU.S. Dept. of Energy Home Consumer Guide and the EnergyStar (a DOE and EPA production) homepage.
• Over 30% of greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S. result from building operation and materials production.  For info about green building design, retrofitting, and maintenance, you can’t beat the U.S. Green Building Council
• Get better gas mileage with advice here and here (thanks, gmoke!), and/or explore alternative transit options.
• The blogs Treehugger and Meta-Efficient are fascinating, thorough, and full of information

Reading material:

• As I mentioned in my diary on Saturday, last Friday, the Intergovernmental Panel On Climate Change (IPCC) released the first portion of its 2007 report, Climate Change 2007: The Physical Science Basis. The 21 pg. "Summary for Policymakers" can be found here.
• Earth in the Balance and An Inconvenient Truth, by Al Gore
• Low Carbon Diet: A 30-Day Program to Lose 5,000 Pounds, by David Gershon (If you order through the linked page, The Climate Project gets a $3 donation.  The book includes its own checklist, a lot of great information, and stats on how much carbon emissions each step saves.)

So, I've tried to keep this as short as I am capable of (That'll be enough snickers from people who've read some of my other diaries).  But really, I have a lot more info where that came from – if you want to contact me, or would like help finding a Climate Project Presenter near you, please email me at demandcaring at gmail dot com.

I suspect that many people will find this info useful --- for many of us, myself included, we’re long past the point of realizing we have a big problem.  It’s time to talk about solutions.

Some people choose to despair when confronted with such a huge problem... I, on the other hand, agree with Al Gore when he says to choose hope.  We can do this if we work together.  I believe that we will.

Change a lightbulb and change the world.