Top Tips for Climate Action

Here is a list of top tips you could easily introduce into your life that will have a positive effect on the climate. Individual action is so important and makes a real difference to the effects of climate change. Doing all/some/or even just one of these tips will positively impact the climate.

Transport:

• Try to increase the number of journeys you make using public transport rather than private vehicles.
• Consider and utilise active travel (waking/cycling) options where possible.
• Consider car sharing if yourself and a neighbour/friend are travelling to the same place to cut down on the number of journeys being made from the same place.

Home:

• Keep the doors in your home shut during winter to stop heat escaping.
• Have showers more often than baths to reduce water wastage.
• In summer, keep your curtains open for as long as possible to let natural light in and prevent you needing to switch the lights on.
• Get a water butt to collect rain water and use that to water your plants in the summer.

Energy:

• Switch devices off from standby.
• Wash your laundry at one temperature setting lower than usual.
• Only boil the amount of water in the kettle that you need at that time and try not to reboil it too quickly afterwards.
• Swap your lights to LED bulbs when they next need replacing.

Waste:

• Take items that are not recyclable at home to somewhere where they are instead of throwing them in general landfill waste- for example, many large supermarkets are able to recycle soft plastics and will have a place for you to dispose of them within the shop.
• Consider whether things can be fixed instead of thrown out- for example, can you sew that hole up in your t-shirt instead of throwing it out and buying a new one?
• Take unwanted items, such as toys or clothes, to charity shops so others can enjoy them.

Food:

• Have one meat free day a week.
• Try to buy fresh produce loose- this helps with food waste by allowing you to buy only what you need and helps reduce plastic packaging waste.
• Where possible try to buy locally sourced, in-season produce.

Nature:

• Consider participating in No Mow May- an annual event where people are encouraged not to mow their lawns for the month of May to encourage wild flower and weed growth to provide more nectar for insects and increase the overall biodiversity in your garden- Check out our page on nature friendly gardens for more information.
• Protect our natural environment by avoiding dropping litter.
• Participate in nature schemes- look out for local schemes such as seed swapping, tree planting, river clean ups and get involved!

Easy reusable swaps to make:

Here are some easy and low-cost reusable swaps you could make to help the environment.

• Cling film - Reusable tupperware containers or beeswax wraps which work the same as cling film.
• Disposable plastic bottles/coffee cups/cutlery - reusable water bottles/coffee cups/cutlery.
• Sellotape - plastic free, recyclable sellotape.
• Paper towels - reusable cloths.
• Make-up remover wipes - reusable make-up cleansing cloth.
• Wrapping paper - Recyclable wrapping paper or cloth wrapping/reusable cloth bags to put presents in.
• Plastic bags - Reusable shopping bags.
• Laundry materials - Reusable laundry/dryer balls that reduce plastic pollution and work well at lower temperatures to help lower energy consumption.
• Baby wipes - Biodegradable baby wipes.
• Hairbrushes/toothbrushes - Bamboo/wooden hairbrushes/toothbrushes. 
• Personal hygiene items - Solid hygiene products such as shower gel bars or purchase refills of liquid items to avoid repurchasing plastic containers.