5th Estate · Direct action on global warming

Michael Norton

Reduce your personal carbon emissions

Monday 30 October 2006: the UK government issues the Stern Review into the cost of global warming, which says that it will cost a great deal more not to address the problem.

Saturday 4 November 2006: the Stop Climate Chaos Campaign’s demonstration. Join the march from the US Embassy in Grosvenor Square to Trafalgar Square, 1 to 3pm.

Take action in your life to reduce your carbon dioxide emissions and do your bit to reverse climate change. Here is what Kyla Davis, a green activist and actor from the UK is doing:

I reduce, reuse, refill, repair, recycle everything that I can. Ways to do this include: refilling used jars and containers, repairing things before throwing them away, shopping only at charity/second hand shops, carrying my own reusable shopping bags with me and refusing unneccessary plastic, reusing paper and envelopes,and ordinary recycling.

I wash on 30 degrees and avoid tumble dryers and dishwashers.

I shower instead of bath.

I bought a bicycle!!! and try to cycle or walk everywhere.

I compost my organic waste.

When I’m cold I put on more clothes rather than turn up the heating and always keep my eye on the thermostat.

I have only energy efficient light bulbs.

I convinced my landlord to change his boiler and switch to renewable energy.

I switch off all appliances at the wall and turn off things that I’m not using. I sometimes do this to other people’s appliances when they leave them on…Guerilla tactics!!

I lobby my MP and write to her and Tony Blair urging them to take drastic action to avert climate change.

I no longer fly, a very difficult decision, and the last long journey I took was by bus…to Austria.

I have just completed a ‘climate change speaker training’ day so that I can now organise talks in my area about the issue.

I go to demonstrations, keep up to date with the science and have joined a number of online groups for more information.

Things that I would like to achieve in the future:

Carbon offsetting to compensate for my rail/bus travel.

Permaculture: growing my own food.

To have a house eventually that is completely carbon neutral with solar panels and wind turbines.

To stop eating out/getting takeaway sandwiches/coffees everyday.

To live in a cooperative, carbon neutral community.