"The greatest threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will save it." We have heard this phrase from Robert Swan very often. And just as often we don't take it seriously. But this simple phrase is a perfect summary of what has been happening in recent years and which, perhaps for the first time so strongly we are becoming aware of these days. Yet I happen to talk to people close to me who still deny the evidence. It's just a hot summer, come on...they tell me. It's only a hot summer!!! It's going to be the coolest in years! I reply. I read a very nice article these days. By Umair Haque: "We're Sleepwalking Into the Age of Extinction. It's Humanity vs Extinction - And the Clock is Ticking." In a nutshell, it tells us how we are behaving despite the fact that "climate change" has finally arrived, to a degree that we can all experience it viscerally even if we just leave the house. We are continuing to snooze our alarm clock and putting off the problem.... I, you know by now, firmly believe that we can actually do it. But we have to do it, all of us together, in our every day actions. Small daily gestures create a huge impact with very little effort. With this article we kick off a column on what we can do concretely every day. Let's start: Let's reduce unnecessary consumption of Disposable Plastic : not all plastic. This is a key issue. At this time when everyone likes to talk about plastic, I really hear nonsense. People commenting on a reusable container made of plastic or a chair. Absurd! Once again a trend is being taken advantage of to talk out of turn. What we need to do is to change the way we consume plastic and eliminate it where it is not needed. For example: we stop using plastic bags for groceries. Taking reusable bags with us saves an average of 6-10 plastic bags per week. Multiply that by 100 million people and we save 600 million to 1 billion bags each week! we carry the reusable cup for coffee, tea and soft drinks. we reduce our use of bottled water by carrying a refillable water bottle with us we install a water filter at home or buy bulk water. Wereduce water consumption: never before have we realized how critical it is to reduce our water consumption and avoid waste. Water is a rare and precious commodity. Here are some tricks to avoid wasting it: we install a water filter in the house or buy water in bulk. while we wait for the shower to heat up, we collect the running water in a basin and use it to water plants let's make the shower last 5 minutes at most. We set a timer we collect water in basins while washing fruits and vegetables and use that water to water plants we water lawns-if we must-early in the morning or late in the evening to avoid evaporation we run the washing machine only when the load is full of laundry we can install low-flow showerheads and faucets to reduce water consumption by 60 percent Wezero food waste: the amount of food wasted every day and every year is incredible. Did you know that 1.3 billion tons of food is wasted every year? Or that millions of people around the world go to bed hungry every night? Food waste is one of the most important ways to directly affect climate change. Eight percent of the greenhouse gases warming the planet are caused by food waste. If food waste were a country, it would be the third largest in the world after the United States and China in terms of its impact on global warming. Here are some tricks to avoid waste: Planning. Preparing weekly meals and menus allows us to know exactly the ingredients we need and those we already have on hand Before we go let's make the list We learn to practice the FIFO method. The first one we bought is the first one we have to consume We learn how to compost. Composting organic food waste is a great way to improve soil health and get in touch with nature We buy at local markets or grow the ones we can in our balconies or gardens. This reduces fuel emissions. It's a double benefit because produce keeps longer when picked fresh. Most importantly, we stop buying what we throw away all the time. We eliminate microplastics: microplastics are everywhere! From clothing to bedding, towels to furniture, microfiber is everywhere. Microfibers are tiny plastic threads that come from synthetic fabrics. Fabrics such as acrylic, nylon, rayon, and polyester all contain microfibers. These microfibers, when washed, end up in water systems. Unfortunately, local water treatment plants do not have screens small enough to filter these microfibers, so they end up in waterways and marine environments. Microfibers make up 60 percent of all clothing fabrics worldwide. A single jacket can release up to 250,000 microfibers when washed. What can we do to counter the release of microplastics? We avoid buying synthetic clothing as much as possible when not needed. We use clothing made from natural fibers, such as organic cotton, hemp and linen. When we wash our synthetic garments: we use the GuppyFriend bag, we run the washing machine only when it is full, this creates less friction for fiber breakdown, we wash these garments as little as possible We support the Rozalia Project, here then find out the details We live with compassion: yes I did write that. Because let's face it most of the messes in the world, whether political, cultural or religious, usually stem from a lack of deeper understanding of other people's views, policies or lifestyle. By cultivating greater compassion for others, we can connect on a deeper level and come together to create a better planet. What can we do? Lead byexample. Let's start with ourselves. The most important part of being able to cultivate compassion is to be compassionate with ourselves. Let go of negative thoughts, exercise, eat healthy and practice meditation. If we want to change the world, we first change ourselves. The first step in cultivating compassion is to develop empathy toward others. Empathy is the basis for having an emotional connection with others,so it is necessary to cultivate compassion. Thank you for reading this far. We at R5®Living are increasingly convinced that small everyday gestures make big revolutions. That's why we will continue to tell you how together we can help the world heal and get better. #GoforPlanetA Source: elaborations R5®Living, https://healtheplanet.com/https://eand.co/
