Every individual step counts for the creation of environmental change

What is the way to combat our environmental footprint?

There are many levels of environmental consciousness. It might be like baby steps leading from one to another but might as well keep us still, positioned on minimal effort. Some of us take climate change very seriously, getting more motivated by new knowledge provided by sources such as news, documentaries or saddening social media posts. In contrast, others are motivated by governments guidelines and restrictions, social influence or monetary benefits. We have all seen how turtles stuck in beer can nets or stabbed by the plastic straws got widespread coverage and affected many emotionally to take action towards strawless movements. Still, many tend to forget that it's not only plastic straws and bags that harm nature and sealife. We need to take on so many other levels to secure the species' existence in the sea and land but not forget it's not just them but also us that will go extinct when nature around us is compromised. You might not see it at first, but our whole ecosystem is one big chain of reactions, where the death of any species directly or indirectly affects our quality of life. For example, we need bees to pollinate our plants and whales to have oxygen.

We all recognize that the primary level is cutting our CO2 emissions by travelling less or using new ways to do so, such as cycling, public transport, or electric vehicles. Past lockdowns have influenced this change, many people starting to use bicycles and electric scooters, cities reinventing their road infrastructures to accommodate additional cyclists. In some countries, using a bicycle or public transportation is not something new, and whole infrastructure and policies designed to preference environmental options over private vehicles. It is widespread among all social levels because it is healthy and fast, less hassle with parking, and often cheaper than using a personal car. We can see a clear difference between the mentality of cities, for example, Copenhagen and Los Angeles. In Copenhagen, public transport is fast and practical while using a car is expensive and time-consuming. The city has pushed out personal vehicles, creating more lanes for cyclists and highly taxing cars based on their environmental impact. At the same in Los Angeles, public transportation infrastructure is weak, taking people a lot of time to get from one place to another, keeping up with their schedule. The whole city is full of highways that become packed, causing delays and pollution. There are not many places that provide a safe bicycle journey, and it's everyone's personal risk to hop on two wheels. The interesting point about this situation is that the temperature drops very low in the fall in Denmark. Still, people keep cycling even when the snow comes down, while in LA, the climate is usually warm and would provide perfect conditions to cycle or walk with any weather. Denmark has scored years as the home for the happiest people. Perhaps having excellent transportation infrastructure, healthy daily habits and contributing personally to an environmental cause also creates happiness.

Another level that governments are implementing more and more is recycling and cutting down plastic and other harmful waste. Recycling is more complicated than it looks because not every piece of paper nor every type of plastic is recyclable. People need to learn these basics before putting every bread bag and tissue or package container sealed with soft plastic into the recycling bin. Wrong recycling methods can lead to an unrecyclable collection.

The history of plastics goes back centuries, but with improving technology, plastic became more widely used in the 1950s and 60s when lightweight and sturdy plastic replaced heavy glass packages. Some countries in the developing world were still using glass bottles for a few more decades, returning the bottles for a refill and oblivious to what will come soon. Now the same countries are drowning in plastic and need to find a solution but lack resources.

The best solution for bottles so far is the deposit return scheme which means that you pay extra for the bottle while purchasing it and then get your money back when returning it. It has worked for decades in many states such as Canada, California, Scandinavia, Germany, Finland, Estonia and Australia. Not all the population is inclined to follow these solutions, taking a step out of their comfort zone. Still, in general, it is encouraging, and even if regular folk does not take it seriously, then people living on the streets often use the opportunity to make money that others have left on the streets. There goes the saying one man's trash is another man's treasure. We can also use that saying to create energy from trash, such as does Sweden, by buying other countries garbage to burn it for energy which perhaps is not the ideal solution but better than dumping that waste into oceans and landfills.

As I have covered the basics of transportation examples and recycling, heavily influenced by government policies and social norms, there are ways you and I can lead a sample and bring a change. The primary weapon to put pressure on the industries is making conscious choices as a consumer. Your daily habits affect life in the sea, land, and air, which might backfire on ourselves or future generations—simple choices such as buying seafood, eating meat, shopping fast fashion or choosing cheap furniture over long-lasting. I am not saying we should all become vegan, but we should minimize our intake of such products that impact CO2 emissions or ruin the nature around us, even if it is not happening in your backyard.

Many people have reduced their animal product intake for health benefits but switching from red meat to seafood is not always the solution. The fishing industry can be very harmful, and if you are not following the labels and even overconsuming seafood can lead to environmental issues. By harvesting fish, many nets also collect bycatch, such as dolphins and whales, which die. Or to secure enough food for tuna, some are deliberately slaughtered. There are labels to follow stating Dolphin Safe products, but these labels are not always accurate as the industry is not as transparent we would like to think. Let's say you bought yourself and your cat some tuna to eat. Simple as that. Well... it's not. Tuna fishing might result in the death of whales. Why do we need whales? Whales help create 50% of the oxygen around us and eliminate carbon by cooperating with phytoplankton to bring on photosynthesis. So next time you think that cutting red meat and replacing it with seafood means less CO2 or buying products made out of nature harming ingredients, you might need to reconsider and check the origin of your food.

The fashion industry is responsible for 10% of carbon dioxide emissions, five times higher than flight and maritime transportation. Many people recycling, buying organic produce, reusable shopping bags and even converting to veganism ignore their consuming habits in other sectors. Fast fashion, for example, often means cheap seasonal clothing items that take a lot of energy to produce, pollute water and air but will end up in landfill after few wears. What's the solution? Buy less, buy more quality items that are long-lasting and less influenced by short-lived trends. One thing to recognize about materials, such as clothes, is that mixed materials are usually impossible to recycle. So buying an item that is 40% cotton, 50% polyester, and 10% elastane means that it is not gonna be recycled. The only way to reuse this material is to upcycle or donate. The biggest companies have tried to attract conscious consumers by promoting their recycling agenda, but it often ends up as another greenwash example because not all the materials are recyclable, and it's faster and cheaper to produce entirely from new materials. My solution for this is to buy good quality, preferably degradable, single material clothing that will last long even if it is more expensive because I will still spend less than buying new items every season at the end of the day. The same goes for other household items. Avoiding to buy plastic or low-quality products that need constant replacement leading to higher overall costs.

We can all influence and support the world around us fighting climate change. As consumers and citizens, we have the tremendous social power to impact governments, industries and those around us. Making simple small changes can lead to significant behavioural changes in society, which can either cause more harm or benefit the environment. As humans, we often feel like superior species, ready to survive conditions that less powerful species won't. Meanwhile, forgetting that we live in an ecosystem where everything affects everyone. Making simple changes can be challenging if we are alone and there are not enough options to make it a practical lifestyle. For that reason, more conscious communities and advanced states should lead the way to more extensive global transformation. The steps you take today might influence your society and, therefore, industry-government and take on to a worldwide movement.