Positive Change Makers: The Legacy for our Children
If like me you're passionate about nature, the environment and sustainability, you may be just realising the sheer scale and devastating impact that we’ve had on our planet and the amazing creatures that continue to disappear from it.
Like many, I watched ‘A Life on our Planet’ on Netflix and in awe of Sir David Attenborough, his witness statement on the environment and his vision for the future.
The film explores his 60-year career and captures the changes to the population, carbon in the atmosphere and the remaining wilderness over time. He has some stark predictions.
It would be easy for us to say ‘there’s no point doing anything, look at the countries that are mass manufacturing and producing high levels of carbon emissions.’
My son is 18 months old.
The sixth mass extinction could easily be within his lifetime (80-100 years).
The decades up to this are likely to be unbearable unless we all commit to positive change.
It’s largely my generation and the one before that has significantly contributed to this problem and we’re leaving it to the current and future generations to solve.
So, I had words with myself. What can my family do to commit to positive change?
What we’re great at:
Walking to most places and limiting car use (easier right now)
Recycling most of our household waste
Limiting our food waste (most items can be frozen, yes, even cheese!)
Turning lights off that aren’t needed
Being careful with our water use
What we’re not great at:
Eating meat most days of the week
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Putting the heating on when it’s still 20 degrees in the house!
Replacing plants and trees
Growing our own food
Finding sustainable forms of energy supply
Our 5 simple commitments
Reducing our carbon footprint
Selecting one day a week as vegetarian options only (it’s a start)
Planting atleast one tree a year for the next 40 years
Creating herb and vegetable patches in our garden
Trying one alternate form of sustainable energy supply (geo, solar, wind)
Because, like continuous improvement, any small incremental changes will add up.
What will you commit to?
#saveourplanet #saveourchildren #biodiversity
Sources
David Attenborough: A Life on Our Planet. (2020). [Official Trailer: Netflix]. Retrieved from: https://youtu.be/64R2MYUt394
Key Takeaways from David Attenborough’s New Film, ‘A Life on Our Planet.’ (2020). Earth.org: Climate Change, Policy & Economics, Solutions. Retrieved from: https://earth.org/david-attenborough-new-film-a-life-on-our-planet/
WWF Footprint Calculator (n.d.). Retrieved from: https://footprint.wwf.org.uk/#/
Programme Manager at Scottish Government
4 å¹´Great article and not in the slightest cringe worthy! Well done. My commitments? We already try to recycle as much as possible and limit heating and lighting use (but a continuous battle with my kids lighting empty rooms!). In the spirit of continuous improvement I'm going to try to reduce my addiction to plastic food bags by making and using some waxed fabric food wraps. I've had the wax and fabric for a while now so no excuses!