Steps to be taken to prevent Global Warming !

1. Get Educated

   • Educate yourself about global warming. The more facts you have as to what mainstream science says about it, the more you can change others’ behavior. Energy-saving techniques are either initially expensive (solar power) or take extra time (recycling) so people need convincing that their efforts matter.

2. Recycle more
   • 15-25% of people don’t recycle. Recycle more with recycling bins, composting, etc. and encourage neighbors, superintendents and business to do likewise. Lobby for new and tougher penalties for recycling with letters, blogs and conversation.
3. Use Compact Fluorescent Bulbs
   • Replace 3 frequently used light bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs save 300 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $60 per year. Consider using more, and give them out as gifts.
4. Keep your Car Tires Inflated
   • Keep the tires on your car adequately inflated. Check them monthly. Save 250 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $840 per year. A good gift is a tire air-pressure gauge as it not only saves money but makes driving safer.
5. Change Your Air Filter
   • Check your car’s air filter monthly. Save 800 pounds of carbon dioxide and $130 per year.
6. Fill the Dishwasher
   • Run your dishwasher only with a full load. Save 100 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $40 per year, or do them by hand with minimal water.
7. Use Recycled Paper
   • Make sure your printer paper is 100% post consumer recycled paper. Save 5 lbs. of carbon dioxide per ream of paper. Decide if something is really worth printing out.
8. Buy Locally-made Products
   • Buy locally to reduce the energy required to transport your goods. The consumable products we all purchase represent over half of the average family’s carbon footprint! If you successfully encourage neighbors to do this, store owners will be forced to stock local goods.
9. Spread the Word
   • There is a logo called CarbonCounted that companies can put on their products to communicate their carbon footprint. Buy products having a low CarbonCounted footprint number, and encourage non-participating companies to participate.
10. Buy Energy Certificates
    • Help spur the renewable energy market and cut both global warming and pollution by buying wind certificates, green tags and stocks in renewable energy companies. Many of these companies are new and small and the stock is low, and while they are high-risk, it’s an opportunity to help the company and get rich if the company takes off.
11. Buy Minimally Packaged Goods
    • Less packaging could reduce your garbage by about 10%. Save 1,200 pounds of carbon dioxide and $1,000 per year. If you consider a certain products’ packaging to be excessive, mail it to the company with your complaint.
12. Buy a Hybrid Car
    • The average driver could save 16,000 lbs. of CO2 and $3,750 per year driving a hybrid. Plug-in hybrids can save even more and give cash-back (see V2G). Encourage your company to create incentive plans for this as their workers might be more likely to be on time.
13. Buy a Fuel Efficient Car
    • Save 2,000 lbs. of carbon dioxide per year. This will also encourage companies to continue making and improving them if people buy them.
14. Insulate Your Water Heater
    • Keeping your water heater insulated could save 1,000 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $40 per year. Also, use less hot water. For example, if the shower is too cold, don’t turn up the hot water but turn down the cold water.
15. Replace Old Appliances
    • Inefficient appliances waste energy. Save hundreds of lbs. of carbon dioxide and hundreds of dollars per year.
16. Weather Strip your Home
    • Caulk and weather strip your doorways, windows and A/C’s. Save 1,700 lbs. of carbon dioxide and $274 per year.
17. Use a Push Mower
    • Use your muscles instead of fossil fuels and get some exercise. Save 80 lbs of carbon dioxide per year. Consider a rock/cactus garden, ivy, wildflowers, etc., instead of a water-wasting, pesticide and fertilizer using bland lawn.
18. Unplug Unused Electronics
    • Even when electronic devices are turned off, they use energy. Save over 1,000 lbs of carbon dioxide and $256 per year by unplugging them.
19. Grow Fast Growing Plants
    • Plants like bamboo grow faster and produce 35% more oxygen than trees like oak or birch, and require less chemicals and care.
20. Take Public Transportation
    • Some new buses are even hybrid already!
21. Ride a Bicycle
    • Funny how this rarely gets mentioned. So many people look for a high-tech solutions when low-tech ones already exist!
22. Save Heat
    • Wear warmer clothing so you can turn your heat down.

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Tips

• Even if humans do not contribute to global warming, these steps reduce smog, acid rain, oil spills/smog/soot/foreign dependence, smaller landfills, less wasted resources and cleaner and more available water.
• Buy soda/water in large bottles to reduce plastic/aluminum packaging and transportation costs.
• The ultimate in recycling is to not use a product at all, if possible. If you do not need it, you are wasting resources.

Thanks to WIKIHOW

Big Ideas for Bangalore- Times of India May 25 -08

Understanding the issues

CLIMATE CHANGE

You may have heard people talking about how the weather is very different today than it was ten years ago. You may have noticed changes in the weather yourself. The earth’s climate has changed many times over millions of years, sometimes slowly, sometimes very quickly. What makes climate change different today?

The world’s scientists agree; human activity - mainly greenhouse gas emissions from the burning of fossil fuels for energy - is now causing the Earth’s climate to change incredibly fast, taking us far outside natural ranges and towards ‘tipping points’ beyond which very large-scale consequences may be irreversible. The latest research from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which was awarded a Nobel Peace Prize for its work, has found that the impacts of climate change are already being felt around the world. The impacts are overwhelmingly negative and will affect poor and vulnerable communities first and hardest. These communities are often the least responsible for causing the problem and have the fewest resources to adapt to the rapid changes.

Present day warming has caused a broad range of negative consequences and will continue to create far more unless stopped. The most direct effects of current climate change are on temperature and precipitation patterns. As of 2006, all eight of the hottest years ever recorded were from the last 10 years. As this warming continues, established weather systems will shift and become more extreme, resulting in both more droughts and floods. As sea surface temperature rises, weather-disturbing El Niño events will become more frequent and powerful. Meanwhile, larger, more severe hurricanes, which feed on the heat of ocean waters, will threaten coasts. This trend may already be visible: the last two decades have seen a sharp increase both in the frequency and power of hurricanes.

Shifts in temperature and precipitation will be a shock to fragile ecosystems which depend on specific climatic conditions. Many species will be unable to adapt as fast as their environment changes and face sharply reduced numbers or extinction. Scientists estimate that a warming of just 2˚C will put as many as 30% of the world’s species at risk of extinction.

Plants and animals aren’t the only ones feeling the pressure of changing ecosystems. Many regions will face severe water shortages in a warmer world, creating the potential for conflict. It is believed that the genocide in Sudan’s Darfur region is at least in part a response to water shortages resulting from global warming.

Climate change is arguably the greatest danger facing humanity in the years ahead. In many ways, its effects are already being felt and it is too late to prevent warming entirely. However, the situation is not without hope. Though urgent action is needed, through the combined efforts of governments, businesses, scientists, and individuals, it is still possible to stop even greater tragedies and protect the health of our planet for future generations.

You can find out about what other young people are doing to make a difference about climate change on the TakingITGlobal network, or through incredible regional groups such as Stop Climate Chaos (UK), Canadian Youth Climate Coalition, SustainUS, African Youth Initiative on Climate Change, Australian Youth Climate Coalition, and many more. Greenpeace SolarGeneration has very active chapters in many countries around the world.

To learn more about climate change and how youth can take action, check out our Climate Change Youth Guide to Action, available on this page!! Appendix B features a very useful Guide to Learning More that will help you build your knowledge on any of the many complicated issues!