How to Save the Planet whilst Saving your Health
In late 2018, climate scientists told us we have 20 years before climate change is irreversible. A year later, over 6 million people took part in a week of protests demanding politicians and CEOs tackle the climate crisis they had caused.
It was only a couple of months after this that doctors in South-Eastern China noted cases of coronavirus, and we all know what happened next. Suddenly, as a global population we are naturally far more concerned with our personal health than with the health of the planet.
But can we care about both? After all, our health is connected to the planet’s health; breathing air polluted by power plants and factory farming is particularly unhelpful during the widespread outbreak of a virus targeting the respiratory system.
It is marginalised communities that have been worst affected by climate crisis, which could explain why they have been more affected by coronavirus. The South Bronx, a majority hispanic and Black area, has some of the highest rates of asthma in the entire US, especially in children, due to truck emissions from warehouses producing goods residents will largely be too poor to afford. During the pandemic the Bronx has seen much higher numbers of Covid-19 cases than neighbouring Manhattan.
Climate crisis hasn’t stopped affecting us and our world just because a pandemic has hit. How can you protect yourself and others whilst also protecting the planet? Read on!
Unmask your eco-warrior
Do you remember cheering in October 2015 because a 5p charge for plastic bags was introduced to reduce use of single-use plastic? And now in our rush to buy disposable face masks and discardable gloves we have forgotten single-use plastics produce greenhouse gas emissions at every stage of their manufacture. These items save our lives short-term, but they are very difficult to recycle and contain harmful microplastics. A French conservationist has predicted soon more masks could be in our seas than jellyfish. Luckily, there are many safe, eco-friendly, reusable fabric masks - or you could even make your own! And gloves? Virologists say hand-washing is likely to be as effective in fighting disease.
Is your green consciousness squeaky clean?
A bottle of hand sanitiser in a back pocket is a far more common sight now than a couple of months ago. What does this mean for the environment? Research hasn’t shown hand sanitiser makes any particular negative impact on the earth, but you have a plethora of options if you prefer your alcohol-free hand sanitiser ethical and eco-friendly - as long as the product is alcohol-based it can fight the virus. Actually though, the best way to clean your hands for the planet and your health is plain old bar soap, especially if it comes in plastic-free packaging.
Stay grounded
Until the outbreak of coronavirus, it was proving difficult to put into practice the knowledge that flights are the most harmful transport for the environment. As it still seems safest to stay home, relieve yourself from the pressure of posting a selfie from Portugal - treat yourself to a ‘staycation’ or explore the less well-trodden parts of your own country. This will also reduce your carbon footprint - and you can take the world with you with accessories like this world map re-useable cup and water bottle or even this fun travel quiz.
Trees don’t require social-distancing
If you care about the environment, get your hands dirty and give that care to a cactus! Growing plants will grow your relationship with nature and give back to the planet - plants recycle CO2 and make the atmosphere cleaner. When grown outside, plants improve soil health and create much needed habitats for wildlife, such as bees. However, you don’t need The Hanging Gardens of Babylon to improve the health of the earth and yourself - herbs, salad leaves and even tomatoes are easy to grow on your windowsill. There is no better time than this unprecedented moment of difficulty to start gardening, which is an excellent source of exercise and can reduce stress, anxiety and depression.
Grow your community
If there is any positive outcome from the situation thrust upon us, it is that we can look at our world with greater perspective and think about how to enhance it. The pandemic won’t hurt Amazon, H&M or Boohoo but our small businesses. Surely we want to save these - they aren’t destroying rainforests, making garment workers unemployed without warning or placing underpaid, overworked, vulnerable women into unsafe working conditions. Find joy in supporting your wonderful local businesses (like The Geographer!) and it will become easier to be a more sustainable consumer.
You are a pebble on a beach
Ultimately, however, you must remember your individual actions won’t save the planet in the same way that wearing a mask can certainly save lives. Governments and corporations tell us it is solely our responsibility to change habits and protect the earth, but over a third of greenhouse gas emissions since 1965 can be attributed to just 20 companies. Only they have the ability to significantly diminish climate change, but together we can force transformation. Rid yourself of the guilt of leaving your laptop on standby and listen to and learn from climate activists, especially marginalised activists like Mary Annaise Heglar, Vanda Shiva and Autumn Peltier, whose valuable knowledge may not be heard and who may receive the worst effects of global warming. Support, join and donate to the campaigns of green organisations such as Labour Behind the Label, the Water Protectors or the Green Alliance and use lockdown to fight for true change.
Sources:
https://www.nrdc.org/onearth/climate-scientists-world-we-have-only-20-years-theres-no-turning-back
https://www.vox.com/the-highlight/2019/5/28/18629833/climate-change-2019-green-new-deal
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/apr/04/new-york-south-bronx-minorities-pollution-inequity
http://www.icisnyu.org/south_bronx/AsthmaandAirPollution.html
https://www.businessinsider.com/why-bronx-coronavirus-crisis-worse-than-manhattan-2020-5?r=US&IR=T
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/26/nyregion/bronx-coronavirus-outbreak.html
https://www.csp.org.uk/news/2020-06-16-phe-report-bame-covid-19-deaths-must-lead-change-says-csp
https://www.vogue.co.uk/arts-and-lifestyle/article/face-masks-gloves-plastics-nightmare
https://news.un.org/en/story/2020/07/1069151
https://www.globallaborjustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/GBV-HM-May-2018.pdf
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/oct/09/revealed-20-firms-third-carbon-emissions