Top consumer actions to combat climate breakdown
New research reveals dramatic disconnect between the environmentally friendly actions people assume will have a positive impact – and the ones that actually make the biggest difference
More than two thirds of people are prepared to make lifestyle changes to live more sustainably but over 40% are unclear what action they should take to make a difference.
Friends of the Earth’s new campaign launches today, recommending that people switch to a 100% renewable energy company to help tackle the climate emergency.
Suffering from eco-anxiety but don’t know what to do to save the planet? You’re not alone. New research has found that two thirds of Brits are concerned about climate change and even more are prepared to make changes to green their lifestyle.
The new survey of 2,000 adults[1], commissioned by Good Energy, shows public awareness of the climate emergency is growing, yet nearly half of consumers are unclear what action they can take. And the changes people are most likely to make are having a minimal effect on the climate emergency.
Reducing plastic topped people’s list but will have little impact on your carbon footprint. Simple lifestyle choices which have a bigger impact languished at the bottom – switching to a genuinely green energy tariff (5%), flying less (4%) and eating less meat (4%).
According to Which! only Good Energy and Ecotricity use 100% renewable energy
Environmental scientist, Dr Alexandra Jellicoe commented:“People have been bombarded with messages about plastic pollution following the success of shows such as Blue Planet, so it’s no wonder many think reducing plastic is the top thing they can do to combat the climate crisis.
“Although essential for the health of our oceans, switching to reusable bags and cups has a minimal impact on an individual’s carbon footprint. One of the biggest things individuals can do is to freeze out fossil fuels by reducing air travel and switching to a green energy supplier.”
According to the survey, only 15% of Brits have considered switching to a green energy supplier, and almost half (49%) did not know that it is one of the biggest differences they could make to protect the environment.
A new campaign from Friends of the Earth, launching today, is calling on consumers to switch to 100% green energy.
Craig Bennett, Friends of the Earth CEO, said: “To combat the climate crisis, we urgently need to transition away from fossil fuels which generate vast quantities of climate-wrecking pollution.
Government policy will be key to accelerating that transition at scale, but each of us can play our part by making simple changes to our lifestyle. If each household in the UK were to switch to renewable energy today, we could save millions of tonnes of carbon every year.”
Good Energy, the Which? accredited 100% renewable energy company, provides all its customers with electricity from wind, solar, hydro and bio-generation sourced directly from producers across the UK.
Good Energy CEO Juliet Davenport, who founded the company in 1999, added:“We are facing a climate emergency and need a whole systems approach to tackling it – which means government, business and individuals working together to accelerate positive change.
“It’s vital that consumers are empowered to take action against the crisis, but our survey reveals deep confusion as to which actions make a difference. There are simple things you can do, today – eat less meat, fly less and use green energy.
“We can still avoid climate breakdown if we are bold enough to act now.”
Nearly two thirds of people would choose a green tariff if it supported our move away from fossil fuels to a new clean energy system. The average household could cut more than 4T of carbonemissions from their footprint every year[2] if they switched to 100% renewable energy – more than the emissions of four flights from London to New York.[3]
Three quarters believe there is huge potential to build more renewable energy in the UK and 71% want to support renewable producers. The majority of Brits believe this change should also be brought about by people, government and businesses working together to reduce emissions equally.
Switch now using the referral code Good Friends when prompted and as well as receiving £50 credit on your energy account, a further £50 will be donated to Friends of the Earth.
Good Energy’s power is generated from 100% renewable sources including sun, wind and water. We buy it from our community of over 1400 independent generators across the UK. Unfortunately, tariffs offered by other energy suppliers often aren’t as green as they claim to be.
[1] The survey of 2,002 British adults was conducted by Opinium between 11-15 October 2019 and balanced demographically by age, region and gender.
[2]https://www.theccc.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/5CB-Infographic-FINAL-.pdf
[3]https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2019/jul/31/carbon-calculator-find-out-how-much-co2-your-flight-will-emit