If you haven’t heard about Friday’s Global Climate Strike, let me get you up to speed IncrediReader. “The idea was to bring together a group of remarkable people, see if they could become something more. See if they could work together when we needed them to to fight the battles we never could.”Oh, that was The Avengers? Well read on anyways and then we’ll talk about how the friendly neighborhood IncrediDad can do his part to leave this world a little better than he found it while raising a green minded sidekick.
Climate Strike
On Friday, millions of people around the world walked out of their schools and workplaces to demand urgent action on climate change. For the first time, young adults, from all over the world, who are anxious about their future on an ever warming planet joined their super powers together like the The Justice League to demand action from world leaders who are more interested in nuclear weapons, and sex scandals.
According to the New York Times, “In Berlin, Melbourne, and London the police estimated 100,000 participants in the protest. In New York City, the mayor’s office estimated that 60,000 people marched through the narrow streets of Lower Manhattan. There were protestors and walk outs in 50 U.S. states. Even a group of scientists in Antarctica participated.”
If you’re like me, you’re probably saying, “This is all great BUT what do they hope to accomplish?” Lex Luthor isn’t going to change his company until he’s forced to. Obadiah Stain fought to the death to keep Stark Industries in the weapons business and out of clean energy. We can all hope that these protests will create the political pressure needed to limit greenhouse gas emissions and fight off a climate catastrophe. But then I started wondering if there was something I, the friendly, neighborhood, IncrediDad, could do.
It turns out there’s quite a bit:
Unplug
The majority of energy that powers our homes comes from fossil fuels, so taking a break from electronic device usage reduces our carbon emissions. Don’t forget to turn the lights off when you leave the DadCave. Did you know that the average home has around twenty appliances/devices plugged in but not in use? Not only does that hurt the environment but it adds around $200 a year to your energy bill.
Our new house doesn’t get cell reception. That means no Netflix, twitter, or turning on Sesame Street to distract Boy Wonder while I write a blog post. For a high tech family, this is a big adjustment. Yesterday, he actually spent a half-hour of serious playtime with his Hotwheels and books, no iPad needed.
Shop local
We go to the supermarket, but try to avoid it. Why buy something pre-packaged with a ton of preservatives when we could go visit the corner store that buys produce and meat from local farms? To be self-sufficient with vegetables would be even better and Incredi-Mom has serious plans for a vegetable garden next spring.
Wash cold
I wash my clothes in cold water because it reduces energy consumption. Dryer’s use a lot of energy so some people hang their clothes on a line to dry, if they can, to reduce the number of microplastics released from clothes. I like the convenience of my dryer a little too much so my green super powers are not that advanced yet. Maybe someday!
Reduce, reuse, recycle
Recycling is simple these days, our new town offers curbside recycling pick-up every other week. If you aren’t provided with a wheeled bin by your local authority, pick yourself up some recycling sorters and teach your children how to recycle from a young age. With kids, there are lots of opportunities to reuse too. Our empty moving boxes have been used as a spaceship, race car, and everything in between.
Be a good example
Kids constantly imitate what they see. Here are some ideas for inspiring your child to care for our planet:
- Don’t waste paper. Envelopes and junk mail are great for two year olds to color on.
- Reusable shopping bags are the best! Plenty of companies give them out for free. Ditch plastic bags and carry a tote in the back of your car.
- As your little sidekick grows out of their super-suit, pass it on to a friend or donate it to charity.
- Minimize! Marie Kondo your life! Only buy what you need. Recycle what you can.
What about you?
You’ve heard my strategies for going green, IncrediReader. Now I want to hear yours. What do you do to fight that arch-villain called Climate Control? Put your comments below.