Reduce Your Carbon Emissions

To save energy and reduce your carbon emissions. Here's 20 tips to get you started.

1. Buy renewable energy. Make the switch to save around 30% of your household greenhouse gas emissions a year.
2. Drive less. Cars contribute a high percentage of the world's carbon dioxide emissions. Next time you go out, think about walking, riding your bike or taking public transport instead. It's better for your health and the planet.
3. Turn off lights and switch your bulbs. Turning off the lights when you leave a room or office and switching to compact fluorescent bulbs can make a big difference to reducing greenhouse gas emissions. And it saves you money in energy costs.
4. Insulate your home and body. Look for ways to keep warm in winter without heating. Insulate ceilings, walls and your hot water heater, and wear a coat instead of turning up the heat.
5. Open the window, turn off the air conditioning. Air conditioning is a great contributor to greenhouse gas emissions. In summer, open your window, use a fan instead of air conditioning, and turn off air conditioning when not at home.
6. Switch off standby. As much as 10% of your home's emissions may be from appliances like computers, televisions and other home entertainment devices left on standby. Try to always turn off appliances at the source.
7. Conserve water. Use less water when possible. Install a rainwater tank or even a grey water system that channels water from showers and baths to toilet and garden systems.
8. Fly less. Take international trips sparingly and make the most of local destinations. Do business remotely with conference or Skype calls. This will mean fewer flights, less travel time and savings of up to 10 tonnes of emissions per international trip. If you need to fly, consider neutralising your flight emissions.
9. Use alternatives to electricity. Switching to solar hot water or gas heating can save as much as 3 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions per year.
10. Buy efficiency. When buying high energy-using equipment or appliances such as refrigerators, washing machines and dishwashers, choose the item with the best energy rating.
11. Dry washing outside. One t-shirt can send 4 kg of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere during its lifetime, mostly due to washing and drying. Use a clothes line and the power of the sun instead of the dryer.
12. Choose a hybrid, biodiesel or fuel-efficient car. When buying your next car, make the move to a greener vehicle. It can save up to 3 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions a year.
13. Work from home. Even one day a month working from home can make a difference by reducing transport emissions. Ask your boss if you can work from home occasionally and skip the commute.
14. Pay bills online. Paying your bills online saves paper, transport energy and time.
15. Own just one refrigerator. Old, inefficient second refrigerators and freezers are huge energy users and often have other environmental issues such as leaking chemicals that damage the ozone layer. If you don't really need it, look into local buy-back schemes or dispose of old refrigerators and freezers properly to ensure ozone-depleting chemicals are not released into the atmosphere.
16. Eat lower on the food chain. Producing meat uses a lot of energy and water and often requires pesticides and other chemicals. In fact, producing meat generates about 18% of global greenhouse gas emissions. Eating less meat is good for you and the environment.
17. Buy local. Buy food and other products that are grown and produced locally to reduce emissions from transportation and to support your local community.
18. Green your event. If you are holding a conference, family reunion or wedding, do what you can to reduce the environmental impact by buying locally, choosing energy-efficient and environmentally aware venues, and offsetting remaining emissions.
19. Buy recycled and 'vintage'. Buying used or recycled goods avoids the energy used and emissions released in making a new product. Also, recycle as much of your waste and unwanted goods as possible.
20. Check your tires. Inflating your car's tyres to their proper level means the car runs more efficiently, uses less energy and produces fewer harmful emissions.