Climate Anxiety to Climate Action
Wherever you may be on your journey with climate change, feeling a sense of agency is going to help you manage that anxiety. Taking actions- big or small will not only help you relieve some anxiety, but also will help the planet. Win/win.
(Or better yet, move towards vegan.)
You can’t do it all at once. There are many options for many people. Behavior modification is what we need to save the planet. We need this from big businesses and government policy, but we need to change our own behaviour in the way we consume materials and energy. Behavioural psychology and technology can nudge us towards more sustainable lives without it feeling like we suddenly need to live in a yurt and forage for food within a radius of 1 mile. Find inspiration, take challenges and challenge your friends, family and colleagues to get involved. Watch it spread like solar panels.
So here you go: some little links to big changes.
How does it work?
Ducky combines established behavioral science, fun and technology to mobilize individuals and organizations to take direct action.
Increase awareness of personal impact
Use our tools to set your starting point by measuring current carbon footprint, attitudes, and knowledge about personal impact. Uncover the barriers that prevent change from happening.
Improve behavior with collective action
Work together and compete to reduce carbon emissions by improving daily activities. The benefit of many people competing to reduce CO2 easily translates into significant emission reductions for organizations.
Keep track of your improved behavior
See where you have saved the most and where more work is needed. At the end of each campaign marvel at how much good you’ve achieved.
Communicate and visualize in real-time
Ducky is built around immediate feedback, and delivers concrete results that help create true hero stories. These achievements generate real engagement and highlight how small actions can deliver huge results.
Anne-Marie at the Zero-Waste Chef wrote a blog post recently where she said "We don't need a handful of people doing zero waste perfectly, we need millions of people doing it imperfectly".
Jen Gale has an amazing site Sustainable(ish) tips, blogs, podcasts- wherever you are keen to trim down on waste, food, fashion-whatever, she has probably created some useful content about it. In fact, I should just copy/paste her website on to this post and make myself a cup of tea.
YOU NEED THIS APP! OLIO.
I first used this when I moved house (which can be so wasteful!) and I had lovely people popping in to take extra food and household items that would have otherwise landed in the bin. JUST GET THIS APP already.
‘OLIO connects neighbours with each other and with local businesses so surplus food can be shared, not thrown away. This could be food nearing its sell-by date in local stores, spare home-grown vegetables, bread from your baker, or the groceries in your fridge when you go away. For your convenience, OLIO can also be used for non-food household items too.
OLIO is super easy! To make an item available, simply open the app, add a photo, description, and when and where the item is available for pick-up.
To access items, simply browse the listings available near you, request whatever takes your fancy and arrange a pick-up via private messaging.
“THE MOST SUSTINABLE OUTFIT IS THE ONE YOU ARE WEARING”
Again, moving or clearing out the closet, I love this app. They send you a (paper) bag to fill, value it and post it to their online charity shop. You can use credits to shop or donate to your chosen charity. If you have higher-end items, they ensure that the value is represented to maximise the benefit to the charity. Love it.
More Sustainable Apps:
The Green Hub offers a list of useful apps:
“GOOD ON YOU
This is the ultimate ethical shopping guide for Australian brands. The Good On You app encourages you to vote with your wallet for the kind of world you want to live in. It’s incredibly easy to use, just search the app for the brand name or the type of product you want and click on the brand to see how they rate. The rating scores brands on their labour, environmental and animal rights practices. This little gem provides you with all the information you need to make informed purchasing choices while you’re out shopping. They also have some great discounts and offers exclusive to app users!
REFRESH GO GREEN
The Refresh Project is the brainchild of two beautiful earth mamas, Belinda and Robyn. They wanted to inspire people to live a cleaner and greener life by making subtle changes in their everyday lives. The Go Green app guides you through 52 simple steps to green your home and your life. Select your level and start making small changes every day to contribute to a cleaner home, a healthier you and a better world!
LOVE FOOD HATE WASTE
The average Australian household chucks out up to 20% of the food they purchase every week, that adds up to 345kg of food every year, which collectively creates over 4,000,000 tonnes of food waste, which equals a whopping 8 BILLION DOLLARS worth of food being thrown out!!! What a waste! But you can do something about it. The Love Food Hate Waste app helps you cut your food waste by helping you create delicious meals using the leftovers in your fridge. The app includes a shopping list, meal planner and hundreds of recipes to help you waste less.
SUSTAINABLE HOMES
A fantastic home building and renovating guide and useful source of information for someone looking to update, renovate or build a sustainable house. The Sustainable Homes app is jam packed full of information and expert advice about sustainable design, off-grid energy systems, solar installation, power storage and energy efficiency. It also includes a portfolio of energy-efficient homes.
SUSTAINABILITY AWARE
These are a collection of educational, green living apps aimed at primary school kids from grade three through to grade six (8-12 years old). They teach children about making sustainable lifestyle choices, caring for the planet, how our way of living impacts the environment and what they can do to help. The younger levels teach kids about healthy eating, animal friends facing challenges and green products for a greener planet. The apps aimed at older children take a look at more complex problems such as sustainable energy, transport, water sources and climate change. Regardless of the level, each of the apps aims to arm children with information about our changing world to empower them to take control and make positive change.
THE GARDEN PLANNER
If you’re anything like me, you may be lacking the green thumb and only have to look at a plant to kill it! Although, my home collection is not doing too badly! If you’re up for the challenge and have thought about starting your own backyard garden, then The Garden Planner app was designed for you. Described as a personal trainer for vegetable gardeners, this gardening app was created for those of us who are a little challenged in the planting department. Detailed planting guides show you how and when to plant your veges and when it’s time to harvest. The apps sets reminders, which are plugged into weather updates to ensure your food has the best chance at life. Designed with all gardens in mind, from large blocks of land, small urban gardens to apartments with small balcony pot plants. The app also includes an interactive component so you can watch your garden grow online.
SUSTAINABLE SEAFOOD GUIDE
The fishing industry as a whole is extremely unsustainable however, we need to take into account the economy and the people it employs when trying to protect the environment. So there needs to be a happy balance, andI found this app to be handy in helping me choose the better option. Organisations like WWF are partnering with companies to improve the sustainability of their seafood supply, and educate consumers about sustainable seafood choices. If you love your fish then Sustainable Seafood Guide is the app for you.”