How to reduce global warming in points?

But while these tips may be helpful, are they actually impactful?

As it turns out, a lot of the trendy global warming solutions do not make the biggest impact. While it’s beneficial to cut your plastic straw usage, they only account for .0025% of the plastic in our oceans, according to The Atlantic. Not to mention, our plastic problem barely makes a dent in rising temperatures.

So what does?

Let’s start from the beginning. Global warming is caused by too many ‘greenhouse gases’ in our atmosphere – aka, gases that trap heat and warm our planet.

The #1 sector responsible for greenhouse gas emissions in the US is transportation, and cars account for 82% of this, according to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Electricity production comes at a close second.

Why do transportation and electricity harm our planet so much? To generate power for these sectors, you need to burn fossil fuels like oil, gas, or coal. Burning fossil fuels releases carbon dioxide, which makes up 82% of the gases in our atmosphere that trap heat, according to the EPA.

In other words, too much transportation and electricity means too many gases in our atmosphere that warm our planet.

But there are other causes of global warming, too. While carbon dioxide takes up most of the headlines, there’s another greenhouse gas that’s seriously warming our planet: methane. It’s responsible for about 20% of global warming, according to National Geographic, and a big portion of methane comes from cows (more on that later).

So who is emitting the most greenhouse gasses? Consider this:

To figure out the most impactful global warming solutions, we looked into the behaviors that have the highest impact on the biggest causes. For example, we asked: What is the most impactful way for individuals to cut down electricity usage? And while things like composting, smart thermostats, and recycling help our planet, they do not address the biggest sources of global warming as much as other solutions do.

We also asked: Which of these high-impact solutions are realistic for individuals to implement, right now? While there are some super impactful solutions that aren’t on this list, such as wind turbines, solar farms, and regenerative agriculture, we purposely omitted them because they’re impossible to implement at an individual level.

While you’d ideally implement all of the following solutions, the truth is, it’s difficult to live a life optimized for sustainability. Maybe driving a car is the only way you can get to work, or it’s too difficult for you to lower your heating bill in the winter.

That’s okay. Not everyone can do everything- the most important thing is that we all do the most we can to help save our earth. So here’s a toolbox of the most impactful solutions for global warming (in no particular order) that you can do, today – and can pick and choose as you see fit:

1. Plant trees

What to do:

Why it’s impactful:

Reforestation is the most cost-effective way to prevent global warming, according to research presented at the American Association for the Advancement of Science conference. Why?

Trees absorb carbon dioxide (reminder: which makes up 82% of greenhouse gases in our atmosphere), so planting more trees can help reduce the amount of carbon in our atmosphere. In fact, we could remove roughly two-thirds of human-made carbon just by letting all forests regrow, according to a study published in the journal of Science. Yep, two-thirds.

Plus, as Jaron Pazi from Treedom told us,

But not all forests are created equal – some remove carbon from our atmosphere more effectively than others. According to a paper published in Science Advances, tropical forests in countries like Brazil, Indonesia, and India will most efficiently pull carbon out of the atmosphere, since they’re home to a huge amount of biodiversity and play a major role in the planet’s air and water cycle.

2. Create more sustainable transportation habits

You knew this one was coming…

What to do:

Do at least one of these things:

Why it’s impactful:

As aforementioned, cars are one of the biggest contributors to climate change: 82% of emissions from transportation come from cars. And while cutting automotive transportation out of your life would make the most impact, this isn’t possible for most people. So instead, tweak a few habits that will have a bigger collective impact.

For example, if you refrain from harsh braking and rapid acceleration, you can cut your fuel consumption by as much as 40%, according to the US Department of Energy. If you also keep your tires inflated and car maintained, you’ll cut your fuel consumption by nearly half when driving.

3. Lower your heating bill

What to do:

In the winter, take steps to lower your heating bill:

Why it’s impactful:

Electricity is one of the biggest causes of greenhouse gas emissions, and heating systems are the single biggest energy expense in the home. So lowering your heating bills is the most impactful way to reduce your electricity consumption (and isn’t so bad for your wallet, either).

In addition to monitoring your thermostat, improving insulation and airtightness through your walls, roof, and windows is a great way to avoid heat from escaping your home, since the biggest sources of heat loss are your walls (35%), roof (20%), and windows (15%).

4. Divest from coal, and encourage others to do the same

What to do:

Why it’s impactful:

Coal-burning power plants are by far the biggest emitters of carbon dioxide in our atmosphere, according to the Natural Resources Defense Council. Aka, coal is a big deal.

20% of industrial coal emissions are funded by public investors. So when people or companies stop investing, it’s more difficult for coal producers to finance more coal production.

For example, “the more insurance companies that join the divestment effort, the more difficult it will become for companies to derive significant revenue from burning coal,” Bloomberg Journalist Bryony Collins wrote. That’s why Lemonade became the first US insurance company to not invest in coal.

Case in point: When the world’s biggest coal company (Peabody) announced bankruptcy, it said the divestment movement had made it difficult to raise capital.

5. Eat less beef

What to do:

Create a rule for yourself that limits your beef consumption, such as:

Why it’s impactful:

Emissions from animal agriculture account for around 15% of all human emissions, and beef is responsible for 41% of that, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization.

If cattle were their own nation, they would be the world’s third-largest emitter of greenhouse gases. Let that sink in.

Why?

Beef production requires 28x more land, 6x more fertilizer, and 11x more water than these other proteins than the calorie-equivalent of pork or chicken, according to a paper published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

And if you factor in deforestation to make way for livestock, along with methane emissions from cows and fertilizer use, beef production creates as much greenhouse gas emissions as all the world’s cars, trucks, and airplanes combined, according to The Guardian.

6. Educate girls

What to do:

Give to a charity that makes school more affordable and accessible for girls in low- and lower-middle-income countries, such as the Malala Fund.

Why it’s impactful:

In the most comprehensive report on effective climate solutions, Project Drawdown named educating girls as the #6 most impactful solution (for reference, composting is #60, and rooftop solar is #10).

That’s because women with more years of education have fewer children, and therefore a lower carbon footprint. Not only that, but “women have a disproportionate share of decision making around water, cooking, food waste, fuel choices, and how homes are heated, built, and used,” said scientist Jonathan Foley. “It’s one of the most powerful climate solutions of all.”

“Educating girls is one of the most cost-effective, high-impact ways for every nation to fight rising temperatures,” Shabana Basij-Rasikh shared on TED. “It’s not a topic most Westerners think about, since girls’ education is a given. ”

7. Advocate for a healthy planet

What to do:

Support climate legislation by doing one or more of these things:

Why it’s impactful:

Reminder: 100 companies produce 71% of emissions worldwide. What will compel big companies to act sustainably consistently, on a large scale? Lawmakers.

They can:

They can also help individuals act more sustainably. Copenhagen’s government is working to make it the world’s first carbon-neutral city by 2025, by installing bike lanes across the city, restricting polluting cars, and building new wind turbines.

And how can we enact political change? It all starts with you.

8. Convince your friends to behave sustainably

What to do:

Choose an impactful, sustainable behavior from this list, and try to convince your friends to do it too. Using the example of ridesharing, you can say things like:

1. “I talked to Jordan, Leah, Hannah, and Danny, and they’re all ridesharing. Are you?”

2. “When’s the next time you’re going to rideshare, and what app are you going to use?”

3. “You’re a ride sharer, aren’t you?”

4. “I’ll text you next week to see how the ride sharing has been going!”

Why it’s impactful:

While you’re on your way to becoming a climate warrior, your friends and family members might not. Because of a little thing called the drop-in-the-bucket effect (read: “my actions won’t actually make a difference”), 80% of Americans don’t consistently make an effort to live a sustainable life, according to Pew.

And since Americans have the largest footprint worldwide, convincing your friends and family to reduce their emissions can transcend our own impact, and inspire others to help save our planet as well.

Giving your friends these nudges is scientifically proven to help sway them to act sustainably. For example, one of the biggest findings in behavioral science is that humans are motivated to do what other people around them are doing. If you tell your friend that your other friends are using sustainable light bulbs, they’ll be more compelled to do so, too.

• Save energy at home.
• Walk, bike, or take public transport.
• Eat more vegetables.
• Consider your travel.
• Throw away less food.
• Reduce, reuse, repair & recycle.
• Change your home's source of energy.
• Switch to an electric vehicle.

Rising sea levels. Raging storms. Searing heat. Ferocious fires. Severe drought. Punishing floods. The effects of climate change are already threatening our health, our communities, our economy, our security, and our children’s future.

What can you do? A whole lot, as it turns out. Americans, on average, produce 21 tons of carbon a year, about four times the global average. Personal action is, of course, no substitute for meaningful government policies. We still must limit carbon pollution and aggressively move away from dirty fossil fuels toward cleaner power.

But it’s important to remember the equally vital contributions that can be made by private citizens—which is to say, by you. “Change only happens when individuals take action,” says clean energy advocate Aliya Haq. “There’s no other way, if it doesn’t start with people.”

Here are a dozen easy, effective ways each one of us can make a difference.

What’s the single biggest way you can make an impact on global climate change? “Talk to your friends and family, and make sure your representatives are making good decisions,” Haq says. By voicing your concerns—via social media or, better yet, directly to your elected officials—you send a message that you care about the warming world. Encourage Congress to enact new laws that limit carbon emissions and require polluters to pay for the emissions they produce. “The main reason elected officials do anything difficult is because their constituents make them,” Haq says. You can help protect public lands, stop offshore drilling, and more here.

Choose a utility company that generates at least half its power from wind or solar and has been certified by Green-e Energy, an organization that vets renewable energy options. If that isn’t possible for you, take a look at your electric bill; many utilities now list other ways to support renewable sources on their monthly statements and websites.

“Building heating and cooling are among the biggest uses of energy,” Haq says. Indeed, heating and air-conditioning account for almost half of home energy use. You can make your space more energy efficient by sealing drafts and ensuring it’s adequately insulated. You can also claim federal tax credits for many energy efficiency home improvements. To help you figure out where to start, you could also get a home energy audit, which some utilities offer free of charge (alternatively, you can hire a professional to come to your home and perform one). The EPA’s Home Energy Yardstick gives you a simple assessment of your home’s annual energy use compared with similar homes.

Since they were first implemented nationally in 1987, efficiency standards for dozens of appliances and products have kept 2.3 billion tons of carbon dioxide out of the air. That’s about the same amount as the annual carbon pollution coughed up by nearly 440 million cars. “Energy efficiency is the lowest-cost way to reduce emissions,” Haq says. When shopping for refrigerators, washing machines, heat pump water heaters, and other appliances, look for the Energy Star label. It will tell you which are the most efficient. (There may also be rebates to earn from your purchase of Energy Star–certified products.)

And when you’re ready to swap out your old machines, don’t just put them on the curb: Recycling an old refrigerator through the EPA’s Responsible Appliance Disposal Program can prevent an additional 10,000 pounds of carbon pollution because the global-warming pollutants in the refrigerants and foam would be properly captured rather than vented to the air.

Saving water reduces carbon pollution, too. That's because it takes a lot of energy to pump, heat, and treat your water. So take shorter showers, turn off the tap while brushing your teeth, and switch to WaterSense-labeled fixtures and appliances. The EPA estimates that if just one out of every 100 American homes were retrofitted with water-efficient fixtures, about 100 million kilowatt-hours of electricity per year would be saved—avoiding 80,000 tons of global warming pollution.

Approximately 10 percent of U.S. energy use goes into growing, processing, packaging, and shipping food—about 40 percent of which winds up in the landfill. “If you’re wasting less food, you’re likely cutting down on energy consumption,” Haq says. As for the scraps you can’t eat or the leftovers you don’t get to, collect them in a compost bin instead of sending them to the landfill where they release methane. Recycling food and other organic waste into compost provides a range of environmental benefits, including improving soil health, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, recycling nutrients, and mitigating the impact of droughts.

LED light bulbs use one-sixth the amount of energy to deliver the same amount of light as conventional incandescents and last at least 10 times longer. They’re also cheaper in the long run: A 10-watt LED that replaces your traditional 60-watt bulb will save you $125 over the ligh bulb’s life. And because the average American home has around 40 to 50 light bulbs, this is a simple swap that will reap huge rewards. If every household in the United States replaced just one incandescent with an Energy Star–labeled LED, we would prevent seven billion pounds of carbon pollution per year. That’s equivalent to the emissions of about 648,000 cars.

Taken together, the outlets in your home are likely powering about 65 devices—an average load for a home in the United States. Audio and video devices, cordless vacuums and power tools, and other electronics use energy even when they're not charging. This "idle load" across all U.S. households adds up to the output of 50 large power plants in the country. So don't leave fully charged devices plugged into your home's outlets, unplug rarely used devices or plug them into power strips and timers, and adjust your computers and monitors to automatically power down to the lowest power mode when not in use.

Gas-smart cars, such as hybrids and fully electric vehicles, save fuel and money. And once all cars and light trucks meet 2025’s clean car standards, which means averaging 54.5 miles per gallon, they’ll be a mainstay. For good reason: Relative to a national fleet of vehicles that averaged only 28.3 miles per gallon in 2011, Americans will spend $80 billion less at the pump each year and cut their automotive emissions by half. Before you buy a new set of wheels, compare fuel-economy performance here.

If all Americans kept their tires properly inflated, we could save 1.2 billion gallons of gas each year. A simple tune-up can boost miles per gallon anywhere from 4 percent to 40 percent, and a new air filter can get you a 10 percent boost. Also, remove unnecessary accessories from your car roof. Roof racks and clamshell storage containers can reduce fuel efficiency by as much as 5 percent.