2.16.07
Driving on renewable energy is just one way to reduce your environmental impact and combat global warming. It’s also a way to go carbon-neutral - a term that basically means balancing out your carbon emissions by investing in renewable energy or a project that reduces greenhouse gases. By calculating your emissions, you can then offset them by contributing to a healthier planet in some way. Of course, you can change your lifestyle, change what you drive, eat lower on the food chain, and live more simply. These are great ways to lessen one’s footprint. But sometimes, lifestyle changes alone can’t compensate for the CO2 and other greenhouse gases our activities emit. For instance, I am flying to Spain next month, and since planes burn tons of fuel very high in the atmosphere, I wanted a way to balance out all those extra emissions besides my normal attempts at green living. This is where carbon offsets (also called carbon credits) come in.
There are many companies offering carbon offsets, such as The Carbon Neutral Company, who offer a carbon calculator and various ways to offset your emissions (through investing in renewable energy projects or buying carbon-neutral products, for instance). An excellent introduction to carbon credits and going carbon neutral can be found on Green Options. There are many options for calculating and offsetting your carbon emissions.
One interesting project that aims to “start global cooling” is Save Our Snow - a snowboarding tour sponsored by Clif Bar that includes education about global warming and a grease-powered Winnebego! As we’ve seen with the decrease in snow in recent years, global warming can have a serious impact on snowboarding, skiing, and other outdoor activities. S.O.S. indeed!
You can also join the virtual march to Stop Global Warming and find out what you can do to help heal the planet and reverse global warming. And of course, if you haven’t already, see Al Gore’s compelling documentary on the science behind climate change, An Inconvenient Truth.
It’s good to see that living green is becoming more of a priority in this culture. Every little bit helps, so I hope you’ll be inspired to do all you can to lower your impact on the planet and conserve our precious energy and resources. Being carbon neutral is a great goal on your journey to the green live!
