World Environment Day, 5th June 2019
World Environment Day this year is hosted by China with the theme of 'Air Pollution'.
Approximately 7 million people worldwide die prematurely each year from air pollution, with about 4 million of these deaths occurring in Asia-Pacific. World Environment Day 2019 will urge governments, industry, communities, and individuals to come together to explore renewable energy and green technologies, and improve air quality in cities and regions across the world.
There are currently over 7 billion people living on the planet right now, with that number expected to reach 9.7 billion by 2050, and 11.2 billion by 2100. With the population living longer and rapidly increasing, the earth's resources are decreasing at an alarming rate. With the earth only having the ability to support roughly 10 billion people, we are less than a century away from being in a life-threatening position.
As the world's population rises, there is greater demand for supplies and energy. This in turn comes with the cost of greenhouse gases and climate change. Global temperatures are rocketing, ice caps are melting, and record-breaking wildfires, droughts, hurricanes and floods are tearing their way across the landscape as our earth fights back against decades of mistreatment.
Currently, we are consuming resources at an unsustainable rate. We only have one earth, which we are completely dependant on for our survival and well-being. But it can only produce a finite number of resources and withstand a certain degree of greenhouse emissions.
It has never been more urgent for each individual to lead an eco-friendly life. Living a less wasteful life and reducing our environmental impact is something that we can all work on. Each choice we make to live more sustainably is one step closer to nursing the Earth back to health. We need to adopt a global, shared responsibility for our future and that of our planet.
What is sustainable living?
Sustainable living describes a lifestyle which aims to reduce the use of the earth’s natural resources and cause the least amount of environmental damage. By living more sustainably, you reduce your carbon footprint - this is the amount of greenhouse gases you're directly and indirectly responsible for releasing into the atmosphere.
Go to https://footprint.wwf.org.uk/#/ to calculate the size of your carbon footprint!
A carbon footprint is made up of five main categories: housing, travel, food, products and services. This means that we have opportunities in every part of our daily life to make choices to live more sustainably, and therefore decrease the damage we're doing to the environment. Whether it’s choosing alternative methods of transportation or making changes to our diet, every choice we make has an impact.
For every product we buy - from it's creation, distrubution, use and disposal - we never really see or know the impact it is having on our earth. It's important we try to understand these impacts so that we can become aware of what changes we need to make.
Just by making a few simple changes to our lifestyle, we can change the future of our planet, and our species. It's often easy to believe that as an individual you can't make a difference, but a year's worth of sustainable choices will have a huge impact. Let alone combined with everyone else who is helping too.
Here are 10 resolutions you can make to become more sustainable in your everyday life!
1. Choose eco-friendly travel
Wherever possible, try to choose alternate modes of transport such as walking or taking the subway, instead of driving - or calling a Didi! (If you do need to call a taxi though, Didi has a really cool car share feature where you can choose to share a taxi with someone going in the same direction or same destination as you). Having less cars on the road means less carbon dioxide produced, and those cars that remain are less likely to be stuck in congestion and therefore have quicker journeys, meaning even less CO2 produced.
Cyling is by far the best option to choose if you live in China, especially in the cities. There are bikes everywhere! (You have no excuse really...) Not only does cycling produce no emissions or use no resources, but it will also keep you fit and healthy at the same time! Win win.
Even choosing to take the stairs instead of an elevator can make a difference too!
2. Eat less meat and dairy
A sustainable diet is one which minimises the resources required to grow our food. The biggest contribution to the diet section of our carbon footprint comes from meat. In fact, avoiding meat and dairy can reduce your carbon footprint from food by 73%! This is due to the fact that meats, per calorie, have a much higher carbon footprint than grains or vegetables because the farming of animals requires a lot more resources and energy than the farming of plants. This is a result of the inefficient transfer of energy from plants to animals (or 'between trophic levels in the food chain' if you want to be technical).
The livestock industry itself is the biggest culprit when it comes to climate change and habitat degradation. Animal agriculture is the single largest contributor of emissions in the world, which is more than the combined exhausts from all transportation on earth. Livestock also requires an enormous amount of water and land. Just one hamburger uses 660 gallons of water (almost 2500 litres) to be produced. Deforestation for land also makes animal agriculture the largest contributor to wildlife extinction around the world.
Go to https://www.watercalculator.org to calculate your water footprint!
Making an effort to combine meat-free meals into your diet is the most effective way to delay climate change, lower your carbon footprint, and improve your health at the same time. China's incredible variety of vegetables means it's easy to choose a few veggie dishes over meat options.
3. Choose organic and locally grown foods
Whenever possible, choose to buy organic foods and produce that are locally grown. Not only does this support your local agricultural economy, but also helps the environment by reducing packaging and not requiring emissions-heavy, long-distance transport.
In addition, avoid buying fruits and vegetables which are out of season. These require more energy to create the artificial conditions they need to grow. Eating according to the seasons is also much better for your health, as these foods have a much higher nutritional content.
As Confucius said 2500 years ago "if it's not in season, I won't eat it".
4. Eliminate single-use products
Think about the number the grocery bags, water bottles, plastic cutlery and paper towels that you use in a year... impossible to calculate right?
When we throw something away, it ends up in one of two places - either in landfills or in environmental habitats and the ocean. No one knows how much unrecyled plastic waste ends up in the ocean, but in 2015 a professor from the University of Georgia made a rough estimate of between 5.3 million and 14 million tons each year just from coastal regions alone.
Imagine five plastic grocery bags stuffed with plastic trash, sitting on every foot of coastline around the world. That would correspond to about 8.8 million tons, her middle range estimate of what the ocean gets from us annually.
It's so easy to phase single-use products out of your daily routine by replacing them with their eco-friendly counterparts. It might seem expensive to replace at first, but the money you spend will go directly to making your life more sustainable, and in the long-term you will save money from not having to buy disposable products over and over again.
3 eco-friendly alternatives everyone should have...
A reusable bag. You can keep it folded up in your bag or rucksack so you have it with you whenever you need it. At present, there is no charge for plastic bags in China, meaning they are readily given away whenever you buy something. These just go straight in the bin once we get home. But because of this, 100,000 sea turtles and marine animals die every year because they mistake plastic bags for food or get tangled in them, and 52% of turtles having ingested plastic in their lifetime. Furthermore, it is estimated that by 2050, the ocean will contain more plastic by weight than fish.
A reusable bottle. It's too easy just to buy a 2元 bottle of water from the shop when you're thirsty and then just throw it away, but investing into a water bottle is a really easy way to reduce your plastic use. Globally, humans buy one million plastic bottles a minute. 91% of these are not recycled.
When it comes to reducing plastic waste, the key thing here is to use your initiative. If you're buying something and they give you plastic cutlery, extra napkins, or anything you know you're going to just throw in the bin, then just say you don't need them. Simple!
5. Recycle
Incorporate a recycling bin into your household so that if you do end up with plastic you need to throw away then at least it's not going straight to landfill. Not only does this mean it's not taking up some of landfill's limited space (with conditions meaning it's practically impossible for anything to biodegrade) but it helps to conserve natural resources and energy. Creating new materials from already existing materials uses significantly less energy than using raw materials. For example, recycling one ton of plastic saves the equivalent of using 11 barrels of crude oil.
Currently in China there is no official recycling system. Instead, we see people searching through the trash to collect anything that might be of value to take to sorting centers outside of the city. This means that even when there are seperate waste containers in residential complexes, people rarely sort their rubbish, knowing that people will come along and sort through it.
This is why we should all be proactive when throwing away rubbish. All you need is just two seperate bins in your house which you can then throw away into the corresponding bins outside. Everyone can do it... don't be lazy!!!!
6. Compost organic waste
When food is wasted, the resources used to grow and transport the food are wasted as well. Reducing food waste is a simple way to ensure that the Earth's resources are used more efficiently, and as a result help with long-term sustainability.
The processes for dealing with waste are very energy-intensive, and when it ends up in landfill, it turns to methane, which is a big contributor to climate change. Instead, you can reduce your waste by adopting a self-contained and easy-to-use organic compost system. Making your own compost pile for most of us in China isn't something we can do easily, so an easy alternative is to buy a compost bin online which will provide you with all the materials and instructions you need.
About one third of all our kitchen and garden waste can be composted. Leftover food, egg shells, coffee grind, tea bags, fruit and vegetables, grass cuttings and plant prunings can be used to create a healthy, nutrient-rich soil for your household plants and garden, instead of being heaped onto landfill. If you don't have a garden, you can donate it to local community gardens, or to your local farmers. They may offer a discount on fresh fruit and veg instead!
Chengdu Roots and Shoots Composting Event 19.04.13
7. Try some DIY
The sustainability of many common household items isn't something people usually think about, and they in fact aren't as innocent as you think. Whether the manufacturers use harmful ingredients, test on animals, or go overboard on the packaging, many products aren't what you'd call environmentally friendly.
Many companies are now beginning to roll out more sustainable product lines. This is great, but if you find it hard to find them or they're more expensive, you can easily create what you need at home.
You would be suprised what ingredients actually go into the products we buy. All you need are some containers and ingredients that you already have (such as honey, olive oil, sugar) to create the things you need at home. You can find plenty of recipes online. Start with something simple like a body scrub or lip balm, and then once you become confident in your DIY abilities you can try and tackle more complex mixtures!
8. Avoid "fast fashion"
Fast fashion refers to the inexpensive clothing produced rapidly by mass-market retailers in response to the latest trends. This is the clothing which makes up the clothing of most major retailers. Up until the 20th century, the fashion industry ran on four seasons a year: fall, winter, spring and summer. But now, fast fashion brands produce around 52 'micro-seasons' a year, meaning around one new collection every week. With new styles being shown to us weekly, it means that we never tire of the store's inventory and are eager to purchase clothes much quicker than we need, just to stay on top of the latest trends.
With the increased rate of production, inevitably corners are being cut. Merchandise is of severly low-quality, often lacking proper quality control, meaning consumers are obligated to throw away and replenish items after just a few wears. Toxic chemicals, dangerous dyes, and synthetic fabrics are also commonly used, which seep into water supplies in foreign countries where they are often made, and also at home every time the clothing is washed.
We are all guilty of buying more clothes than we need, and perhaps this is because we are unaware of just how much we're consuming and the amount of resources it requires to make new clothing - one t-shirt can take more than 700 gallons of water produce. The average person throws away 8.1 trash bags worth of clothing each year, and these garments, full of lead, pesticides, and countless other chemicals, almost never break down and spend their life releasing these toxic chemicals into the air.
In future, buy one well-made, expensive item of clothing rather than constantly replacing it with cheaper alternatives, or buy second-hand. If you do have clothes you no longer want, choose to either sell or donate them. Alternatively, you could try some more DIY to see what cool things you can make!
The same goes with furniture, electronics, books and kitchen appliances. These are things that people also throw away too readily, but the production process for many requires huge amounts of energy and resources. Choosing to extend an object's lifespan instead of throwing it away is an easy, cost-effective way to live more sustainably.
9. Conserve water and electricity
71% of the earth is covered in water, yet only 0.5% of it is available for us to drink (97% of it is salt water, and the remaining 2.5% is locked in ice caps, glaciers, the atmosphere, soil, or too polluted to consume). With a growing population and only a small and finite percentage of water available for consumption, it is hugely important that we conserve it.
The same goes for electricity. Although it can be obtained from solar or wind power, most of our electricity in homes comes from burning fossil fuels such as oil and coal. These resources are not unlimited or renewable, meaning the more we use them up, the quicker they will be depleted. Burning fossil fuels for energy also releases enormous amounts of pollution into the air - acid rain, soot, carbon dioxide and toxic gases are just a few examples. They also pose a huge ecological threat, with oil spills having some of the most drastic consequences.
Water conservation means using our limited water supply wisely and caring for it properly. There are so many small changes you can make, e.g. making your shower time a few minutes shorter, turning off the tap when brushing your teeth or washing dishes. You almost won't notice the difference, but the amount of water you save will add up in a significant way.
Conserving water also conserves energy. Energy is required to process and deliver water to your home, and must be used to heat water for a number of uses, such as showering. This means that by using less water, you are also using less energy.
Conserving electricity means only using it when necessary and avoiding wasting it. These again are simple things which won't make much impact on your day-to-day life: turning the lights of when you leave the room, unplugging appliances when you're not using them, and opting for colder settings on your washing machine are just a few examples of what you can do. Try not to leave devices on standby either as some of them still use quite a lot of energy. You can also invest in energy-efficient appliances and replace standard lightbulbs. Not only by making these changes are you helping the environment, but you will also save money on your household bill.
Living in China we couldn't do without our air conditioners (or heating for those lucky enough to live above the Yangtze river). What we don't often think about is how much electricity these appliances actually use. Air conditioners work by removing heat from indoors and releasing it outside, increasing the external temperature, and in turn making us turn our air conditioners up even higher! It's a vicous cycle. When older units aren't working properly, they release hydroflurocarbons (HFCs), which are greenhouse gases that trap thousands of times more heat than carbon dioxide does.
Changing the temperature on your air conditioner or heater by just a degree or two can make a huge difference. In the summer, keep your curtains and blinds closed when you go out to keep your house cooler. Take a cold shower or keep some ice pops in the freezer for when you're hot. When it's colder, try putting on an extra jumper or blanket instead. Or if you're in Sichuan, head to the nearest hot pot restaurant!
10. Stay informed and get involved
Try and stay updated with the latest environmental news. Follow climate activists on Twitter, subscribe to newsletters, or watch documentaries. The more information you have, the wiser the choices you can make.
Spend time inquiring about the origins of products and choose to support certain businesses which have higher values and sustainability in mind. These often go unnoticed but need to be recognised.
Look around your community and see if you can connect with people and organisations that are focused on sustainability. There may be projects or events you can get involved with.
Remember, no one can tackle such major issues alone, but with collaboration and hard work, we can bring about the changes we want to see.
These are steps that we can all take as individuals, but what is China doing to tackle environmental issues?
China’s rapid economic growth and development hasn’t come without a huge cost to the natural environment. After years of heavy industrialisation and being one of the biggest polluters in the world, the factories and power plants that have driven China’s growth have also polluted its air, water and soil. Now China faces a 「war on pollution」 which has lead the government to introduce a number of green initiatives:
The former Ministry for Environmental Protection has been transformed into the Ministry of Ecological Environment (MEE). This new entity will now be responsible for all water-related policies, which were previously distributed among different departments, in addition to overseeing policies on climate change.
China’s technology giants play a vital role in sustainable development and can act as green innovators. For example, Ant Financial, a banking subsidiary of Alibaba, is a founding partner of the Green Digital Finance Alliance, who aim to use digital technology to advance green finance. Over 200 million users signed up to Ant Forest, an app that gamifies carbon footprint tracking , prompting user to cut greenhouse gas emissions in real life. By the end of January 2017, the approach had already saved 150,000 tonnes of CO2.
Whilst other countries may still be in denial about climate change and the ever-growing concerns facing the planet's survival, China is striving to transition to alternative energies and become more energy efficient. Clean energy investments are seen as a key step, not just for the environment, but for any nation to renew its manufacturing base, and create export opportunities, jobs and businesses. China's proactive response has meant it is already emerging as the world's clean energy powerhouse - a position likely to have great influence over the development patterns of the future.
China's green movement is spreading throughout the country. With looking after the environment echoing the philosophy of something bigger than oneself, this green shift is helping people find new values in a rapidly changing nation. It is also becoming evident to companies that "going green" is a matter of growing importance, and will help them to compete not just domestically but internationally as well.
Today, five of the world's top six solar-module manufacturers, five of the largest turbine manufacturers, and six of the ten major car manufacturers committed to electrification are Chinese-owned. However, this is just the start for China. It's fast response, combined with the size of its economy, means it has huge potential to influence the future of our planet.
(Sources include WWF, The World Economic Forum, shrinkthatfootprint.com, Live Strong, Forbes, takepart, The Conversation, National Geographic, GetGreenNow, andbeyond.com, Passion Passport, The Good Trade, lovetoknow, South China Morning Post, The Washington Post, thebalancesmallbusiness, Earthava, worldenvironmentday.global)
For more news and articles, follow our WeChat account 'Laowai Here'✨
Visit our website www.laowaihere.com for job vacancies and email hr@laowaihere.comwith your CV to apply✨