Skip to main content

No results found

CSxOxMagazine SqueezedMiddle 1110x120px busdlq
Knowledge

Carbon Chronicles

My mission: reduce my carbon impact by 50%.

divider
aoXXiiLQ

There isn’t much good news about the climate, but this is still the perfect time to be an optimist because optimism is a way of thinking about life. Optimists believe that things will turn out ok, that there’s always a way to get the job done and that we can improve our lot through effort.

Five reasons to be an optimist

  • Three quarters of adults in Great Britain worry about climate change. Gloomy yes, but people worried about climate change are more likely to make lifestyle changes to improve the long term.  History is full of examples of how we’ve changed our habits against insurmountable odds, and quickly.  Who would have routinely worn a face mask two years ago? 

  • The solutions are here. The ‘technical barriers have been crossed’ and we are beginning to see carbon saving as ‘gain not pain’ – lovely phrase from the Carbon Tracker Initiative (carbontracker.org).  Renewable energy has the potential to keep the lights on; battery storage works; we can capture carbon through better soil management and agriculture. Now it’s time for us optimists to get on with it and put the effort in. 

  • It’s easier to do the right thing.  Organisations are responding to buying signals. They are producing longer lasting and more efficient machines. Sustainable design is beautiful rather than a compromise. We’re riding a wave of innovation and it keeps getting better and better.

  • Research says that humans prefer simplicity: we naturally prefer no hassle to hassle.  Doing less and keeping it simple simply makes us happier, healthier and wealthier.

Five good reasons to be an optimist in 2022. Happy New Year!

RECOMMENDED

NFRSA kf55rd
Wed 13 Mar 2024

The Right Honourable Countess Bathurst, affectionately known as Lady B, has long been involved in her local community. She lives with the Earl (and her beloved dogs) at Cirencester Park and has served as president and patron of many local charities, as well as a stint as High Sheriff of Gloucestershire and Ambassador for the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner for the county.

shutterstock 73294486 qsrink
Fri 1 Mar 2024

In many areas of life, the top spots are taken by males. This often has nothing to do with talent. The situation is slowly improving but the world would be a better place if more of our global leaders were female. We need fewer testosterone-fuelled males with inflated egos and more level-headed women to help guide us towards the promised land. In our household it's the women who get things done. 

woman and dog equm1q
Fri 1 Mar 2024

The Right Honourable Countess Bathurst, affectionately known as Lady B, has long been involved in her local community. She lives with the Earl (and her beloved dogs) at Cirencester Park and has served as president and patron of many local charities, as well as a stint as High Sheriff of Gloucestershire and Ambassador for the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner for the county.

bbowt
Tue 20 Feb 2024

A local nature charity has published a list of urgent priorities for all would-be MPs to sign up to ahead of this year's general election, as it fights to put nature at the heart of the upcoming