This month, The Climate Change Collective are focusing on greening up areas of land with trees. It is widely known that large areas of forest are being cut down and burned every week. So it makes sense that one of our environmental initiatives should be planting trees at every opportunity.
A few weeks ago Michelle (Boomer Eco Crusader) took part in the planting of a microforest in her beloved Waterloo region of Canada. I was really intrigued about this and thankfully she shared her experience in the latest lead post for the Climate Change Collective:
The idea of transforming a small area of land into a forest, with a range of local flora and fauna, is really cool. There are so many benefits, not only to the environment but also to local communities.
– It increases biodiverisity and has a localised cooling impact
– There will be more photosynthesis which means more recycling of carbon dioxide
– a microfest can provide an additional retreat for local people – a community-made natural gem
Reclaiming land for nature always makes sense. If by doing so we are creating new reserves for families to explore, then even better. Pockets of green within towns and cities can make a massive difference to local microclimates.
As a result of this post, I have asked my boss for a way of reclaiming part of our school field for a microforest.
Final Thoughts
Each month one of our wonderful bloggers creates a lead article about something related to climate change. Michelle originally set up The Climate Change Collective after discussing with me a need for a group of bloggers who expressed concern for global warming and made practical suggestions for change.
All of us in the group write our own posts linked to each monthly lead article. Our group is growing and welcoming, so please drop me a tweet if you are a blogger interested in joining.
Microforests are a great way to create biodiverse local woodlands and help to re-green our increasingly urbanised regions. Please check out Michelle’s article and let us know what you think in the comments.
Every month a different member of the Climate Change Collective group of bloggers writes about a pressing environmental issue. This month, the brilliant Transatlantic Notes covers the subject of Climate Denial which is sadly rife at the moment.
You can check out the very informative article here:
Recently I was shocked by some of the responses I got to my posts on Twitter/ X about global warming. Some people are quick to shout down anyone who wants to promote awareness about climate change.
Similarly, certain high profile politicians are happy to deny climate change altogether. They call it a liberal load of rubbish and such like, suggesting that temperature change is natural and not related to industrialisation at all.
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The Transatlantic Notes article includes various myths that have appeared in the press and helps to squash them:
Myth 1. | The Climate Has Always Changed; It’s Normal
Yes, there has been natural climate variability throughout history, and the planet has experienced climate shifts. However, what we’re experiencing today has scientists and experts concerned. Climate change is accelerating at a much faster pace than previous natural variations.
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In A Nutshell
As a geographer who studied environmental change in the biosphere at University, I have been aware of global warming for thirty years. Only recently has it become more widely recognised, seemingly in line with heightened affects such as heatwaves, extreme weather events and flooding.
Following the misleading nonsense of climate deniers is undoing all of the good that climate protestors and scientists are doing. Hopefully, after reading the lead article you will see that there really isn’t a time or place for the denial of climate change.
Please check out the myths about climate change linked in the post above.
Most people look forward to hotter days in summer. Some people even sun seek all year round. Many of my friends love to fly off to hotter parts of the world for winter holidays. Everyone loves warm weather – right? So why we are we making such a big deal out of world temperatures rising?
That is exactly what I want to explore in this Climate Change Collective article. Our Collective, by the way, is a group of bloggers who care very much about the world’s ecosystems and want to keep climate change at the forefront of readers’ minds.
‘The Climate Change Collective’ sprang from a response that Michelle – Boomer Eco Crusader made to one of my blog posts last year. We then decided to establish a network of like-minded writers who cared about global warming. Each month, one of us writes a lead blog post about something which concerns us and then we all get involved with response blogs that consider each other’s unique take on that particular subject.
Read on and let me know in the comments what you think about my points.
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Is hotness a big deal?
Last year I recall a colleague talking to me about the July 40 degree C heatwave. They said it was great and a one-off and that I should make the most of it. Now, let me tell you, I have heard this kind of thing on many occasions since. Whenever I talk about heatwaves in Britain, people tend to see more positives than negatives. It is because our summers used to be traditionally more wet and mild than hot.
For the UK, exceptionally hot weather is still in its infancy, but with this June breaking records as the warmest June on record, we are definitely moving towards hotter times. Having said that we haven’t reached the heights of Southern Europe yet.
The recent extended period of around 45 degrees C days that clung to Spain, Italy and Greece has highlighted just how damaging heat can be. Too much of it causes wildfires, drought and problems with arable farming. This in turn could lead to people being displaced from their homes, as is currently happening in Rhodes and Corfu.
I am watching constant News about the ongoing fires in the Greek islands and scratching my head awkwardly. These are clear signs that climate change is creating widespread problems and is on the rise.
There is no doubt that people and governments are taking the heatwaves seriously but I am hearing too much about defending against the weather. Making the planet more weather-proof is not only expensive and very difficult but it avoids dealing with the obvious. The time has come to make fossil fuel consumption a less favourable option. We need to turn back the clock and undo some of the damage we have done with industrialisation and urbanisation.
We Can Not Solve This By Ourselves!
Yes I am almost shouting that point as I see lots of well-meaning people talking about small differences that any individual can make. I agree that people can reduce their carbon footprints and recycle more. There are many brilliant adaptations we can make.
But time matters. We don’t have much time…
What we need more than anything is governments to start making drastic changes right now.
Only yesterday the UK Home Secretary stated that environmental laws must not cost too much. She was talking about the cost of living crisis and suggesting that we shouldn’t be spending money on climate change initiatives when we have economic fixes to urgently make.
I get this but…
It isn’t quite that simple. We just need to balance the books. Here are a few radical suggestions:
– The railways are a mess. It costs more to catch a train to Edinburgh than it does to fly there. Why don’t they tax shorter flights more and invest that cash into the rail network? France are starting to stop short air flights that could easily be replaced with train services. Similarly, having been to Switzerland and seen how much people use the efficient train network, I know we could be better connected and enjoy a more pleasurable journey if we sank investment into more tracks and better infrastructure.
– This one sounds odd but go with me on this. We all drive to supermarkets separately and use fuel and sit in traffic jams. If more of us used supermarket delivery vans we would save plenty of individual journeys and support more job vacancies for supermarkets. If a delivery van takes 15 lots of shopping at a time, on a circuit, that is potentially saving 14 trips by separate shoppers.
– Plane journeys could be penalised by frequency. For example, if you only flew twice a year, no additional fees would be applied. On your third flight a five percent charge would be given, then more on your fourth etc. Harsh but fair.
– Planting trees on unused fields in farms or on private land could result in rewards. For instance if you planted ten trees and they were still there five years later, you might get a reduction in Council Tax or a tax rebate even.
– Buying locally could reap you incentives. Supermarkets all use loyalty points systems and could track your consumption of food that hasn’t travelled long distances. Perhaps you might get extra points for continually purchasing local food and drink.
Final Thoughts
I may seem like I am plucking ideas out of the sky but we have to take drastic measures collectively. If you want to stay informed about environmental issues, check out an app/ website called We Don’t Have Time which is where brilliant and innovative people share sustainable initiatives and examples of ecofriendly work.
Here are a couple of articles by ‘The Climate Change Collective’ which may intrigue you:
Thank you so much for taking the time to read my article about warmer weather and why it is not a positive thing when it comes to climate change.Please also check out the link posts that will follow this one. Also drop me a comment with your own thoughts on this matter.
For a little poem I wrote about the heatwave, have a look at Heating Up. Have a lovely summer and please think about contacting your local politicians to express concern about the current lack of real environmental policies.
