Here are the lifestyle changes that you should make in order to save the planet

Scientists have been looking at peer-reviewed papers in order to determine which are the best ways in which a person can reduce its carbon footprint. After careful calculations, the researchers concluded that four lifestyle changes could help save the planet and drive down human caused CO2 emissions. 

Researchers from Lund University analysed 39 peer-reviewed articles, carbon calculators and government sources to identify which lifestyle changes could help drive down a person’s carbon footprint.

“There are so many factors that affect the climate impact of personal choices, but bringing all these studies side-by-side gives us confidence we’ve identified actions that make a big difference. Those of us who want to step forward on climate need to know how our actions can have the greatest possible impact. This research is about helping people make more informed choices,” says lead author Seth Wynes.

Scientists calculated that per capita carbon dioxide emissions should not exceed 2.1 tonnes annually by the year 2050 in order to limit the growth of temperature.

What to change

The scientists found that four factors contribute the most when it comes to CO2 emissions. Our diet, our travels, our transportation and also are family size are the main thing we should take into account if we want to make a difference.

Less children

Families should think about having one child less, according to the findings of the study.

When accounting for the impact of future descendants at current emission rates, having one fewer child would save 58.6 tonnes per year. However, reducing overall national emissions could make the climate impact of an additional child up to 17 times less, according to the scientists.

Car-free future

Also, we should give up our cars as living car-free for a year saves 2.4 tonnes. Compared with recycling, giving up the car saves 11 times more.

Travel less

Second, we should try to travel less by plane as each roundtrip transatlantic flight avoided saves 1.6 tonnes.

To put this into context,  avoiding just one transatlantic flight saves 8 times more than recycling, the Lund study points out.

Diet choices

Another thing we should change if we are committed to reduce our carbon footprint is our diet. The researchers found that, on average, eating a plant-based diet saves about 0.8 tonnes CO2-equivalents per year.

According to their calculations, switching to a plant-based diet has a greater impact than recycling. The analysis shows that going vegetarian saves about 4 times more greenhouse gas emissions per year than recycling.

Even going without meat for one year has a greater impact than switching form plastic to paper bags.

The scientists point out that these choices are deeply personal, but the new information shows how we can help save the planet.

“We recognize that these are deeply personal choices. But we can’t ignore the climate effect our lifestyle actually has. Personally, I’ve found it really positive to make many of these changes. It’s especially important for young people establishing lifelong patterns to be aware which choices have the biggest impact. We hope this information sparks discussion and empowers individuals,” said Kimberly Nicholas, associate professor at Lund University Centre for Sustainability Studies and study co-author.

There are also other lifestyle choice that could help reduce carbon emissions, even if they have a smaller impact. Changing regular cars to hybrids, washing with cold instead of warm water, hang drying clothes and replacing traditional light bulbs also helps.