A New Year with Greener Resolutes
The financial sector and investment firms are increasingly seeing Climate Change as a major investment risk and are enforcing stringent climate policies towards net zero goal,how about your resolute?
Happy New Year, everyone! Some of us had a comfortable 2022 and some had it eventful, but what counts is we made it to 2023! Maybe with a few bruises, deaths, dramas, some heart burns, and aches but we made it safely. An achievement of its own.
For a majority of us, the first month of the year always reminds us of a fresh start, a new beginning, a time to reflect and make improvements on our vision boards which can be big or tiny on our phone notepads. Then February rolls in to remind you of neglecting the said strategies, we postponed since January. This makes us hurriedly scribble exhaustive to-do lists for the year, it is why I am here to give a gentle reminder that you don’t forget to add small but impactful green resolutions to the to-do lists.
The question is why?
Being a core environmentalist for a decade, I have used this medium to list the environmental calamities Climate Change will bring as sea level rises, pollution of all kinds, loss of biodiversity, etc. What I didn’t really envision till now, was the economical and investment risks Climate Change would invite.
Pic1: Climate Change threatening the stability of financial systems. Centre for American Progress
“For major companies or financial institutions, physical risks can materialize directly, through their exposures to corporations, households, and countries that experience climate shocks, or indirectly, through the effects of climate change on the wider economy and feedback effects within the financial system.”
-International Monetary Fund, imf.org
According to research done by Keith Wade and Marcus Jennings of the Scroder’s team, they stipulated that Global Warming will negatively impact the economic growth of several countries through damage to properties, lost productivity, mass migration, and security threats.
“Wildfires burned nearly 10.4m acres across the US last year. The most costly thunderstorm in US history caused $7.5bn in damage across Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, and South Dakota. As the climate crisis swept the globe on a biblical scale it left in its wake a record number of billion-dollar disasters.”
- The Guardian( ‘Reading the writing on the wall’: why Wall Street is acting on the climate crisis)
Climate inaction is directly linked to the corporate sector and this is why investment giants like Goldman and Sachs worded an extensive climate report citing their strategies in helping industries transition operations and business models to help usher in a low-carbon economy.
Thanks to these reports, other global investment institutions are taking a keen interest in lowering their carbon footprint and taking stringent climate action.
Companies are divesting in fossil fuels and there are investments in companies that show consideration for climate change, diversity, gender and pay equity, the welfare of employees, and the impact of technology on society.
Black Rock, the world’s largest asset management firm that has admittedly confirmed its big role in funding the climate crisis has started to reel back on its fossil fuels commitment and believes that “avoiding climate-related damages will help prevent economic deterioration and improve risk-asset returns”. Their focus on climate is because a broad consensus around its impact and measurement suggests that climate change is fast becoming a key driver of asset pricing.
Pic2: Asianinvestor.net
As the global corporate sector is slowly beginning to see the economic threat of Climate Change and take climate action, it is easy to feel deterred by their slow inaction and numerous discussions and agreements with no enforced policies. I know the number of times eco-anxiety holds us in a chokehold while we wait to see what new strategies & policies are being implemented. But why do we sit and wait? Why don’t we do our little part too? I cannot count the number of times that friends and family members talk about individual actions not making much of a difference without the government enforcing stringent climate actions. Granted. I understand the logic. What is the point of recycling bottles if all end up neatly in a landmine?
If we look back into history, most if not all of the global movements or changes we have today in our society BEGAN with the people, not the government. We can cite the civil rights movement, if Rosa Park never was adamant about remaining in her seat, segregation would still be rampant. If there were no revolts during the times of colonization and slavery, we would still have them. What about the Chipko movement in India? If those ladies never protected the trees by hugging them, there probably wouldn’t be strict deforestation laws in India. Greta Thunberg and the ongoing women’s rights movement in Iran are other heavy examples. They are sparking change regardless of however long it takes.
“Be The Change You Wish to See”
So let me ask you, Do you care about the planet just as a spectator critiquing what and how others are doing it? or are you actively doing something? Are you giving reasons as to why someone’s efforts amount to nothing or are you choosing to be part of the solution along with them? Which side of history do you want to be part of? The person who tried or just sat back and critiqued? Even if I may be wrong, isn’t it worth trying than sitting with folded arms? Yes, we can complain about the inadequacies of the government but are we caring for the planet in our own little ways too?
One of the reasons I started this blog was to let people know that you can start being green imperfectly, we just need to start. Nothing began with the government, but the people’s demand for it. Even if you don’t see yourself spearheading a green movement, how about just adopting a greener lifestyle as a cleaner and more sustainable way of living?
You may be reading this and wondering “How can I contribute to making the planet better?” Well, that is what this blog post is for. There are many ways you can begin, it is choosing what you can be comfortable with and scaling up in time.
For me, I choose a cause-or-effect-of-Climate-Change angle and see how I can reduce them in my way, Let me give an example
A. Air Pollution: We know that one of the causes as well as the effects of Climate change is the emission of Carbon dioxides and other pollutants that increase our greenhouse gas levels. To help prevent that in your little way;
1. You can grow indoor plants, as they have the properties of soaking up hazardous pollutants and replacing them with pure oxygen. Not a plant parent? no worries, watch this to get started. Remember, you don’t have to start with many.
2. You can plant trees if you have the opportunity to; whether it is by volunteering with your city’s forest department or environmental NGOs.
3. If you have more control and freedom in choosing where you live or more finances, you can look into buying more eco-friendly products and building materials for interior styling, etc.
B. Plastic Pollution: So because plastics take thousands of years to decompose, they block up our lands and pollute our oceans and other water bodies. I am sure you have seen images of turtles and whales dying because of plastic. So how can I help;
1. It is hard I understand, especially in many developing countries where single-use plastics are available everywhere, but you can have days where you avoid or reduce the use of plastics. Here’s a video on how I recycle my plastics in Lagos.
2. If you do use them, try to recycle them. Keep your bottles till they are a large amount and get a recycling company to pick them up.
3. If you have DIYs ingrained in your personality, challenge yourself and upcycle them into forms of clothing, decor or accessories, etc. You can also patronize several e-commerce stores that manufacture and sell upcycled products too.
Pic3: An upcycled egg chair and puff that used 15klgs colored roped plastic waste. (JUNK NOT)
C. Meat Consumption
Being a vegan or a vegetarian: Relying on foods devoid of meat and dairy products.
If you aren’t, (like me) who still struggles, try choosing days to stay off meat. This inspires one to explore and be more experimental in our meals by finding vegetarian recipes that are just as good. I’m fortunate to have grown up in India which exposed me to an array of vegetarian delicacies and that makes me often forget about my love for meat.
Better still, you can choose the meat you can feed on. For example, I rely more on chicken than red meat. Apart from knowing the health benefits of reducing one’s beef intake, I try to stay away from them because of their contribution to the total greenhouse gas emissions. When burping or excretion, large amounts of methane (a greenhouse gas) are released into the atmosphere. There is good news for beef lovers, according to Reuters, European companies like DSM, Mootral, and Agolin SA are companies looking to reduce the methane emissions from the ruminants. Read here for more information on these ongoing researches.
The list goes on but I hope you get the idea here. Work with what you can control. I want to stand beside others who were part of the solution, Work at your pace, you don’t need to compare with others but just keep going. However imperfect it may be. Just like everything else, you showing up matters. I’m curious to know in the comments section, some of the climate actions you’d be taking this 2023. Let’s do this! I am rooting for you! Let’s show more love to our environment this year.
Oh and happy belated Valentines!
Love,
Monica (Mean Greenie)