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Climate Emergency

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2020 was the joint hottest year on record despite a 7% drop in greenhouse gas emissions. Why? 

The average temperature across the world in 2020 was <a href="https://climate.copernicus.eu/2020-warmest-year-record-europe-globally-2020-ties-2016-warmest-year-recorded" target="_blank" rel="noopener">1.25°C higher than pre-industrial times</a>. This is dangerously close to the 1.5°C limit set by the world nations to avoid the worst impacts of climate change, and made 2020 the <a href="https://climate.copernicus.eu/2020-warmest-year-record-europe-globally-2020-ties-2016-warmest-year-recorded" target="_blank" rel="noopener">joint hottest year on record</a>.  This means the last six years have been the six hottest years on record and that the period from 2011-2020 was the <a href="https://climate.copernicus.eu/2020-warmest-year-record-europe-globally-2020-ties-2016-warmest-year-recorded" target="_blank" rel="noopener">hottest decade ever recorded</a>.
Only 2016 matched the heat recorded in 2020, however in 2016 there was a natural <a href="https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/ninonina.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">El Niño climate event</a> that boosts temperatures. Without the added factor of this natural event in 2016, <a href="https://climate.copernicus.eu/2020-warmest-year-record-europe-globally-2020-ties-2016-warmest-year-recorded" target="_blank" rel="noopener">scientists predict that 2020</a> would have been the outright hottest year. 
Meanwhile, Europe saw its warmest year on record at <a href="https://climate.copernicus.eu/2020-warmest-year-record-europe-globally-2020-ties-2016-warmest-year-recorded" target="_blank" rel="noopener">0.4°C warmer than 2019</a>, the previous hottest year on record. The Arctic and northern Siberia also saw particularly <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/jan/08/climate-crisis-experts-2020-joint-hottest-year-ever-recorded" target="_blank" rel="noopener">extreme average temperatures in 2020</a>, with a large region 3°C warmer than the long-term average, and some locations more than 6°C warmer. This led Arctic sea ice to shrink to its <a href="http://nsidc.org/arcticseaicenews/2020/09/arctic-sea-ice-decline-stalls-out-at-second-lowest-minimum/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">second-lowest extent</a> on record in september 2020. 
All this occurred in the year that we saw a <a href="https://essd.copernicus.org/articles/12/3269/2020/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">7% drop in worldwide greenhouse gas emissions</a> due to the global shutdown caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Globally the burning of fossil fuels released <a href="https://www.globalcarbonproject.org/carbonbudget/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">34.1 billion tonnes</a> of carbon dioxide in 2020, down 2.3 billion tonnes from the previous year. The most<a href="https://www.globalcarbonproject.org/carbonbudget/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> dramatic reduction</a> in emissions was seen in the transport sector, especially road traffic, with a steep dive in April when countries across the world had imposed strict limits on travel. Emissions from aviation were also reduced drastically, with a reduction of <a href="https://www.carbonbrief.org/global-carbon-project-coronavirus-causes-record-fall-in-fossil-fuel-emissions-in-2020" target="_blank" rel="noopener">75%</a> seen during the peak of COVID-19 lockdowns. At the start of December 2020, emissions from road transport and aviation were still lower than their December 2019 levels, by <a href="https://www.carbonbrief.org/global-carbon-project-coronavirus-causes-record-fall-in-fossil-fuel-emissions-in-2020" target="_blank" rel="noopener">10% and 40% respectively</a>. 
Why is it that in the year in which the coronavirus pandemic drove one of the largest, most dramatic drops in human CO2 emissions ever recorded, did we see an increase in warming? It&#8217;s all to do with how long CO2 remains in our atmosphere.

Throughout human history, the Earth&#8217;s climate has been changing. But the changes we are seeing now are happening much faster than they would do naturally. This is because of humans emitting carbon dioxide (CO2) and other greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. 
Greenhouse gases are gases that trap heat in a process called the greenhouse effect. When the sun’s energy reaches the Earth, some of it is absorbed by the Earth&#8217;s surface, and the rest is reflected back outwards. Most of this goes back into space, but some is absorbed by greenhouse gases and re-radiated back towards the Earth, causing further warming. The greenhouse effect is a natural process, without which the average temperature on the Earth would be <a href="https://public.wmo.int/en/our-mandate/focus-areas/environment/greenhouse%20gases#:~:text=The%20natural%20greenhouse%20effect%20is,approximately%2033%20degrees%20Celsius%20cooler." target="_blank" rel="noopener">-18°C</a>. 
However, human activities are accelerating this process by putting more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, meaning that more heat is re-radiated back towards the Earth and leading to increased levels of warming. CO2 is the single most important greenhouse gas directly released by human activity. It is produced in high quantities by human sources and it stays in the atmosphere for a long time. This CO2 builds up in the atmosphere and continues to cause warming year after year.

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The difference between emissions and concentrations

The carbon dioxide that we release into the atmosphere through the burning of fossil fuels, industry processes, and deforestation is referred to as emissions. These are measured by the amount of greenhouse gas that we release into the atmosphere each year. 
The carbon dioxide that we release stays in the atmosphere for a very long time. This means that when we release more CO2 it adds to the big store of CO2 that is already there. The amount of CO2 that is actually in the atmosphere is called the CO2 concentration. It&#8217;s this store of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere that traps the Earth&#8217;s heat, leading to climate change. The atmospheric CO2 concentration has increased dramatically in recent decades due to human emissions. Currently it is about <a href="https://climate.nasa.gov/vital-signs/carbon-dioxide/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">415 parts per million</a> (ppm).

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Each year as we emit more and more, the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere gets higher and higher. But even if we stopped emitting any greenhouse gases right now, the emissions we have already released over the past 200 years would still be there to cause warming. This is because CO2 has such a long lifetime. It is estimated that <a href="https://www.oxfordmartin.ox.ac.uk/downloads/briefings/Short_Lived_Promise.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">15-40% </a>of the increase in CO2 due to fossil fuels is expected to remain in the atmosphere for over 1000 years. 
One analogy, used by the <a href="https://www.carbonbrief.org/analysis-what-impact-will-the-coronavirus-pandemic-have-on-atmospheric-co2" target="_blank" rel="noopener">carbon brief</a>, is the filling up of a bath from a tap. If the tap represents CO2 emissions and the water level in the bath is the CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere, then reducing emissions slightly is the same as slightly turning the tap down. Water is still flowing into the bath and so the level is still rising, just a bit slower. In the same way reducing emissions slightly does not immediately reduce concentrations of CO2, it only slows down the rate of increase. The carbon dioxide humans have already emitted can remain in the atmosphere for a hundred years; some of it could last <a href="https://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2020/06/25/covid-19-impacts-climate-change/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">tens of thousands of years</a>.

What effect has the COVID-19 pandemic had? 

This explains why we didn&#8217;t immediately see an effect of the drop in emissions caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Although less CO2 was emitted in 2020 than in previous years, the CO2 that was emitted still added to the ongoing-build up in the atmosphere. 
One study predicted that across the whole of 2020, CO2 levels in the atmosphere would rise by <a href="https://www.carbonbrief.org/analysis-what-impact-will-the-coronavirus-pandemic-have-on-atmospheric-co2" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2.48ppm</a> (parts per million). This increase is <a href="https://www.carbonbrief.org/analysis-what-impact-will-the-coronavirus-pandemic-have-on-atmospheric-co2" target="_blank" rel="noopener">0.32ppm smaller</a> than if there had been no lockdown, but it is still an increase in the total atmospheric concentration, and since warming is related to cumulative emissions, the overall amount of avoided warming will be minimal. Until net global emissions reduce to zero, CO2 will continue to accumulate in the atmosphere and drive further change.

Hopefully this article has made it a bit clearer why the drop in emissions caused by lockdowns hasn&#8217;t perhaps had the impact on the climate that we may have hoped for. We need to see a continued reduction in emissions year after year, before this will start to impact significantly on the concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.
The UK Met Office has issued a forecast that the CO2 levels in the atmosphere will pass a new milestone in 2021 &#8211; being <a href="https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/about-us/press-office/news/weather-and-climate/2021/2021-carbon-dioxide-forecast" target="_blank" rel="noopener">50% higher than before the industrial revolution</a>. This not only means that we have released a massive amount of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, but also the rate at which we have done so has increased significantly. It took over 200 years for the levels to increase by 25%, but now at just 30 years later we are approaching a 50% increase. 
Even if we reduce emissions now, it can take a while for these to have an effect on temperatures. This can seem demoralising, but it is why it is so important to act now. Our actions will take a while to impact on temperatures and there&#8217;s a certain amount of warming already baked in. We can’t allow any more warming to happen.
It is estimated that emissions need to decrease by <a href="https://www.unep.org/interactive/emissions-gap-report/2019/#:~:text=Today%2C%20we%20need%20to%20reduce,are%20ambitious%2C%20but%20still%20possible." target="_blank" rel="noopener">7.6% each year between 2020 and 2030 </a>to be on track to achieve the 1.5°C goal. Last year we roughly achieved the 7% reduction needed. This year we need to decrease 7.6% again from last year&#8217;s emissions, and then 7.6% below this in 2022 and so on. Each year must have a reduction of 7.6% on the year before that. 
So, last year showed a good start if you just look at emissions. But think about what it took for us to get there. Over 2.5 million people have now died from coronavirus, millions were out of work, car traffic in April was almost half of what it normally is, and air traffic virtually stopped completely. We need policies and action now to reduce emissions in a more stable and sustainable way.

How might we achieve the emissions reductions needed? 

We need rapid decarbonisation of the energy sector. Sadly <a href="https://ourworldindata.org/energy-mix" target="_blank" rel="noopener">84.3% of our energy</a> still comes from fossil fuels, which release CO2 into the atmosphere. We need to rapidly transition away from these polluting energy sources and towards clean renewable energy technologies such as wind, solar and hydro energy. 
We also need a global shift towards sustainable and climate-smart agriculture. <a href="https://ourworldindata.org/food-ghg-emissions" target="_blank" rel="noopener">26% of worldwide emissions </a>come from the agricultural sector, but by employing methods such as agroforestry, crop rotations, crop diversification, precision agriculture and many more we can ensure that enough food can be made on the same land indefinitely, without depleting our natural resources and minimising emissions. We also need policies and action to reduce deforestation and land clearance, particularly from the agricultural sector. 
Investments in industrial innovations are also needed to decarbonise more difficult sectors &#8211; such as the steel industry, and to tackle some of the open problems such as the need for better energy storage for wind and solar energy and improved electric batteries.

We all have a role to play if we are to achieve the emissions reductions needed. Bill Gates in his book <a href="https://www.gatesnotes.com/Energy/My-new-climate-book-is-finally-here" target="_blank" rel="noopener">‘How to avoid a climate disaster’</a> wisely highlighted three key things that ordinary people can do. 
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<li aria-level="1">Use your political voice &#8211; Vote for parties that put climate change on the agenda. Parties can disagree on tactics to help get to zero but it needs to be a primary goal. You can also use your voice to talk to people that you know about climate change, and bring them around to the cause, even if their general political opinions are different to yours. Maximise the power of your voice by engaging in activism and joining groups such as <a href="https://www.greenpeace.org.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Greenpeace</a>, <a href="https://friendsoftheearth.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Friends of the Earth</a>, <a href="https://fridaysforfuture.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Fridays for Future</a> and <a href="https://extinctionrebellion.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Extinction Rebellion</a>.</li>
</ul>
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<li aria-level="1">As a consumer, make the right choices &#8211; The old saying ‘vote with your wallet’ really applies here. It&#8217;s important to buy less, and to buy well. Only buy what you really need and when you do buy, choose the most sustainable option wherever possible. As a consumer you have power. If you buy an electric car, or buy artificial meat, it drives the rate of innovation up and makes a statement that more of this is needed.</li>
</ul>
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<li aria-level="1">As an employee, ask your company to take action &#8211; Engage the company you work with to take more action on sustainability within the organisation and their supply chain. One specific thing you can do is investigate your pension fund, and make sure that your money is supporting green funds. Learn about our <a href="https://ecologi.com/business">carbon offset programs for businesses.</a></li>
</ul>

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Achieving the emissions reductions needed to reach net zero by 2050 and to limit warming to 1.5°C isn&#8217;t going to be easy. It will need everyone to engage with the climate crisis and get involved in solving it. But we believe that we can do it. <a href="https://ecologi.com/plan">Sign up</a> to Ecologi today to help fund the world&#8217;s best climate solutions. Together we have the power to change the world.

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UK Overshoot Day 2022

This year’s 2022 UK Overshoot Day falls on 19th May. Here’s a look at what<a href="https://www.overshootday.org/newsroom/country-overshoot-days/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> Earth Overshoot Day</a> is, what it means for our environment and how we can help.

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Earth Overshoot Day marks the date in the calendar when the human demand for Earth’s natural resources exceeds what the planet can generate within a year. Put simply, once we’ve passed Earth Overshoot Day, it’s a clear indication that we are using the Earth’s resources at an unsustainable rate.  
A country’s overshoot day is determined by working out whether its Ecological Footprint per person is less than the global biocapacity per person, which is 1.6 global hectares. If a country exceeds its allowance, it’s using resources the Earth can’t replace quickly enough.

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Who’s responsible for Earth Overshoot Day?

Every nation on the planet is responsible for Earth Overshoot Day. Each individual country’s Overshoot Day is based on their demand and use, with some nations being bigger culprits than others. 
No two countries consume natural resources in the same way, so it stands to reason that Earth Overshoot Day will be different for many countries &#8211; some countries don’t have a determined Overshoot Day if their Ecological Footprint per person is less than the global biocapacity per person. Let’s be clear though – while an Overshoot Day later in the year may seem like a good indication, a country’s goal should be to have no determined Overshoot Day at all. Having a later Overshoot Day just means that these nations don’t take as long to exceed their allowance. 
It’s key to remember that while each country may have a determined Overshoot Day, global warming knows no borders. Regardless of the country, it’s vital to raise awareness about the unsustainable use of resources so that people from every nation are aware of what they’re consuming.

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What does Earth Overshoot Day mean for our environment?

There are many contributing factors from different industries and activities that influence Earth Overshoot Day, but some of the biggest culprits are:
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<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">The amount of energy we consume, specifically non-renewables, like coal and oil. <a href="https://www.overshootday.org/solutions/energy/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">We need to be investing and using renewable energy</a>, like solar and wind power and reducing our reliance on our cars.</li>
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<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Resources required to feed the human population, and the amount of food that goes to waste. Not only does it take a lot of energy to grow the crops that feed our feed, but the cost of transporting goods from one place to another also consumes dirty energy that’s negatively impacting the environment. </li>
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Being responsible for Earth Overshoot Day doesn’t solely lie with politicians. Every day people can do their bit to reduce the demand for Earth’s natural resources. It starts with small changes to your lifestyle and spreading the word.
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<h3>Change your eating habits</h3>
Vegan and vegetarian diets are less resource intensive. Consuming less meat and animal products, particularly beef and dairy products, and switching to plant-based alternatives can go a long way to helping. 
For example, China’s government has committed to reducing half of its meat consumption by 2030, which would shrink humanity’s Ecological Footprint by 377 million global hectares, and move the date of Earth Overshoot Day back 5 days. This figure also includes methane emissions from cow flatulence. 
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<h3>Waste not, want not</h3>
Some 1.3 billion tonnes of food is wasted every year, which equates to about a third of all food produced to feed humans. What’s more, roughly 40% of the food goes to waste in the United States. According to the UN, cutting the world’s food waste by half would move Overshoot Day by nearly two weeks.
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<h3>Rethink your energy consumption</h3>
57% of humanity’s Ecological Footprint comes from carbon. By reducing carbon from humanity’s Ecological Footprint in half changes our consumption of 1.6 of Earth’s resources, right down to 1.1 and moves the date of Overshoot Day by nearly three months.

The key to success is using the Earth’s resources effectively and sustainably, and the good news is that simple changes to our lifestyles can make a huge difference in eradicating the concept of  Earth Overshoot Day.
We all have a part to play in collectively ensuring a sustainable  future.
<a href="https://ecologi.com/plan">Sign up today to take climate action with Ecologi</a>.

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Beyond eco-anxiety: How climate change affects your mental health

The climate crisis is arguably the greatest threat to life on our planet. It is a threat that we have met with astonishingly inadequate action. Climate change is a perfect storm &#8211; because it is often invisible and seen as a future problem, our psychological reaction often doesn’t match the urgency of the crisis. 
 
Social scientists have termed climate change a “<a href="https://www.stonybrook.edu/commcms/wicked-problem/about/What-is-a-wicked-problem" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wicked issue</a>” for its tendency to result in people avoiding concrete action because it appears distant to so many of us, predominantly in nations in the Global North which have been least impacted from the most direct impacts of climate change so far. There is no denying that the climate crisis is a highly complex issue, and this is reflected in the diverse ways in which we must respond to it.
Our physical and psychological reactions to climate change are rooted in our very biological make-up: whenever we perceive a threat we exhibit a fight, flight or freeze response. These reactions developed as a survival mechanism when we still had to face predators, but have persisted because evolution moves at a much slower pace than human civilisations. Someone who is predisposed to a flight response may be a climate denier or refuse to engage with the topic, while a fight response can manifest as activism to the point of burnout. The freeze response to the climate crisis is often termed eco-paralysis, which can lead to a variety of outcomes &#8211; avoidance of the issue, but also depression and despair.
In experiencing climate-related mental health issues, the first step is to recognise that they are a healthy response to the crisis we find ourselves in. The highly dysfunctional systems of racial capitalism, oppression and <a href="https://bricksmagazine.co.uk/2021/08/10/racism-extractivism-and-capitalism/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">extractivism</a> that permeate most aspects of our lives have rendered many of us numb to the reality of human and ecological devastation. We must actively seek to regain our agency as empathetic, ecological beings. The first step towards doing this is acknowledging our very much justified emotions concerning climate change.

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Eco-anxiety can be broadly described as a form of existential dread, which results in often continuous feelings of negativity, stress, or even panic. It can be triggered in a variety of ways and relate to both experienced or observed impacts of climate change, as well as anticipated events. In extreme cases, anxiety can lead to physical illness through over-exposure to stress chemicals. 
Eco-anxiety must be taken seriously. At a climate protest a few years ago, I met someone who had tragically lost their child to suicide after grappling with debilitating eco-anxiety for months. The current state of the world can be all-consuming, and it is important to recognise when professional or even medical support is needed &#8211; with organisations such as <a href="https://www.climatepsychologyalliance.org/support/indsupport" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Climate Psychology Alliance</a> leading the way in addressing climate-related mental health issues.
Eco-anxiety is a global phenomenon affecting many people, including <a href="https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3918955" target="_blank" rel="noopener">young people</a>. Accounts of eco-anxiety that we hear about in the UK have predominantly stemmed from the Global North, with a focus on observed rather than experienced events, and anticipated rather than experienced environmental degradation and catastrophe. It is, however, anything but a phenomenon solely of the Global North; anxiety rooted in environmental damage has been experienced in Indigenous and Global South populations for many years, with academics such as Ashlee Cunsolo having established a <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/340880861_Indigenous_mental_health_in_a_changing_climate_A_systematic_scoping_review_of_the_global_literature" target="_blank" rel="noopener">global perspective</a> on the topic. For Indigenous populations, both eco-anxiety and climate grief are the result of painfully real, physical losses felt by those at the frontline of climate impacts, which lead to the loss of traditional knowledge and place-based identity. It is essential, therefore, that we make our advocacy around eco-anxiety <a href="https://www.badactivistcollective.com/the-bad-book/eco-anxiety" target="_blank" rel="noopener">intersectional</a>.

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Losing home, one day at a time: Solastalgia

Another phenomenon growing in significance globally is solastalgia &#8211; the distress of seeing our home environment degraded or destroyed, or anticipating further damage. It is a homesickness that is felt without leaving one’s doorstep, an amalgamation of complicated place-based grief and nostalgia. The growing school of Ecopsychology, which recognises the interconnectedness of people and their surrounding ecosystems, is a much-needed criticism of Western psychology’s inability to explain mental health phenomena outside the context of our urban-industrial society. Environmental change affects us, on a very visceral level. The causal relationships between access to nature and mental and physical health are well-established and should not be ignored.
My experience with solastalgia is a very personal one. I grew up in a bleak tower block in a largely undeveloped area, surrounded by wetlands. Those natural habitats were a lifeline for me &#8211; for many hours each day, I would roam the fields, collecting nature memorabilia, identifying species, and playing with my friends. We were economically poor, but as long as we were outside, we were happy. Over the years, more and more of the wetland was drained and built up to create housing for the emerging middle class &#8211; most of them employed in the local chemical industry. My friends and I found ourselves more and more confined to indoor spaces, watching our beloved playing fields being chipped away at, bit by bit. My sister, who is ten years younger, never experienced those wetlands. There are times when I wonder how many generations we have left before natural spaces completely disappear from our childhoods.

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Between loss and acceptance: Climate grief

A lot of my academic work focuses on the relationship between people and nature, and their inextricable interdependence. Climate grief is a stark example of this connection. Similar to the loss of a loved one, people can grieve for the loss of natural habitats, whether they are present in their own lives or not. In my own research on the topic, I interviewed climate activists from around the world experiencing climate grief (also called ecological or environmental grief). The results were surprising. People could be immensely affected by witnessing destruction with their own eyes, but also by watching a news piece on bushfires in Australia for example, or the destruction of the Amazon rainforest &#8211; a phenomenon called vicarious trauma. After an initial period of shock and outrage following the realisation of the extent of the climate crisis, many would fall into a state of depression, with little to no capacity for action. This is followed by acceptance, from which constructive action could follow. 
Rather than denying our feelings, climate grief can be tackled by embracing difficult emotions. As Leslie Davenport writes in Emotional Resiliency in the Era of Climate Change, “as we begin to express our thoughts, feelings and behaviour in alignment with our deepest values, we build tremendous strength and resiliency.” Observing our ‘emotional visitors’ without judgement is an essential part of that, she stresses and is the first step towards conscious adaptation to our lived realities. Rather than letting our grief become despair, we can use it as a tool to push for change.

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Cultivating resilience in the age of climate chaos

While the above serves as a brief introduction to different (environ)mental health phenomena, I want to stress that it is impossible to put these into strict categories. Many experiences of eco-anxiety, solastalgia, climate grief and eco-paralysis overlap, and the lines between them are often blurred. Insisting on strict definitions and categorisations would not do justice to the diversity of human experience with regard to the climate crisis, and would make a cross-cultural, intersectional approach to the topic impossible. The boon and bane of eco-anxiety and Co are that they do not fit into our institutionalised models of mental health &#8211; which on the one hand complicates access to professional services, but on the other hand, transcends the binary lens through which Western academia views mental health.

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So, how do we cultivate resilience in the face of perpetual crisis? 

On an individual level, the first step is to actively cherish what we still have. Time in nature is a powerful antidote to negative emotions. Research has found that spending just <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-019-44097-3" target="_blank" rel="noopener">120 minutes a week</a> in nature can seriously improve our mental health. 
However, to truly fight the intersecting crises of climate and mental health, we need other people. My own research showed that people drew the most strength from being in the community and realising that they’re not alone with their feelings. Community is where the spark of resistance is born, where movements are built. As someone who has experienced depression and anxiety from the state of the world, activism has often been a lifeline for me &#8211; given that it is <a href="https://shesapiens.com/mental-health-as-an-activist/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">balanced</a> with periods of rest, regeneration and active <a href="https://repeller.com/what-is-pleasure-activism/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">joy</a>. 
The intimate relationship between climate and mental health highlights the interdependence of all things, where one action influences all others. To quote <a href="https://sarahjaquetteray.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sarah Jaquette Ray</a> in A field guide to climate anxiety, “in our Western culture, which prioritises reason over feeling, emotional intelligence is a radical concept.” It is time to reclaim that awareness and take action rooted in radical acceptance of our hurt, anger, fear and fierce love for the planet. And we must reclaim it collectively. Because politics won’t save us &#8211; only our communities can.

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Jessica Kleczka is a climate activist, social scientist and writer. With a background in Psychology and Environmental Science, she currently works in climate policy and as a freelance journalist, with a focus on amplifying grassroots movements around the world. She is passionate about mental health awareness and advocates for a just transition away from fossil fuels. Learn more about Jessica’s work <a href="https://www.jessicakleczka.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">on her website</a>.

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A note from Ecologi 
 
In facing the climate crisis, we need all of us to be resilient. Resilience doesn’t mean never feeling sad or angry about climate change – it means taking steps to securing long term wellbeing and agency in the face of the challenges we face.
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If you are feeling burned out, overwhelmed, or in despair, we’ve collected some resources from organisations doing amazing work on eco-anxiety, which we hope might help.
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">The <a href="https://www.allwecansave.earth/project" target="_blank" rel="noopener">All We Can Save Project</a> is an amazing resource for community building and sharing deeper dialogue about the climate crisis. There’s a book, All We Can Save, to read – or you could <a href="https://www.allwecansave.earth/circles" target="_blank" rel="noopener">start an All We Can Save Circle</a> which you could start with your friends or in your workplace. The Project also lists resources for <a href="https://www.allwecansave.earth/emotions" target="_blank" rel="noopener">working with climate emotions</a>.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Force of Nature runs <a href="https://www.forceofnature.xyz/podcast" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a thought-provoking podcast</a> centred around eco-anxiety and how to turn eco-anxiety into agency, as well as <a href="https://www.forceofnature.xyz/the-bloom" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a media platform called The Bloom</a> for young voices to express their feelings, thoughts and actions in the face of the climate crisis.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><a href="https://www.theresilienceproject.org.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Resilience Project</a> trains young people to run peer-to-peer support circles based on the latest insights from psychology and neuroscience to <a href="https://www.theresilienceproject.org.uk/our-work" target="_blank" rel="noopener">build a resilient generation of youth</a>.</li>
</ul>
<a href="https://www.climatepsychologyalliance.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Climate Psychology Alliance</a> holds regular online ‘<a href="https://www.climatepsychologyalliance.org/events/500-climate-cafe-jan" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Climate Cafes’</a> which you can attend to discuss fears &amp; uncertainties about our climate &amp; ecological crisis, all while in a safe and empathetic space with others who feel the same.

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The Impact of the Internet: risks of the digital era

The last Blockbuster store remains in Oregon as of 2022, symbolising how we have truly shifted into a new era of digital transformation. And as many opt for alternatives in this hyper-digital world, we must also acknowledge the somewhat surprising effect that the internet has on the environment and whether the risks outweigh the positives.

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How much is the internet contributing to carbon emissions?

With streaming services, innovative technology and even a global pandemic, the demand for digital technology continues to be on the rise. According to the <a href="https://www.itu.int/en/ITU-D/Statistics/Pages/stat/default.aspx" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ITU</a> (International Telecommunication Union), <a href="https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20200305-why-your-internet-habits-are-not-as-clean-as-you-think" target="_blank" rel="noopener">4.1 billion people or 56.6%</a> of the world now uses the internet. The entire internet infrastructure (including the systems that enable it to exist and operate and the gadgets we use to connect to it) is responsible for approximately <a href="https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20200305-why-your-internet-habits-are-not-as-clean-as-you-think" target="_blank" rel="noopener">3.7%</a> of global greenhouse gas emissions. Data centres in the US alone are responsible for <a href="https://www.energy.gov/eere/buildings/data-centers-and-servers" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2% of the country’s electricity use</a>.
Around a decade ago, Alex Wissner-Gross, an environmental fellow at Harvard University claimed that<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/ethicallivingblog/2009/jan/12/carbon-emissions-google" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> two Google searches produces as much carbon dioxide as boiling the kettle for a cup of tea</a>. Wissner-Gross highlighted that by Google fulfilling its primary aim to provide <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/ethicallivingblog/2009/jan/12/carbon-emissions-google" target="_blank" rel="noopener">fast internet searches</a>, it ultimately placed a burden on the amount of energy that is required. The Guardian interpreted this claim by Wissner-Gross to say that it would mean <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/ethicallivingblog/2009/jan/12/carbon-emissions-google" target="_blank" rel="noopener">3,500 tonnes of CO2 is released daily (or 1.28 million tonnes per year)</a> just by using the infamous search engine. To allow more of a visual representation, they compared this to the carbon emissions produced by Laos, a country home to over <a href="https://worldpopulationreview.com/countries/laos-population#:~:text=The%20current%20population%20of%20Laos,1%2C%202022%20population%20at%207%2C481%2C023." target="_blank" rel="noopener">7 million citizens</a>. Therefore, claiming that the digital era is ‘less energy-hungry’ may be a pretence as it could actually consume as much as it did <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2010/aug/12/carbon-footprint-internet" target="_blank" rel="noopener">around 20 years ago</a>. However, in the past 10 years or so, some companies operating in this space have realised the need to meet their huge energy demands by using <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/jan/28/google-tech-giants-spark-record-rise-in-sales-of-renewable-energy">energy from renewable source</a>s rather than fossil fuels, reducing the greenhouse gas emissions they are responsible for. Carbon offsetting has also been funded by some of these corporations in order to reduce the impact on the planet of the emissions they are responsible for. What hasn&#8217;t changed though, and is in fact still increasing, is the huge amount of energy consumed by their activities, and consequently by our usage of the internet.

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Web hosting can be described as a <a href="https://medium.com/wedonthavetime/guest-blog-post-the-alarming-environmental-impact-of-the-internet-and-how-you-can-help-6ff892b8730d" target="_blank" rel="noopener">‘rented home that a website lives in’</a>, and being a carbon-neutral web host means making sustainable choices to safeguard the environment.   Thus, for activity on the website to be seen as sustainable, the ‘house’ the search is conducted in, the files are accessed from, and the data is stored in, must also follow sustainable practices. 
Data centres can be interpreted as one of the core issues of how the internet is contributing to the current climate crisis, as they account for <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2010/aug/12/carbon-footprint-internet" target="_blank" rel="noopener">around half a percent of global CO2 emissions</a>. According to The Shift Project, data centres contribute up to <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/c719f655-149c-4ce0-a7a5-18527c7776cf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">15% of the IT sector’s digital footprint</a>. Furthermore, statistics show that Google has emitted <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/c719f655-149c-4ce0-a7a5-18527c7776cf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">1.5 million tonnes</a> of greenhouse gases in 2020, Microsoft emitted around <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/c719f655-149c-4ce0-a7a5-18527c7776cf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">16 million tonnes</a>, and Amazon emitted a whopping <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/c719f655-149c-4ce0-a7a5-18527c7776cf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">44 million tonnes</a>. With more than <a href="https://www.bigcommerce.com/blog/amazon-statistics/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">197 million</a> people searching products on Amazon everyday (which is about 98.5 million cups of tea, I might add), carbon-neutral web hosting may be a solution to this rising issue.
Krystal hosting has responsibly planted over 1 million trees with Ecologi and were recently presented with a sustainable award to celebrate this special milestone. Krystal uses <a href="https://krystal.uk/green" target="_blank" rel="noopener">100% renewable electricity</a> from sources like the sun, wind and sea, as opposed to non-renewable sources like coal, oil, and natural gas. In 2017, Krystal became one of the first hosts to be run wholly on renewable energy and each and every one of their data centres has also achieved a PUE (Power Usage Effectiveness) <a href="https://krystal.uk/green" target="_blank" rel="noopener">rating of at least 1.2</a>, which is regarded as ‘very efficient’. Krystal will also be offsetting lifetime carbon emissions of their employees, which is approximately around 20,420 tonnes of CO2e.  
Simon Blackler, Krystal CEO and Founder, said that “Last year we co-founded <a href="https://www.milliontreepledge.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">MillionTreePledge.org</a> and after planting 1.2 million trees via Ecologi in 9 months, we completed the first part of the pledge. We’ve now set our sights on protecting or planting 1 billion trees by 2030.” 
Simon went further to explain the impact of <a href="https://ecologi.com/collective-action" target="_blank" rel="noopener">collective action</a> and how “combined efforts of many businesses of all sizes, can and will, make the impact our planet so desperately needs.” 
 
Ecologi readers wishing to use Krystal Hosting will be offered a 50% discount with code EcologiEarthDay22 during checkout, until the end of May. (T&amp;C’s apply).

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With <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2009/may/03/internet-carbon-footprint" target="_blank" rel="noopener">1.5 billion people </a>using the net, it is no surprise that experts have estimated an annual <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2009/may/03/internet-carbon-footprint" target="_blank" rel="noopener">growth of 10%</a> in total energy footprints. 
A researcher at <a href="https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20200305-why-your-internet-habits-are-not-as-clean-as-you-think" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Lancaster university</a> compared the use of the internet to the airline industry, stating that they both emitted ‘similar levels’ of carbon emissions. To put that in context, the aviation industry is responsible for <a href="https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20200218-climate-change-how-to-cut-your-carbon-emissions-when-flying" target="_blank" rel="noopener">5% of global warming</a>, accumulating around <a href="https://www.carbonbrief.org/guest-post-calculating-the-true-climate-impact-of-aviation-emissions" target="_blank" rel="noopener">32.6 billion tonnes of CO2e since 1940</a>. To make matters worse, it is predicted that these emissions will <a href="https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20200305-why-your-internet-habits-are-not-as-clean-as-you-think" target="_blank" rel="noopener">double by 2025</a>. Some predictions are indicative of the fact that the internet will actually contribute to <a href="https://royalsociety.org/blog/2020/05/internet-emissions-whats-the-issue/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">23% of global carbon emissions by 2030</a>. 
<a href="https://www.clientearth.org/latest/latest-updates/stories/fossil-fuels-and-climate-change-the-facts/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">80% of energy</a> used worldwide is dependent on non-renewable energy sources, and so are the most searched websites. A study conducted at Yale identified how internet usage increased by up to <a href="https://news.yale.edu/2021/01/27/surge-digital-activity-has-hidden-environmental-costs" target="_blank" rel="noopener">40% since lockdown occurred</a> in 2020, and that the environmental implications from this may have been overlooked. The study mentions how a <a href="https://news.yale.edu/2021/01/27/surge-digital-activity-has-hidden-environmental-costs" target="_blank" rel="noopener">forest twice the size of Portugal</a> would be required just to offset the emissions that occurred from 2020 to 2021, as a result of staying at home. In some way, the pandemic acted as a control variable, allowing experts to measure the impact that excess use of the internet has on the climate. 
<a href="https://www.websitecarbon.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Website Carbon</a> can help you identify and measure how much carbon a website emits each time its <a href="https://medium.com/wedonthavetime/guest-blog-post-the-alarming-environmental-impact-of-the-internet-and-how-you-can-help-6ff892b8730d" target="_blank" rel="noopener">homepage is visited.</a> 
Changes made now are crucial to moving away from high levels of risk that the internet poses for the environment and prospective climate initiatives. Simple actions can help, such as carbon-neutral web hosting, avoiding the urge to send unnecessary emails or limiting the number of files we save but don&#8217;t necessarily need. Of course, these feel rather insignificant, but collectively they lead to large-scale impact. It’s mind-boggling to think that if everyone in the <a href="https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20200305-why-your-internet-habits-are-not-as-clean-as-you-think" target="_blank" rel="noopener">UK sent one less ‘thank you’ email, 16,433 tonnes of carbon</a> could be saved in just one year. On top of that, did you know that the quality of streaming videos also affects the level of carbon emissions emitted? This means that if <a href="https://news.yale.edu/2021/01/27/surge-digital-activity-has-hidden-environmental-costs" target="_blank" rel="noopener">70 million streaming subscribers </a>reduced the quality of their video, <a href="https://news.yale.edu/2021/01/27/surge-digital-activity-has-hidden-environmental-costs" target="_blank" rel="noopener">3.5 million tonnes of emissions</a> could be avoided from entering our atmosphere.

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How can the internet help raise awareness?

It&#8217;s not all sombre clouds and weeping willows when it comes to the internet! In fact, in many ways the internet has helped introduce the concept of sustainability to the wider population. Be it by blogs, websites, digital news outlets or social media platforms, the world today provides endless means to accessing information relating to climate change. In other words, the internet has <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/social-media-and-saving-t_b_9100362" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reshaped our communication</a> and the way that we connect environmental challenges with feasible solutions. 
The director of Yale’s climate change communications program, said that the percentage of Americans who now viewed global warming as important was a <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/article/climate-change-awareness-polls-show-rising-concern-for-global-warming" target="_blank" rel="noopener">record-high 72% since 2018</a>. Meanwhile, in 2020, it was reported that around <a href="https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/wellbeing/articles/threequartersofadultsingreatbritainworryaboutclimatechange/2021-11-05" target="_blank" rel="noopener">three-quarters (76%) of adults living in the UK</a> were worried about climate change. 
The concept of ‘<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamesellsmoor/2019/08/25/environmental-education-will-shape-a-new-generation-of-decision-makers/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">conservation starts with education</a>’ relays the importance of acknowledging the role that the internet plays in building environmental awareness. In fact, a study conducted by Southern Cross University revealed that <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamesellsmoor/2019/07/23/77-of-people-want-to-learn-how-to-live-more-sustainably/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">77%</a> of individuals were eager to learn about living a sustainable lifestyle. Whilst, an incredible <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamesellsmoor/2019/07/23/77-of-people-want-to-learn-how-to-live-more-sustainably/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">93%</a> voiced concerns about the future of the planet.

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We can visibly measure the impact that digital communication has on the environment from turnouts for World Cleanup days, protests, and demonstrations continuing to increase exponentially. This influx of support has been thought to be generated predominantly by Gen Z, who appear to have a huge impact on leading brands due to their <a href="https://medium.com/@percevalroger_16306/how-social-media-helps-increasing-environmental-awareness-22daa21cbf8d" target="_blank" rel="noopener">high purchasing power</a>. 
Not just that, the surge of young climate activists who appear on social media has captivated the attention of millions around the world. According to the UNFCCC, ‘<a href="https://www.un.org/youthenvoy/environment-climate-change/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Young people are key actors in raising awareness</a>’. These individuals make appearances at major climate events, such as <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/11/09/meet-the-youth-activists-fighting-for-climate-action-at-cop26.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">COP26</a> and are involved in discussions with world leaders to make a real change to their future. By gaining momentum on their following, these young activists have been able to pressure governments and businesses into meeting their environmental targets and agreements. 
Recently, two sisters were able to convince Kellogs, a multinational company dominating <a href="https://www.campaignlive.co.uk/article/analysis-change-kelloggs-top-table-kellogg-quick-answer-departure-its-marketing-chief-new-appointment-tania-mason-asks-changes-top-will-impact-cereals/149661#:~:text=Kellogg%20is%20unrivalled%20in%20terms,of%20the%20top%2015%20brands." target="_blank" rel="noopener">over 30%</a> of the market share for breakfast cereals, to halt their use of <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-beds-bucks-herts-51551431" target="_blank" rel="noopener">unsustainable palm oil</a>. This occurred as a result of a petition they started online, which was inspired by a documentary the girls had previously watched. Therefore, the internet has not only played a massive role in educating younger generations about the dangers of unsustainable practices, but has also provided them with a platform to voice their concerns.

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There is no doubt that the internet has helped connect us to the bigger picture and offered opportunities to make a real change. However, there’s also no denying the negative impact that the internet continues to have on the climate. Technology is only expanding, individuals are looking for newer and better digital designs and businesses are seeking ways in which they can increase their efficiency. All this places a huge amount of pressure on our planet and moving forward, this must be accounted for. 
We cannot stop anyone from using the internet, that is a given, but we can all be more responsible in how we send emails, save files, or watch videos. In the same way we replaced plastic straws and bags with reusable materials, let’s do our best to make our use of the internet a sustainable one.
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