Congratulations to the change makers, innovators and communities, bravely forging ahead with their visions for a better world - driving a circular economy; making a difference to communities and benefiting the environment!
Biden winning the US election seems to have given the climate action movement a much needed boost of optimism. Governments that were slow to commit to net-zero goals are now coming on board and in the last month we have seen Japan, South Korea and China joining the list. Nearly half the world's CO2 emissions and two-thirds of the world's coal are now covered by net-zero targets. However, it's people that are really driving climate action along with their innovative ideas and their courage to implement them.
Goals are being kicked in all sectors: technology companies are inventing new ways to reuse plastic like the Norwegian start-up making homes out of plastic trash; a building company is using carbon capture to create building materials; and a denim manufacturer in Bangladesh is improving sustainability practices of producing denim while providing employment opportunities to transgender people and human-trafficking survivors.
Here are some of my favourites, that are not only kicking climate goals but transforming the lives of communities:
- A generous NZ couple rejected offers from developers and gave back 900ha of prime land on the stunning Lake Wakatipu to the National Trust for conservation and preservation. The land will be handed over to the Trust in 2022 for the benefit and enjoyment of all New Zealanders. What legends they are!
- An Indian recycling company is transforming the lives of Indian trash collectors, making their lives safer and holding plastic companies accountable. Recycling company, Gemini, is providing sanitary equipment for waste collectors who earn their living scavenging on dumps making a dangerous job safer. They are also training the waste collectors to boost their income by collecting more valuable items and making sure they are registered for tax and social security, avoiding forced and child labor. Gemini is making plastic companies more accountable by establishing a credit system where these companies pay for the recycling of the trash they create.
- Ingenuity is being displayed in schools in the United States converting the surplus earnings from solar power into a much needed and deserved pay rise for teachers. Win, win!
- A Bangladesh clothing company, Denim Expert, is making denim more sustainable. They also employ transgender people, people with disability and survivors of human trafficking, giving them a job and independence. The company's sustainable practices include reducing the amount of water used by 55 percent, reducing energy by 24 percent, as well as eliminating hazardous chemicals in the manufacturing process. They have cut emissions of CO2 by 15 percent.
- A Norwegian start-up is making afforable homes out of plastic trash.
- An Australian company is taking industrial CO2 emissions and mixing them with rock (in a process called mineral carbonation) to create building materials that have negative emissions! Mineral Carbonation International(MCI) is locking away more CO2 than it takes to make the building materials and they hope to lock away 1 billion tonnes of CO2 per annum by 2040.
- Australian architect-designed "Urban Forest" development has been created with the planet and the community in mind and is projected to be the world's greenest residential building. Construction is due to begin next year and this visual stunner will bring greenery, biodiversity, oxygen, happiness and mental health benefits to high-density living. And not only those living in the tower will benefit, the project includes parkland and an education centre where visitors can learn about the plants, biodiversity and the building's design. With over 1000 trees and 20,000 native plants, "Urban Forest" will achieve a site-to-green ratio of 292% (equal to taking 150 cars off the road annually) reducing the ecological footprint of the city.
Share your favourite climate goals of 2020 here in the comments!
By Allison Licence
Allison Licence is a Sydney-based freelance writer and 1 Million Women volunteer who is passionate about the environment and finding ways to live more sustainably.
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Photo by Kate Antamanova on Unsplash