Resident guide to action on the climate crisis
Climate change is a global issue and to solve it will need everybody working together. At Lewisham Council, we are working hard to reach our target of net zero emissions by 2030. However, much of the borough's emissions are not within the direct control of the council, and this is where you come in.
What can you do?
Join the Lewisham Climate Conversation!
Talking about climate change and what actions we can take in our daily lives is a key part of addressing the climate emergency - but sometimes it can be difficult to know where to start.
That’s why we’ve launched the Lewisham Climate Conversation campaign - which highlights some simple steps you can take to get the conversation started and how you can make changes in your everyday life that will have a big impact on the future of our planet.
You can get involved by:
- Sharing a climate pledge on our virtual board to help inspire others to take action.
- You can also share your climate pledge on Twitter using the hashtags #climatecuppa and #climatechat and tagging @LewishamCouncil
- Downloading our Climate Conversation guide and having chats with your friends, schoolmates, colleagues, neighbours and family about what actions you can all take to help create a greener future
What can you pledge to do?
There are lots of ways you can help tackle climate change and reduce your carbon footprint, including:
- Try active travel such as walking and cycling. Our #TryBeforeYouBike scheme allows you to try out a bike for a monthly fee - you can choose to buy the bike later at a discount or by paying monthly until you own it. Check out the support from Sustrans too. Consider also taking the train instead of flying with a wealth of advice from the man in seat 61.
- Try eating a planet friendly diet – which incidentally is also very healthy! The Grantham Institute also provides useful advice on the subject.
- Look into energy efficiency to reduce your energy use. SELCE also offer advice on reducing energy use and renewable energy.
- Reduce your waste – check out our recycling pages and our zero waste guide. Climate Action Lewisham also provide lots of essential guidance on recycling as well as other aspects of sustainable lifestyles
- Buy loose fruit and vegetables from local shops and markets - and only choose the amount you need.
- Help plant more trees in the borough.
Get involved in our #TalkingMyLanguage campaign
Having open and meaningful conversations about climate change with our friends, families and neighbours plays a big part in raising awareness of the issues that we - and our planet - are facing.
The best way to make a conversation meaningful is by making connections. With over 170 languages spoken in our borough, there’s a whole world of experiences of being greener out there: thrifty little life hacks, environmental ideas and phrases that sum up the pleasure to be found in nature. We’d really love to hear them.
Our #TalkingMyLanguage campaign aims to build a ‘sustainable dictionary’ jam-packed with words and phrases about sustainable living from across the globe and here in Lewisham. Can you think of a term, word or phrase from your home country or region that relates to climate issues like food waste, nature and green spaces?
- You can share words, phrases or sayings that you use in your climate conversations on our virtual board - or just have a look to see what’s there and maybe get inspired.
- You can also share these on Twitter using the hashtags #TalkingMyLanguage, #climatechat and #climatecuppa and tagging @LewishamCouncil.
Share our resources
You can share our free, downloadable resources for use in your workplace, community or on your social media channels - helping to raise awareness of how to become more environmentally-friendly.
Empower yourself
A good place to start is the Grantham Institute’s ‘9 things you can do about climate change’.
Otherwise, it’s easier to take action from a place of understanding - find out more about the climate crisis by checking out this UN summary or you might be interested in this reading list.
If you feel you have a good understanding of the climate emergency already, why not test your knowledge with this climate literacy quiz?
Measure your CO2 consumption
You can do this for yourself as an individual using the WWF website or for your business or organisation using the Carbon Disclosure Project website.
The web platform Giki Zero is also a fun way to measure your climate impact as well as making suggestions for how you can reduce it, and even allows you to compete in teams. Why not introduce this to your workplace or family?
Measuring your carbon footprint is a really insightful way to learn about the impact of your lifestyle and can act as a useful springboard to make changes.