No one can do everything.
But everyone can do something.
THE FUTURE IS NOW.
Simple ways to make a dramatic difference
1. Get outside and enjoy the nature around you
The beauty around us still abounds. Look for it. Notice it. Teach your kids to connect with it. Walk. Ride your bike. Turn your community into a walkable “livable” community. We are fortunate to have natural resources to enjoy and protect. So let’s keep it that way.
2. Line Dry Clothes
In the U.S. that means you'll likely reduce your home energy consumption by about 7%. Easy peasy.
3. Limit Hot Water Use
Heating water takes a lot of energy, unless your water is heated by renewables. According to the Union of Concerned Scientists, It requires more water, on average, to generate the electricity for our homes, than the total amount of water we use in our homes for everyday tasks—washing dishes and clothes, showering, flushing toilets, and water lawns and gardens.
4. Practice the R's in Order
Ask yourself how much is enough? What can you borrow, rent, buy second hand? Reject single-serve packaging. Avoid plastic by using tablet toothpaste, bar soap/shampoo, powder laundry detergent in reusable containers. Demand retailers to do better with packaging.
5. Don’t waste food
A lot of energy was made to grow, process, ship, store, and cook your food. Don’t let all that energy and water go to waste! Plus, did you know that a family of four typically wastes $1,500 on food that is thrown away?
6. Compost
All organic material such as vegetable peels and yard waste contain valuable nutrients that should not be squandered.
7. Eat a plant-based diet/lower on the food chain
Today, 60% of the world’s mammals are livestock (largely to feed humans), whereas 36% are humans. This leaves only 4% of the world’s mammals to be wild mammals. (The Guardian, May 2018) Certainly, these numbers reflect our land use and that much of the Earth has been cleared for urban people spaces or grazing areas for livestock to feed people. In conclusion, wild spaces are diminishing rapidly.
8. Support Education for girls & women
Women—especially in developing countries—with educational opportunities tend to be more prosperous and have fewer children. Can you support educating women locally or internationally?
9. Grow (some of) your own food or buy from local farmers’ markets...
where the food hasn’t traveled more than 75 miles or so. If you’re not a gardener, plant apple trees, raspberry, and blueberry bushes instead of traditional landscape plants. If you don’t have a yard, support those markets and/or grow some greens in your windowsill.
10. Support Electrification + Equitable transportation
Bike lanes, mass transit, ride-shares, car-sharing, electric vehicles, increased numbers of charging stations. There is a lot of work to be done in this area. Support politicians and policies that advance clean —and equitable—transportation. This also protects the climate from the adverse effect of burning fuel.
11. Support Energy Conservation + Renewables
Smart building (i.e. passive houses) can eliminate about half of our home energy use. The other half can be supplied by renewables. Besides rooftop solar, there are many ways to support community solar and wind projects. Start by seeing what your energy company provides.
12. Plant native flowers
The flowers will support the bees that will pollinate your fruits and vegetable gardens. They also protect the climate. Visit https://bwsr.state.mn.us/lawns-legumes to find out about grants and BlueThumb.org for how-to information.
View our
Solutions Slides from our FUN Events
Why climate change is bad for beer and what we can do about it!
Learning Through StorieS
THE FUTURE IS NOW!
Here are some of the stories about climate, pollinators, food, gardening, and water
CHECK OUT OUR F.U.N EVENTS HERE
Climate: EJECTED—The story that solves the climate crisis
Average people who are responsible for excessive greenhouse gas emissions are ejected from the planet. In order to return to Earth, the “Ejected” need to unite to decrease emission levels so the world can support them once again. Will they manage to implement the solutions in time to return to their loved ones?
This entertaining book doubles as an educational manual on how to end the climate crisis-perfect for individuals and classroom teachers. Although a work of fiction, Ejected offers real climate solutions while also exploring other critical societal problems, like environmental racism. Remember that the future is now!
WAter: Defenders of the future tackle today’s water troubles
This book doesn’t dance around real-world water challenges—instead, it faces them head on. Combining science and social studies, the defenders of the future characters interact with the talking water character. The story reveals how, even though humans are negatively impacting water, regular people can use their super strengths to turn these challenges around.
The story can be read aloud or performed as a skit. Since this story is filled with dense content and big issues, the author suggests following the book’s layout and reading only a few pages of the story at a time followed by the corresponding activities to help the students absorb the information before moving on to the next section or “mission.” A glossary and additional resources are included in the back of the book.
Healthy Food: Maxwell Snacks Well
After Max learns the hard truth that eating junk food isn’t as fabulous as he envisions, he not only embraces healthy eating, he DEFENDS it! Ma takes the readers on an adventurous tour of the foods growing right in his yard and uses invisible force fields and ninja skills to protect his healthy harvests from attacking monsters and invaders. Along the way, he shares gardening knowledge he’s learned from his mom and the secret to protecting our food supply.
Pollinators: Mason Meets a Mason Bee (+K-12 Educator’s Guide)
Mason, like many other kids, is afraid of bees. Find out how an encounter with a mason bee changes Mason’s life; Mason conquers his fear of bees and is empowered to be like a superhero to help protect the bees. This story teaches timely and important lessons about wild bees, habitat, pesticide use and native plants—heavy topics in a light and fun way. There are definitely big concepts and big words introduced in this little book. That’s exactly what makes the book work so well for a wide audience. Even though the book looks and reads like a picture book for early elementary students, the science and social concepts are big enough for adults to ponder.
Mason Meets a Mason Bee is a handy educational tool for classroom settings as well as non-traditional learning environments-such as an afternoon with grandma! This book is meant to be read aloud and discussed with kids as it is read.
The Mason Meets a Mason Bee book is also available with a K-5 Educator’s Guide. Enjoy the additional resources at the end of the book to continue the learning. Remember that the future is now!
Gardening: a lawn chair gardener’s guide to a balanced life and world
After Max learns the hard truth that eating junk food isn’t as fabulous as he envisions, he not only embraces healthy eating, he DEFENDS it! Ma takes the readers on an adventurous tour of the foods growing right in his yard and uses invisible force fields and ninja skills to protect his healthy harvests from attacking monsters and invaders. Along the way, he shares gardening knowledge he’s learned from his mom and the secret to protecting our food supply.
Pollinators: Thank you, Bugs!
Even though some bugs are hairy and scary, this book teaches us that insects are important pollinators and help make the food we eat. Not only is Thank You, Bugs! fun to read, it is full of beautiful photographs featuring adorable children with expressive faces. This book is also great for teaching about feelings and facial expressions. It’s sure be a favorite in any family. The back matter gives additional educational resources for teachers and caregivers.