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<ul><li><keyword id="8626838" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="UNEP-India">UNEP India</keyword> has launched a clothing line with designer <keyword id="121020" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Masaba-Gupta">Masaba Gupta</keyword> that aims to reduce the use of plastic in our country. </li><li>The collection and campaign is conceptualised by <keyword id="531122" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ogilvy-India">Ogilvy India</keyword> and both went live on January 22. </li><li><keyword id="8626840" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="the-house-of-masaba">The House of Masaba</keyword> and Ogilvy India are encouraging other designers to plagiarise their ideas and execute it themselves. To ease out this process, a few DIY videos will be launched, leveraging Masaba’s digital reach. </li></ul><div type="Video" msid="73550457" hostid="261" title="UNEP India has launched a clothing line with designer Masaba Gupta; aim to reduce the use of plastic in our country." thumbUrl="https://denmark.timesinternet.in/cmslite/api/app/images.jpg?msid=73550457"></div>

<br />United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) India has launched a fashion line called ‘<keyword id="8626839" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="I-will-wear-out-plastic">I will wear out plastic</keyword>,’ which aims to phase out single use plastic in a unique way. The garments are designed by Masaba Gupta that come with built-in detachable bags. <br /><br />Conceptualised by Ogilvy India, this creative collection aims to use fashion trends to reduce the use of plastic. The agency has been in partnership with UNEP for the past three years. They have worked together to develop a larger platform called #BeatPlasticPollution. <br /><br />Under this initiative, each garment has as an exclusive accessory -- a detachable reusable bag, making a fashion statement. These bags are designed on clothes that can be worn for everyday use. It enables you ‘to wear out the problem,’ quite literally. <br /><br />The collection will be available in The House of Masaba stores in eight metro cities and online. <br /><br />To spread the word, The House of Masaba has launched a digital campaign asking a simple yet powerful question -- “Fashion brings change but can it save the world?” Masaba thinks it can. <br /><br />“This range is high-fashion and you are making a fashion statement. You are wearing a piece that doesn’t look like a gimmick and actually serves a purpose, which is to try and eliminate single use plastic,” explains Gupta. <br /><br />The House of Masaba and Ogilvy India are encouraging other designers to plagiarise their ideas and execute it themselves. To ease out this process, a few DIY videos will be launched, leveraging Masaba’s digital reach. <br /><br /><strong>Roots of the idea</strong><br /><br />This idea of launching a fashion line appeared in one of Ogilvy’s brainstorming sessions. The team tried to identify the problem and concluded that people use plastic because they usually don’t carry a bag along to shopping marts. They later posed a question to themselves, 'what if we had a cloth bag with us everywhere we go.' They then found a dress, took its pocket, folded a bag and tugged it inside. After a few designing sessions with Gupta, ‘I will wear out plastic’ was born. <br /><br />“When we presented our prototype and sketches, UNEP got really excited. They said it was simple and can be easily copied by others into a stylish garment,” shares Sukesh Nayak, Chief Creative Officer, Ogilvy. <br /><br />Expanding on what pushed them into their epiphany, Nayak adds, “When you want to bring about a behavioural change, you cannot do it in a boring way -- it has to be the most interesting. You really have to entice the person to change.”<br /><br />Sharing what he liked about Ogilvy’s pitch, Atul Bagai - Country Head, UNEP India said, “Addressing environmental challenges such as plastic pollution call for behavioral changes in society and it can have a huge impact when an acclaimed fashion designer like Masaba Gupta makes an environment statement through an entire clothing line.” <br /><br />After the agency conceptualised the idea, it went to Masaba Gupta — who is known for her bold and quirky designs — with a simple brief. <br /><br />“The brief that Ogilvy came to me with was simple. They said UNEP aims to cut down plastic pollution and asked if can we create a range of clothes that can be turned into a bag,” recalls Gupta. <br /><br />She says while the idea was exciting and she found herself tending towards it immediately, the execution and figuring out the technicalities was also a challenge. However, the bigger cause kept her going. It took nearly a year to conceptualise and bring the idea into life. <br /><br />Sharing what convinced her to get on-board, Gupta said, “Pollution is one of the largest environmental threats faced globally and there’s an urgent requirement and responsibility to address it. The Fashion Industry is also known to produce the most global wastage. This time, we’re using fashion as a tool for empowerment and activism. We encourage people to understand our concept and try to recreate their own permutations and combinations to take this concept forward.”<br /><br /><strong>Target Audience<br /></strong><br />Nayak says they wanted to create something that the audience would want to copy and the benchmark is so high that it would push them to act. The campaign plays on its aspirational factor and doesn’t have a voice over. It wants to walk the talk and let the audience follow. <br /><br />However, the collection will be available in all The House of Masaba stores and will start from Rs 6000. This initiative is clearly targeting the metros, who can afford this price range. But both Gupta and Nayak are confident that with digital media, any idea can be copied and it won’t take much time to pick up into a trend. <br /><br /><strong>Media Plan</strong><br /><br />While right now, a digital campaign has been released in the range of 15 seconders to 2:09 minutes ads, the plan is to keep launching Do it Yourself videos so that the idea is copied, multiplied and practised by different kinds of audience. <br /><br />Sharing why Gupta was okay with the idea being copied, she said, “We as a brand have fought very hard for plagiarism. But I would really encourage people out there to incorporate this collection and do it their way. They can understand how we did it and make their own permutations and combinations with it. This isn’t about plagiarism but about giving back to our environment.” <br /><br />As the word spreads, Nayak says the organisation also plans to use TV and Outdoor to keep the buzz going. <br />

UNEP India and Masaba Gupta launch a clothing line to help phase out single-use plastic in the country

<strong><br /></strong><ul><li><strong>The world has produced over 6.3 billion tonnes of plastic waste since 1950.</strong></li><li><strong>Every Indian on an average consumes 11 kgs of plastic per year.<br /></strong></li><li><strong>India also planning to join the “Clean Marine Ecosystem”.</strong></li></ul>Plastic is a growing concern not only for India but the whole world. Disposal and recycling of single-use plastic items such as polythene bags and containers are a major concern. Since the 1950s, an estimated 6.3 billion tonnes of plastic has been <a href="https://www.economist.com/international/2018/03/03/the-known-unknowns-of-plastic-pollution">produced</a>, of which an estimated 9% has been recycled and another 12% of plastic waste has been incinerated.<br /><br />India was the global host of the <keyword id="18996" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="World-Environment-Day">World Environment Day</keyword> this year. The country, which is in the 75th year of its independence, pledged to eliminate the use of all single-use-plastic items like straws, plastic bags and water bottles, by the year 2022.<br />
  
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Union Environment Minister Harsh Vardhan, on the occasion of the World Environment Day, said - "We make a solemn pledge that we will eliminate all single-use plastics from our country." This statement has also shed some light on the PM’s idea of new India by the year 2022.<br />
  
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]]></cdata></div> At Vigyan Bhawan where India’s Prime Minister <keyword id="6597234" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="narendra-singh-modi">Narendra Singh Modi</keyword> emphasised on India’s relentless commitment towards protecting the environment, Vardhan said - "This India of our dreams (New India) will be single-use plastic free."<br /><br />This commitment is intended to send strong messages to the world which is threatened with increasing <keyword id="1820144" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="plastic-pollution">plastic pollution</keyword> due to the huge amounts of environmental degradation it causes.<br />
  
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]]></cdata></div> <keyword id="6354642" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Modi">Modi</keyword> in his speech mentioned that India is preparing to join the “Clean Sea Campaign” and make its contribution towards saving the world's oceans. "Plastic threatens to become a menace to humanity. A lot of it never makes it to the recycling stations”, he said.<br /><br />The annual average per capita <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/environment/the-good-earth/by-2022-india-vows-to-stop-single-use-plastics/articleshow/64471467.cms">consumption of plastic in India</a> is at 11 kg as against the global average of 28 kg. The large amount of plastic waste the world produces inevitably enters the environment, with <a href="https://globalnomadic.com/turning-rubbish-into-money-environmental-innovation-leads-the-way/">studies</a> <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0016648014004225?via%3Dihub">suggesting</a> that the bodies of 90% of seabirds contain plastic debris. <br />

India pledges to eliminate single-use plastics by 2020

<br />This World Environment Day the United Nations had only one directive - reject single-use plastic. Hosted by <keyword id="3658" type="COUNTRY" weightage="20" keywordseo="India">India</keyword>, the internet was in an uproar to #BeatPlasticPollution and to reduce humanity’s over-reliance on disposable plastic.<br /><br />It may be the need of the hour, but there’s a sizable economic cost attached to it as well that seems to be getting sidelined in the name of environment preservation. <br /><br />Banning plastic is definitely a boon for the environment. For starters, it reduces the amount of non-biodegradable litter that clogs up storm drains and piles up in landfills. Even the ocean has islands that are made of solid waste that consist mostly of plastic garbage. <br /><br />Indirectly, since disposable plastics are derived from crude oil refining, when their manufacturing reduces, it also reduces the contribution of polypropylene to climate change. <br /><br />But then, there’s flip-side to a ban. Businesses that manufacture disposable plastic, firms using plastics for packaging and even the consumer - all have to bear the cost. The burden of a ban isn’t just limited to the plastics industry. Horizontal and vertical dependants like the petroleum industry, food delivery outlets and even the road-side juice vendor will feel the impact. <br /><br />In India, Sikkim was the first state to implement a ban on plastic bags in 1996. It was also one of the first states to apply a ban on single-use plastics. The state’s been fairly successful in its implementation considering that there’s a very limited space for garbage dumps within their territory.<br /><br />But then again, that’s not always the case. States like Andhra Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh that have significant plastic waste generation have only been marginally successful in implementing partial bans. <br /><br />Taking the most recent case of the <keyword id="6360810" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Plastic-ban">plastic ban</keyword> in <keyword id="13126" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Maharashtra">Maharashtra</keyword>, the All India Plastics Manufacturers’ Association (AIPLMA) claims that while this initiative may help the environment, it will also result in a <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/plastic-ban-india-stares-at-loss-of-rs-15000-crore-3-lakh-jobs/articleshow/64721810.cms">loss of up to ₹15 billion</a> ($220 million) and nearly 300,000 jobs. <br /><br /><strong>The snowball effect<br /></strong><br />One assumes that the direct effect of banning plastic use is that plastic wastage decreases, but the reality is broader than that. Plastics is an industry of its own that makes a significant contribution to key sectors in India like textiles and healthcare. That being said, one sector that will be hit the hardest by the plastic ban is the packaging sector.<br />
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 <br /><strong>1. </strong><strong><keyword id="6369865" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="job-loss">Job loss</keyword><br /></strong><br />So, it’s a fairly straightforward correlation that when there’s unemployment in one sector then the supply of labour will increase. In this case, it will affect polymer manufacturers, plastic processors and recycling players. Especially those that work in extrusion, which would include the manufacture of plastic bags and blow moulding which is how bottles and containers are made.<br />It should be noted that the plastics industry is highly labour intensive and largely unorganised. In Maharashtra, specifically, AIPMA <a href="https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/economy/policy/plastic-ban-may-shave-800-cr-off-maharashtras-gst-revenues-says-lobby/article23375711.ece">claims</a> that the ban will result in the shut down of 2,150 industrial units.<br /><br />In India, there’s already a surplus of low wage labourers, which will be further impacted by such a move. The extent of the impact will be determined by the skill set and specialisation that distills into the market.<br /><br /><strong>2. </strong><strong>Gross Domestic Product (<keyword id="35050" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="gdp">GDP</keyword>) will be affected<br /></strong><br />As of 2017, the Indian plastic industry <a href="http://www.plastindia.org/pdf/indian-plastics-industry-report2014.pdf">contributes</a> around 7.1% to the country’s GDP. It’s also complementary to the petrochemical industry that works in tandem. But, the ban itself hits the ‘end user market’ where plastic products are primarily used for domestic purposes. <br /><br />Additionally, the packaging industry is one of the key drivers of demand for plastics. It’s one the fastest growing industries with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 15% over the last five years. <br /><br />It has received major impetus from retail growth, changes in lifestyle, and growth of smaller packaging. The implementation of a strict ban would be a fairly large obstacle for the plastics industry to compensate.<br /><br />In Maharashtra itself, the plastics industry is fairly big. In fact, plastics <a href="https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/economy/policy/plastic-ban-may-shave-800-cr-off-maharashtras-gst-revenues-says-lobby/article23375711.ece">contribute</a> to around 35% of the state’s GDP with a turnover of ₹50,000 crore. It’s also one of the reasons why the state contributes to nearly <a href="http://cpcb.nic.in/displaypdf.php?id=cGxhc3RpY3dhc3RlL0FubnVhbF9SZXBvcnRfMjAxNS0xNl9QV00ucGRm">one-third</a> of India’s plastic waste. Placing a ban on plastic use will retract the demand for plastics overall, thus leading to decreased sales and decreased revenue.<br /><br />As a result, whatever stocks of single-use plastics are left with manufacturers of plastic products, and companies that use them, will basically be a sunk cost after 23 June, as per the <a href="https://www.mid-day.com/articles/maharashtra-extends-deadline-for-disposal-of-existing-plastic-stock-to-3-months/19313179">government directive</a>. <br /><br />AIPMA estimates that the banned products would results in a loss of up to ₹15 billion.<br /><br /><strong>3. <keyword id="142154" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="bad-loans">Bad loans</keyword> in the banking sector will increase<br /></strong><br />As the demand for plastics falls, assuming the ban is implemented effectively, a lot of micro, small and medium units (<a href="http://www.freepressjournal.in/mumbai/plastic-ban-chokes-maharashtras-msme-industriy/1246368">MSMEs</a>) in the plastics industry, could default on loans and the proportion of bad loans could increase. <br /><br />This is especially true as one analyses the <a href="http://www.freepressjournal.in/mumbai/plastic-ban-chokes-maharashtras-msme-industriy/1246368">downstream supply chain</a> of plastics. While polymer manufacturing is dominated by large industrial groups, plastic processors and recycling players are largely MSMEs.<br /><br /><strong>4. </strong><strong>Fines on small and micro retailers will affect their P&amp;L statements<br /></strong><br />As with any new law or directive, there’s an implementation curve. There will always be a few defaulters who won’t comply immediately, and the heavy fines could send their <a href="http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/mumbai/retailers-to-move-hc-to-exempt-pp-bags-from-ban/article24213766.ece">profit and loss</a> (P&amp;L) statements for a spin. Large corporations won’t feel the pinch of a ₹5,000, ₹10,000 or ₹25,000 fine, but <a href="https://localpress.co.in/2018/03/plastic-ban-maharashtra-developments-ban-till-date/">roadside vendors, food vendors and delivery kitchens</a> have to be wary. Some vendors have reported that they’ve had to temporarily stall their services as they come up alternative methods of packaging. <br /><br /><strong>5. Cost of going green to consumers<br /></strong><br />More than the plastics sector, industries that depend on plastic for packaging will have to find alternative green methods of presenting their commodities in the market. Nonetheless, there’s <a href="http://ladpw.org/epd/aboutthebag/PDF/SocioEconomicImpactStudy_final.pdf">evidence</a> to support the fact that firms generally pass on this cost onto their consumers where they can purchase a paper/reusable bag at nominal rates.<br /><br />There’s the crux of the issue. More than the repercussions of the plastic ban, what matters is how the ban is embraced by the public. The use of paper bags is only effective if they are reused, otherwise the problem shifts from <keyword id="1820144" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="plastic-pollution">plastic pollution</keyword> to deforestation. And, if climate change is the primary concern, banning plastics might not even necessarily be the right solution.<br />

Banning plastics is necessary, but here’s what that might cost India

<p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div><ul><li><span></span><strong>UK-based LADBible is one of the biggest publishers on Facebook with 32.6 million followers. But it is scrambling to make content for other platforms as Facebook's reach continues to dip.</strong></li><li><strong>The publisher's monthly video views on Facebook have decreased from 3.2 billion to 1.3 billion since October, according to CrowdTangle data.</strong></li><li><strong>LADBible is now focused on Snapchat and Instagram and is eyeing more long-form content.</strong></li><li><strong>As part of the shift, the publisher is exploring "positively social" content that tackles topics like mental health and gender norms.</strong></li></ul><p>A year ago, bro-oriented UK publisher LADBible was cranking on Facebook.</p><p>The six-year-old site had built one of the biggest Facebook followings from funny video clips, and the appetite for such content seemed to only be growing-until it abruptly ended in October.</p><p>Similar to other publishers that have seen an audience drop-off on Facebook in recent months,&#xa0;LADBible's reach on the platform has decreased dramatically in recent months due to changes to Facebook's algorithm. In particular,&#xa0; viral-minded social publishers <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/littlethings-online-publisher-shuts-down-and-blames-facebook-algorithm-2018-2">like LittleThings</a> and <a href="http://www.thedrum.com/news/2017/01/03/unilad-beats-the-daily-mail-and-buzzfeeds-tasty-become-2016s-most-popular-facebook">Unilad</a> that spent years building massive audiences and distribution for their content on Facebook have noticed a sizable hit.</p><p>As a result, LADBible is turning to Instagram and Snapchat to feed its next wave of growth, the company said.</p><p>According to data from Facebook-owned CrowdTangle, engagement with LADBible's Facebook content has steadily declined since October. LADBible's monthly video views from its flagship Facebook page (which counts 32.6 million followers) dropped from 3.2 billion in October to 1.3 billion in June.</p><p>In terms of interactions-which measures likes, comments and shares-the page has dipped from 95 million to 39.8 million.</p><p>The amount of content that LADBible pumps into Facebook hasn't changed significantly, suggesting that it's become harder to drive engagement. In June, the site published 1,152 pieces of content to its main Facebook page, down slightly from the 1,373 posts published in October.</p><p>"It's no secret with what they're doing to their platform," Arian Kalantari, cofounder of LADBible Group, told Business Insider. "We probably saw that at the turn of the year where conversations were happening around 'how can we make the newsfeed better?' From my point of view, we're positive about it and we're looking at other platforms like Instagram-it's about where is the audience and what can we do to engage any kind of youth audience."</p><h3>Ditching the Facebook bubble</h3><p>LADBible is continuously one of the top publishers on Facebook, per<a href="https://www.facebook.com/LADbible/videos/4785305224849963/"> findings from Tubular Labs,</a> and its sweet spot is in short, humorous videos that people can easily scroll through in their newsfeed.</p><p>For a publisher that was born on Facebook, untethering itself from the social networking giant is tough, Kalantari said.</p><p>"Facebook is a huge beast in itself so it's definitely up there as one of our main priorities," he said. "You can't ignore the numbers that they have."</p><p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div><p>Still, Facebook's reach is declining, so the publisher is now squarely focused on Instagram and Snapchat because, "If you speak to the younger audience now, Instagram and Snapchat are very much what they're on," said Kalantari. The publisher has even <a href="http://www.thedrum.com/opinion/2016/09/22/the-lad-bible-hires-16-year-olds-its-newsroom-understand-the-next-phase-digital">hired two teenagers </a>to work with editorial teams on planning and making social content. All told, LADBible has 150 staffers.</p><p>"When we started the business, we were 20 and 21 years old and we were of the Facebook generation and understood that world-we took advantage of it whereas the traditional publishers didn't understand the platform at the time," Kalantari said. "[Instagram and Snapchat] are replicating the way that we came about on Facebook so hiring younger talent to drive it seems like a no-brainer for us."</p><p>LADBible's main Instagram account has 6.3 million followers, up from 4.6 million a year ago, per CrowdTangle. In terms of video views, LADBible's Instagram clips had 164 million views in June, up from 26.1 million in October.</p><p>According to LADBible's internal numbers, its Instagram Stories average more than 850,000 impressions per story.</p><p>The social publisher has also created a handful of long-form videos for IGTV, Instagram's video hub. The same day that IGTV rolled out, LADBible posted <a href="https://www.instagram.com/tv/BkQT6lFhpl-/">a 10-minute clip</a> titled "Conspiracies: Why the Earth is flat" with different perspectives explaining why some people believe the world is flat. The video has racked up more than 246,000 views and 950 comments.</p><p>"The growth that we see on Instagram is going to be rapid whereas Facebook is maturing," Kalantari said.</p><h3>Changing tone</h3><p>In addition to Instagram's IGTV, LADBible also recently became the newest publisher to join Snapchat Discover, the app's hub where publishers create vertical content. According to Kalantari, the publisher is currently making three Discover editions a week with the goal of making it daily in the near future.</p><p>Up until now, advertisers like Smirnoff and Beats by Dre have funded LADBible's move into long-form content but the publisher said that it plans to invest more in its own studio and production resources over the next 12 months.</p><p>Along with its new distribution outlets, LADBible has also changed the tone of its content from sensational clips that generate clicks on Facebook to "positively social" content that tackles issues like mental health, gender equality, and pollution.</p><p>Its work with agency AMV BBDO and The Plastic Oceans Foundation for plastic pollution, for example, includes a campaign called "The Trash Isles" starring Al Gore that encourages consumers to lobby for the trash in the ocean-which is about the size of the country of France-to become its own country. The campaign won eight Cannes Lions Awards at the recent&#xa0;Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity.</p><p>"We're in a generation now where young people are a lot more sensitive to what's going on in the world," Kalantari said. "We're covering all sorts of topics that maybe we didn't five or six years ago. A big focus for us is how we redefine the way in which news and entertainment is given to a young audience. Whether it's the platforms or the type of content, it's constantly evolving."</p><p class="tagline">Get the latest Snap stock price<a href="http://markets.businessinsider.com/stock/SNAP-Quote"> here.</a></p><div>    </div><div></div><div></div>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/jurassic-world-fallen-kingdom-science-facts-ignored-2018-6">5 science facts that 'Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom' totally ignored</a></h3>        <div>                    </div>    </div></hr>

LADBible was once the poster child for Facebook video - now it's shifting its distribution to Instagram and Snapchat and ditching its bro-ey tone

<p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div><ul class="summary-list"><li><strong>Climate scientist Katharine Hayhoe says she's learned more about which of her behaviors contribute most to <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/climate-change">warming the planet</a>&#xa0;by using a carbon footprint calculator.</strong></li><li><strong>While she drives a plug-in car and uses energy-saving LED light bulbs in her home, she says that neither of those are the most important thing she's done to reduce her contribution to a <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/global-warming-point-of-no-return-temperature-2018-8">warming Earth</a>.</strong></li><li><strong><strong>Instead, she now insists that when she must travel for work, she books more than one event at a time.</strong></strong></li></ul><p>Recently, the news about our planet's health hasn't been great.</p><p>Studies have pointed out that we may be headed toward a "hothouse" Earth scenario - a catastrophic tipping point that could cause&#xa0;<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/hothouse-earth-climate-change-tipping-point-2018-8">seas to rise another 200 feet</a>, inundating many major cities.&#xa0;Scientists and engineers have now started&#xa0;<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/geoengineering-ice-sheets-prevent-ice-sheet-collapse-2018-9">proposing that we build giant Antarctic sea walls</a> to keep melting glaciers from <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/giant-iceberg-threatens-greenland-with-tsunami-photos-2018-7">slamming into our shores</a>.</p><p>But not everyone is wallowing in despair.</p><p>One climate scientist in Lubbock, Texas, is making her own set of changes at home to help keep the planet cool.</p><h2>It started with a lightbulb&#xa0;</h2><p>"The first thing I did, was I said 'Ok,&#xa0;let's just look at the light bulbs,'" climate scientist Katherine Hayhoe told Business Insider.</p><p>Hayhoe directs the climate center at Texas Tech, and she also <a href="http://www.atmos-research.com/">consults</a> for cities, water districts, and highway planners around the country about the best ways to prepare for life in a warmer world.</p><p>She says if&#xa0;every home in the US swapped&#xa0;one regular lightbulb out for an LED bulb, which <a href="https://www.energy.gov/energysaver/save-electricity-and-fuel/lighting-choices-save-you-money/led-lighting">uses about 75% less energy</a>,&#xa0;that would reduce emissions as much as&#xa0;taking 800,000 cars off the road. "T<span>hat's actually pretty significant," Hayhoe said. </span></p><p><span>Still, she had a hunch that changing lightbulbs wasn't the most significant thing she could do to reduce her carbon footprint.</span></p><p>No two people consume energy in the same way. While some may push more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere when they're driving around in a car, others might leave a bigger CO2&#xa0;"print" using throw-away plastic containers, eating lots of meat, or plugging in energy-hogging appliances. All of these require oil and gas, and <a href="https://www.climate.gov/news-features/understanding-climate/climate-change-atmospheric-carbon-dioxide">contribute to climate change</a>.&#xa0;</p><p>Hayhoe plugged her own energy habits into an online carbon footprint calculator, trying to determine which single act she could cut back on to help the Earth.&#xa0;As it turned out, it wasn't her lights, but her flights.</p><p>"For me as a climate scientist, the biggest part of my personal carbon footprint was travel," she said. "Because I travel to tell people about climate change. It's very ironic."&#xa0;</p><p>Hayhoe isn't the only one. The <a href="https://www.epa.gov/regulations-emissions-vehicles-and-engines/regulations-greenhouse-gas-emissions-aircraft">US Environmental Protection Agency</a> (EPA) estimates that aircraft account for about 12% of all transportation-related greenhouse gas emissions in the US.</p><p>A single round-trip flight from New York to San Francisco "emits about 0.9 metric tons of carbon dioxide per person,"&#xa0;according to The <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/27/climate/airplane-pollution-global-warming.html">New York Times</a>. Take five of those flights, and you've generated the same amount of emissions that the average car spits out all year long.</p><h2>Hayhoe cut back on her flights, but she hasn't stopped traveling altogether</h2><p>Hayhoe says she's not ready to completely swear off air travel.</p><p>"Don't beat yourself up, because none of us can live carbon-free lifestyles yet. We just don't have the ability," she said.&#xa0;</p><p>But she has cut back.&#xa0;When she was recently a "visiting" scholar at&#xa0;Canadian Mennonite University in Winnipeg, she held coffee hours, taught classes, and hosted question and answer sessions, all without leaving her Texas home. She burned up just a fraction of the energy it would have taken her to fly to Canada, instead only guzzling enough electricity for computer plugs, cameras, and projectors.&#xa0;</p><p>"I was talking about climate change," she said. "This was the way we could do a zero carbon talk."</p><p>Hayhoe says since she adopted her new rule, just one university (Princeton) has turned down her request to video conference instead of traveling for an in-person talk.</p><p>"I can't fly all the way to Jersey to give a single, 45-minute&#xa0;seminar," she said.&#xa0;&#xa0;</p><p>Instead,&#xa0;when she does travel, she insists on collecting a critical mass of at least three, four, or five invitations at a time. She tries to consolidate her travel schedule enough so that each talk, averaged out, has the emissions equivalent of an hourlong drive.&#xa0;</p><p>Her record-breaker trip to date was to North Carolina last year, where she did 25 talks in 4 days.&#xa0;</p><p>"That was a bit much" she said. "But&#xa0;it was fantastic, because I was able to model what I was doing."</p><h2>Hayhoe would love to fly in algae-fuel powered plane</h2><p>Hayhoe says there is one surefire way she could be coaxed back into her old, jet-setting ways.</p><p>"I would love to have an algae-fuel powered plane," she said. "That technology exists. It's just that it isn't cheap enough yet."</p><p>While there are not yet any special algae-subsidies that offset the high cost of producing the <a href="https://www.energy.gov/eere/videos/energy-101-algae-fuel">novel (and nearly carbon-neutral) jet fuel</a>, the same is not the case for the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/newspaper-in-1912-linked-coal-to-climate-change-2018-8">well-established coal</a>, oil, and gas industries. They aren't taxed much for all the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/pollution-kills-more-people-than-wars-obesity-smoking-malnutrition-2017-10">dangerous pollution</a> they produce.</p><p>The International Monetary Fund (IMF) <a href="https://www.imf.org/en/News/Articles/2015/09/28/04/53/sonew070215a">estimated in 2015</a> that energy subsidies prop up the fossil fuel industry to the tune of about $166,000 per second. There's no way one person's action is going to balance a global economy that makes fossil-burning fuel cheaper than alternatives. Like <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/plastic-straw-ban-why-are-there-so-many-2018-7">forgoing a plastic straw</a>, this is simply a first step.&#xa0;</p><p>"We have to forgive ourselves for what we can't do, but we have to make sensible choices to reduce what we can," Hayhoe said.&#xa0;</p><p><em>If you want learn more about Hayhoe's work, check out this recent 5-minute documentary on her, created as part of a Let <keyword id="41551" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="100" keywordseo="science">Science</keyword> Speak series:</em></p><p>&#xa0;</p><div></div>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/why-you-have-to-lift-airplane-window-shades-2016-4">Why airlines ask you to raise the window shades for takeoffs and landings</a></h3>        <div>                    </div>    </div>

The one thing a renowned climate scientist does to reduce her own impact on the environment

<ul class="summary-list"><li><strong>I recently traveled to England, Scotland, and Belgium. </strong></li><li><strong>I arrived with some preconceived notions that were proven entirely wrong. </strong></li></ul><p>After weeks of research, there were some things I didn't expect during my recent trip to Europe.</p><p>I went to <a href="https://www.insider.com/visited-europe-with-friend-ways-to-avoid-disastrous-trip-2023-10" target="_blank" rel="noopener">London, Brussels, and Glasgow in late September for a 10-day vacation</a> with my friend for her birthday. It was my first time traveling across the pond, so I was very excited to experience cities I'd only seen through pictures and films. I prepared by reading travel articles online, watching TikToks on what to pack, and asking my colleagues for activity suggestions beforehand. However, there were still a few things I didn't see coming. </p><p>Here are three assumptions about the United Kingdom and Belgium that were quickly dashed. </p><h2>London isn't a 24-hour city like New York, where people enjoy nightlife any day of the week</h2><div type="image" title="Lauren Edmonds in London, England" height="3024" width="4032" msid="104627823" hostid="261" sizebytes="1384838"></div><p>My friend and I were riding in the back of an Uber through London when we sparked a conversation with the driver. It was a Wednesday around 8 p.m. </p><p>"So, where can we go to drink and dance tonight?" my friend asked. </p><p>The driver looked at us through the rearview mirror curiously before answering with a question. </p><p>"Isn't it Wednesday?" he asked. </p><p>He made a fair point, but we assumed that London's nightlife mirrored New York City, where there's a monstrous appetite and industry for after-hour activities. Clubs and bars are usually open until 4 a.m. several nights a week, and there's never a shortage of eateries to stumble into afterward. NYC is also dubbed "The City That Never Sleeps" for its subway system, which runs 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. </p><div type="image" title="Lauren Edmonds in London, England" height="2274" width="3024" msid="104627824" hostid="261" sizebytes="970780"></div><p>Although we still had an absolute blast, we struggled to find venues in London that stayed open past 2 a.m., and most eateries closed shop by midnight. <a href="https://www.visitlondon.com/traveller-information/getting-around-london/london-tube#:~:text=London%20Underground%20trains%20generally%20run,night%20on%20Fridays%20and%20Saturdays." target="_blank" rel="noopener">London Underground</a>, the city's rail transit system, ends service by midnight between Monday and Saturday.</p><p>I was curious why London didn't have more late-night options, and a quick Google search showed I wasn't alone. Time Out published an article titled "<a href="https://www.timeout.com/london/clubs/why-did-london-start-going-to-bed-so-early" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Why did London start going to bed so early?</a>" in February 2023, and one Telegraph article headline from July read, "<a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/europe/united-kingdom/england/london/londons-nightlife-is-an-embarrassment/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">London's nightlife is an embarrassment</a>." </p><p>The pandemic and economic hardships likely played a role in the lack of options, but the trend may not be confined to London. <a href="https://nypost.com/2023/06/21/nyc-night-owls-left-hungry-as-24-hour-restaurants-dwindle/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The New York Post</a> reported in June 2023 that some 24-hour restaurants in New York City were cutting down their hours post-pandemic.</p><h2>Uber and rideshare apps are less reliable in parts of Europe compared to New York City</h2><p>Living as an American in New York City has conditioned me to think Uber and other rideshare options are always an option. Whether it's 3 a.m. or 10 p.m., I've always felt confident that I could open an app and get a ride home with little effort. </p><p>But in London, Glasgow, and Brussels, my friend and I faced cancellation after cancellation. We attempted to plan for each daily excursion by ordering the Uber at least 15 minutes before leaving, but we often left later than expected because rideshares kept bailing. </p><div type="image" title="Lauren Edmonds in Brussels, Belgium." height="3024" width="4032" msid="104627827" hostid="261" sizebytes="1074638"></div><p>While it didn't ruin our plans, we certainly didn't think to explore the cities' Uber trends before flying to Europe. If we did, we probably would have come across the <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/brussels/comments/11pc1y5/american_visiting_brussels_why_are_uber_drivers/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Reddit board in March questioning the wave of cancellations </a>in Brussels and <a href="https://www.timeout.com/london/city-life/whats-going-on-with-uber-drivers-right-now" target="_blank" rel="noopener">cabbies sharing their insights into the issue with Time Out</a> in November 2022. </p><p>But there's always a silver lining.</p><p>The struggle to book Ubers forced us to walk more often, meaning we interacted with more people and had spontaneous explorations in Brussels. In London, we navigated the Tube to different parts of the city and took a boat tour on a whim.  </p><h2>I was surprised by the significant push for sustainability in Europe, which differs from the US</h2><p>The United Kingdom and Belgium have the US beat regarding environmentalism, and it's not a secret. The <a href="https://epi.yale.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Environmental Performance Index</a> (EPI) created by Yale University reported the United Kingdom ranked 2nd and Belgium 21st on the list, while the US ranked 43rd in 2022.  </p><div type="image" title="Sign showing Ultra Low Emission Zone in London, England." height="3712" width="5568" msid="104627829" hostid="261" sizebytes="504730"></div><p>Still, I was surprised by how significant the push for sustainability is in London, Glasgow, and Brussels. The Visit Brussels website said the <a href="https://www.visit.brussels/en/visitors/plan-your-trip/practical-info/low-emission-zone#:~:text=Did%20you%20know%20that%20the,registered%20in%20Belgium%20or%20not." target="_blank" rel="noopener">Brussels-Capital Region is a low emission zone</a>, meaning that most polluting vehicles are not permitted to drive there, <a href="https://lez.brussels/mytax/en/practical?tab=Controls" target="_blank" rel="noopener">with a potential fine of €350 (or $368 USD) for non-compliance</a>. <a href="https://www.glasgow.gov.uk/LEZ" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Glasgow</a> and London have similar areas, with <a href="https://www.london.gov.uk/programmes-strategies/environment-and-climate-change/pollution-and-air-quality/ultra-low-emission-zone-ulez-london" target="_blank" rel="noopener">London officials implementing an Ultra Low Emission Zone</a> across all its boroughs, according to the Mayor of London's website. </p><p>Meanwhile, <a href="https://nacto.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/BuildingHealthyCities_UrbanFreight_LEZs.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The National Association for City Transport Officials</a> said Santa Monica, California, became the first US city to pilot a zero-emissions delivery zone in April 2020. </p><p>There were more subtle efforts, too. Each hotel I stayed at gave me wooden room keys instead of plastic ones. </p>

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