Climate change and how you can make a difference

Gareth Jones explains how climate change will hit those in poverty the hardest - and offers some quick'n'easy actions to help make a difference.

The BBC website says climate change is creating 'climate refugees', like Masuma in Bangladesh. Join the Stop Climate Chaos rally, 4 November 2006, Trafalgar Square. Go see An Inconvenient Truth - now!

Every week the news reports another story on how climate change is occurring quicker than the scientists previously thought. The world's ice sheets, for example. New Scientist recently reported that a massive chunk of arctic sea ice, proportionate to the size of Texas, has disappeared in just one year. Such large scale changes suggest that the world is on a tipping point. Sometimes I feel like joining the crowds of people that already think it is too late.

The sad truth is, when the sea rises, those that will be hit hardest are those people already struggling to survive. People like Masuma in Bangladesh. BBC News Online recently brought Masuma's story to us: "Masuma's home is a bamboo and polythene shack in one of the hundreds of slums colonising every square metre of unbuilt land in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh."

With a large portion of Bangladesh existing just above sea level, it requires little imagination to foresee the risk. In fact, the United Nations Environment Programme reported that a 1.5m rise in sea level will affect 17 million people in Bangladesh. The issues of poverty and climate change are intricately woven together.

Turning up at the Stop Climate Chaos Rally on the 4th November in Trafalgar Square is one way we can ask the government to do something. But we must not underestimate our own power. The biggest change will come from individuals like you and me. Here's how:

Power
* Change your energy supplier to one which only provides sustainable energy.
Ecotricity and Good Energy both specialise in supplying electricity from 100 per cent renewable sources.
* Energy saving light-bulbs can save the bill-payer a fortune over a few years and save the planet as well.
* If you like gadgets there are plenty of solar powered items on the market. From solar powered mobile phone chargers to clocks.

Transport
* Try to use public transport or walk to your destination.
* If you drive to the shops, try to buy more in one journey. The fewer journeys, the cheaper your fuel costs and the better the atmosphere will be.
* Off-set your carbon emissions, using companies like www.climatecare.org, but be careful. The New Internationalist recently reported a few which just want your money and have little to show for it in terms carbon offsets.

Household
* Try to use eco-friendly products. Ecover does a great range of products from shower gel to washing-up liquid. If you can't find the products you want, why not ask for them?
* Buy local foods. Many grocers stock local produce now. Websites like www.eattheseasons.co.uk can help you identify the current seasonal produce which is more likely to be locally available.

Read John Preece's 10 ways to help stop climate change for more tips and tricks.