So you think your individual sustainable choices won’t really have an impact on climate change? Actually, research shows they do. According to Robert Frank, author of “Putting Peer Pressure to Work” (2020), our voluntary environmental actions are significant for two reasons. First, they have the power to shift how the people around us behave. People who see you using reusable shopping bags may consider doing the same. Park visitors who are using throw-away plastic drink bottles may see you filling your water bottle and decide to purchase one and do the same. 

Second, and perhaps more importantly, our sustainable choices change who we are, making us much more likely to vote greener and to support large-scale programs and policies needed to slow climate change. 

Here are some more highly visible green choices you can make, model, and have conversations about. 

• Make sure you recycle well and help others do the same at the curb and the recycling center. Keep in mind that recycling errors can contaminate large amounts of otherwise recyclable material.  
• Walk and cycle to travel around your community; doing so on popular trails, especially those along roads, may inspire drivers to ditch their cars and do the same.  
• Participate in community clean-ups in a group or by yourself. Removing litter helps keep stormwater clean. Others may notice how nice trash-free roadsides look and participate.  And, never again chuck their stuff out the window.  
• Participate in activities, attend events, and join organizations that advocate for climate change practices and policies. Go public by wearing their clothing and using their swag.
• Keep up with information about our climate crisis. Make some sustainable choices and get passionate!

By Bev Harrison