MELTING GIANTS

What we can do

Climate change is a systemic and global issue. Addressing it requires systemic change, meaning broad, fundamental alterations in how society is structured and operates rather than just isolated solutions. We need transformations across different sectors such as transportation, food supply, energy generation or housing. Thus, a major thing we can do is VOTE and demand from our governments to act. By voting for parties that aim at fighting climate change, you can do a lot for our glaciers and nature in general. Although individual choices matter, it is collective action that can stop climate change. We need to build broad coalitions for change – across communities, sectors and generations. It is all about shared responsibility and collective action. Citizens, communities, businesses, and governments all have roles to play, but these roles differ according to access to resources and decision-making power.

Handprint vs. footprint: You probably have heard about the so-called “carbon footprint”. This concept, developed by the oil corporation BP at the beginning of the 1990s, is intended to illustrate the greenhouse gas emissions caused by a person's diet, housing, transportation and so on. The higher the emissions, the larger the symbolic footprint. However, the focus on your individual carbon footprint can be demotivating. Even with great individual efforts, a considerable amount of emissions remains, resulting from the general infrastructure, the widely accepted lifestyle or a lack of alternative actions. This could lead to the impression that the fight against climate change has already been lost. And this is where the so-called “carbon handprint” comes into play. It is used to calculate and symbolise what one has already achieved, showing what progress has been made rather than what still needs to be done. According to this concept, everyone has the opportunity to increase their “carbon handprint” — potentially to infinity. The handprint grows with changes in one's own behaviour, but it can also include indirect effects achieved with other people. It can be applied to all areas, including private behaviour, political commitment, and professional actions in decision-making positions within companies, for example. However, we must not completely ignore the carbon footprint. In general, emissions must be reduced. With little tweaks in your daily life, you start making a difference.

You do not have to go all vegan, never fly or use a car again and live in a cave without electricity. I mean, if you want to, do it, nature would be happy. But for many people, that is just not possible. The most important thing is, that you do the best you can and start to implement changes in your life. How about one or two days per week when you don’t eat meat or even eat completely vegan? Maybe use public transportation more often instead of your car? If you drive on the highway, try to avoid driving really fast (maybe try to drive not more than 120 km/h). Or try to buy less and reuse and repair things. There are many ways to reduce your impact. Tell others how they could also reduce theirs and make people aware of the consequences of climate change. You can find many ways on how to reduce your carbon footprint on the internet and decide for yourself, which options are the best ones for you. If you decide to donate money to offset your carbon emissions, look for the “Gold Standard” certification. I can recommend companies like atmosfair (https://www.atmosfair.de/de/). And remember, you do not need to be perfect, just do the best you can.

Last but not least: Use your voice! Spread the word and inform others. :)

If you want to change something and are looking for like-minded people, then check out these organizations:

• Protect our winters

• Protect alpine nature

• glacierwatch

• Only One