At Natusan we’re dedicated to the environment and want to help pet parents to reduce their carbon footprint. As part of our commitment to sustainability, we partner with Ecologi to plant a tree for every Natusan order and support them in their great carbon reduction projects worldwide.
We like to keep you updated on what Ecologi has been working on, and this month it’s a particularly exciting project. Ecologi has been planting trees to offset the emissions from the flights of 197 world leaders travelling to Glasgow for the COP26 summit.
By now we’re sure you’ve heard about COP26, the climate summit taking place in Glasgow. While it’s the 26th COP to take place (the first—COP 1—was held in Berlin in 1995) it feels like this year’s summit has been the most talked about of them all. But getting representatives from across the globe to Glasgow involves a lot of flights, and we know all too well about the impact air travel has on the environment.
So what did Ecologi do?
Ecologi calculated that the travel of the 197 leaders to COP26 would result in 331 tonnes of carbon emissions so, for every world leader listed as attending, they planted two trees—one at their Scottish reforestation site, and one at other sites around the world. That’s a total of 394 trees.
As Ecologi emphasise: not flying at all is better than flying and then offsetting the emissions. But in the case of a climate summit during a global climate crisis, this travel could be deemed as essential, and hopefully the outcomes of a successful COP26 will result in a greater positive impact upon the environment.
331 tonnes of carbon emissions
It’s sometimes hard to grasp the full scale of the impact we have upon the environment. To help explain just what 331 tonnes of emissions means, Ecologi offers these handy (but depressing) comparisons. 331 tonnes of emissions is approximately equivalent to:
● Burning 766 barrels of oil
● Using 37,000 gallons of gasoline
● Charging a smartphone 40 million times
According to estimates in a 2016 article in the journal Science, 331 tonnes of emissions could lead to the loss of 933 square metres of arctic ice. That’s a huge amount potentially lost, and just from the emissions of the flights needed to get these 197 individuals to Glasgow. Understanding the impact of this one small group can allow us to better realise the full scale of the climate crisis that we’re facing.
What more can we do?
The amazing work of Ecologi is going some way to offset the environmental impact that we humans have on the world, but there are many more steps that we can take to make a difference. The outcomes of COP26 may depend on the world leaders, but we too can take action to reduce our individual impact on the environment. Take a look at our articles 25 Ways To Be More Sustainable and 8 Easy, Sustainable Switches To Make At Home for inspiration on how small steps can make a big difference.
How to find out more
You can find out more about exactly how Ecologi went about this entire process, as well as their sources and more information about air travel and COP26 in their blog article here. You can also take a look at their other articles that offer even more insights and explanations about the COP26 summit and what’s been happening.
09/11/2021 by NatuTeam