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Greener Together - encouraging Co-operative members to cut their carbon emissions!
Global warming. You may have heard about it. You may be interested in it. But have you done anything about it?
Politicians discuss and argue about targets regarding cutting down our carbon emissions for the year 2020 and 2050, but could this be too little too late? Scientists say we need to cut down our carbon emissions by 10% over the next 18months to avoid disastrous warming. Our politicians have failed us, so now we have to take the matter into our own hands.
I introduce to you, ‘Greener Together’.
Global warming is not a matter to be taken lightly, unless you’ve been in hibernation over the last few years it will most definitely be a term you’ve heard referred to over and over again, and possibly shrugged off.
However, the sad reality is that if we don’t start taking the threat seriously, the world may not exist as we know it for the next generation, possibly even your generation and that’s a scary thought.
‘Greener together’ is an ‘ambitious and dynamic’ project, with its aims to engage, support and provides the tools for people to share lifestyle changes that reduce members environmental impact in energy, waste and
personal transport. The campaign aims to encourage people to live in a more sustainable manner.
‘Greener together’ is encouraging members to cut their carbon emissions by 10-20% over the next six months and hope to kick start the rest of the UK into becoming eco conscious and to get involved too. The project is part of the Greener Living Fund sponsored by Defra.
In 2003 there were a shocking 2,000 heat related deaths due to the heat wave that hit the UK, and a staggering 35,000 in Western Europe. This is twice as likely to happen next year. By the end of the century our sea levels could increase by over a metre, affecting approximately 20 million people in Europe. Obviously the UK is not the only Nation affected by global warming, global warming shall result in freshwater shortages, sweeping changes in food production conditions and increases in deaths from floods, storms, heat waves and droughts. Habitats shall change faster than species can adapt and millions could be threatened by increases in malaria, water borne disease and malnutrition.
It’s not too late to try and stop climate change, but it’s not going to happen without your help. You need to do your bit, to ensure we don’t leave our children picking up the pieces belonging to a world ruined by global warming.
PLAN BEE
As many of you may be aware the honey bee is in decline. Over the past twenty years we have lost half of the worlds honey bees due to virulent viruses that they have no natural defences and consequently last year we lost a fifth of all honey bees over the winter months. Albert Einstein once said ‘If the bee disappears from the surface of the earth, man would have no more than four years to live.’ Now we’re not saying that’s true, however we definitely don’t want to risk finding out.
At The Southern Co-operative we’re going to try and do our bit for the cause, we’re signing the petition calling on the UK government to carry out a systematic review of the impact of pesticides on honeybees. We’re posting this link on our website: CLICK HERE to encourage our members to sign it too. Please keep your eyes peeled for other ways in which we're trying to help this cause, pick up a copy of our members mag which is out soon, for more information!
1) The honey bee has been around for over 30million years.
2) It is the only insect that produces food eaten by man.
3) Ever wondered what that distinctive buzz was? Their wings flutter an
amazing 11,400 times a minute.
4) The average honey bee will actually make only one twelfth of a
teaspoon of honey in its lifetime.
5) Honey bees communicate with one another by "dancing".
6) One-third of the human diet is derived directly or indirectly from
insect-pollinated plants = no honey bees, less food for us.