Green Holidays

If you want to live in a Mediterranean climate – carry on regardless!

Climate change is real – and is happening every day.  Your choices every hour, even every minute are making it a reality.

You may well now be bored of hearing that you should ‘turn off your lights’, ‘don’t leave the TV on stand-by’ and ‘turn down the thermostat by 1 degree’ – but people still aren’t doing it!

I can visit a friends house and see these very basics being ignored; and taps left dripping, single item washes and radiators heating empty rooms.  People just aren’t taking this whole thing seriously.

And as a result – the world is getting warmer……

Your Green Holidays:
So, you need to make sure that the people you are paying your hard earned money to for holidays, trips and other services are doing their bit.

If you want to stay home and admire the beautiful Lake District, the Fens or some beautiful coastal villages – then you need to make sure that they can survive climate change:

If the temperature of the Earth rises just 2 degrees – you will no longer have those clear lakes.  The warmer weather will encourage flash floods – which will in turn encourage algal growths – as well as reduce the amount of water reaching the ground.  And with less water falling as rain in the first place; humans will need to ‘take’ more of it for survival and industry – so you won’t be finding it laying about in ponds and lakes!

Higher temperatures will also bring rising sea levels – and so the low-lying Fens will soo be underwater.  Just a meter sea level rise could see vast swathes of eastern England permanently underwater.  All that land which was so carefully drained for farming will be lost to ‘poisonous’ salty marshes – useless for human agriculture and living.

Rising sea levels and increased storms will soon put an end to a trip to the seaside!  Many cliffs and low level defences will be overcome by violent storms or just increased erosion.  Many houses are lost each year already due to this effect – but it could be worse if it happens when the country is already stressed.  Funding won’t be available to save a few cottages from destruction when the capital is under threat too!

photo credit: Orange County Archives

Higher temperatures and less rain will also mean that your local species will start to be outcompeted by more drought-resistant plants and animals.  Gone will be the oaks and chestnuts and in will come the corks and palms.  Apples won’t get their frosts so will soon die out and we will have oranges and lemons instead.

As a result, all the insects and fungi that feed on these plants will be gone too – and it feeds up the food chain.  If there are no insects to feed the blue tits and robins – they will be gone too – and the owls and hawks and foxes that feed on them?  If the seeds of these trees are no longer available – then what will the squirrels and deer eat?

Your Impact:
By all means carry on going on your trips – as your money spent on local services is vital for keeping these places alive and cared for – but make some demands of your own before booking.

I know it all sounds a bit petty to ask that your towels aren’t washed every day and food is locally sourced – but unless you do these things you are directly contributing to climate change and the ultimate demise of the English countryside.

You often hear the quotes of ‘if everyone in the world did A, then we could save so much of B’.  But everyone in the UK isn’t even doing A – so how can we make a real difference?

With your money. 

Money really does talk in the service industry – and if someone is running an eco friendly hotel and bed and breakfast; they should be encouraged to keep that up – with your money.

People who don’t make an effort to be green and continue to waste resources, waste water and buy cheap plastic over-packaged products should be left out of your holiday plans – ie: no money – you don’t stay with them at all!

They can either change their ethics to stay in business – or you can make sure they become extinct instead of our native wildlife and plants!

If you think about how amazing trees can be – you will want to help plant them!

I recently read a leaflet from a charity called Tree Aid - who fund, train and support communities in Africa to give them the skills to use their trees to the best advantage – and saw an amazing list of the ‘Gift of Trees’ which made me stop and think for a while.

I had always been amazed by the growth, resilience, uses and beauty of trees – but had never really thought of them as holding the key to a community’s survival.

So take a look at the list below of all the things that a tree, or group of trees could achieve. 

Some are more obvious – but others seem totally unrelated.  So maybe you too could see trees in a whole new light too!

As Wood To Build Homes.
Also schools, hopitals, warehouses and much more – including furniture and farming tools.

As Fuel For Cooking.
This also includes wood used for making cooking utensils and storage pots for food and water.

As Food Suppliers.
By farming tree-grown crops – a community is self-sufficient through the year.

As Food Attractors.
Trees are the perfect home for bees – and bees means honey!

As Animal Attractors.
Woodlands and even single trees attract benificial wildlife to an area, for the ecosystem and for food.

As Habitat Protectors.
Trees help to create the perfect environment for other plants to thrive and grow.

As Shade Makers.
Trees create the perfect place for people and animals to escape from the heat of the sun!

As Rain Makers.
Trees and their roots can help create micro-climates and generate rainfall – and prevent run-off.

As Soil Makers.
Trees products can help improve the fertility of soil and well placed trees can prevent it blowing away!

As Outdoor Chemists.
Many plants and trees contain ‘medicines’ that communites depend on for their health.

As Pet Stores.
Many trees can be grown specifically to feed livestock, or to build fencing and housing.

As Bank Loans.
Sales of produce and/or wood can be used to reduce poverty and buy new seeds or equipment.

As Education Givers.
Profits earned can put children through schooling – and will allow them the time to attend!

As Freedom Givers.
A productive livelihood can empower women and change the lives of the whole community.

So, next time you get the opportunity to fund or partake in charity events that help communities learn more about trees and farming – think of what you will be helping to support – and continue.

And we all know that young trees are a great way to ‘trap’ CO2 from the atmosphere – so think about the effect you could have by helping to plant just a dozen or so each year.

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Could you convince your business and associates to meet up in a cyber-boardroom?

Why do we still include long-distant travel as part of our business mind-set, when there is so much technology and software available that could mean fewer hours spent ‘on the road’ and not clocking up carbon emissions and company debts?

Having experience of business decisions and travel arrangements myself, I know that sometimes a ‘really good idea’ isn’t always cost effective, and it can be like banging your head against a brick wall if you are trying to promote more sustainable work plans if your boss isn’t open to change.

I also know that some of the green business ideas I had previously pitched to my bosses which were not financially viable at the time – have now become so, and the company is implementing them as we speak!

Things change and businesses need to change with them – so why not look back over some of your green business ideas that were rejected in the past and see if they could work for you now.

Improved Technology:
It isn’t only your green ethics that are changing – but so is the technology that drives whole industries.

For example, you can now communicate (virtually) face-to-face with people on the other side of the world in live time and with very clear images and very little time delay – as well as completing complex banking transactions at the touch of a button from one continent to the other.

Business has changed so much these days that equipment and other electrical items that were once rare and expensive are now commonplace and competitively priced.

When I was at school (which wasn’t that long ago), we had one just 1 single word processor for the whole school, but now – children have their own iPhones and home computers!

Although the above example spans some years, there are certainly much quicker and more important technological advances that could really improve your business – you just need to look at them afresh.

The First Step:
There are many companies that are available to help you decide which technologies and solutions may be best for your business, but of course you can investigate many of these yourself.

The benefit of an expert in the field would be that they will have worked with many other businesses like yours and also seen the results of their work, however you alone might not know all the alternatives and end up missing out on something great – so it might not be cheaper to go it alone!

However, there is currently an initiative to help businesses reduce their need to travel for meetings and promotions etc, with the Climate Care Day drive taking place next week, and again in October 2010.

This one area of you business could help not only reduce outgoings and increase productivity but could really make a difference to your ‘green’ policies and ethics, which are now just as important to a company as the products or services you offer.

So, if you are looking to reduce your environmental impact whilst promoting your business, then go to their website or search for video-conferencing online.

This year – 2009 – will see the Worlds 3rd ever Earth Hour. This years attempt is planning to cover entire countries across the globe in swathes of darkness. This will put across the massive statement that there are thousands of people in all the countries – joined together to make a big difference.

Since it’s humble beginnings in Sydney, Australia in 2007 – the Earth Hour has been gaining ground and this years event is hoping to get over 1 billion people to sign up – saying that they agree with the very concept of the Earth Hour. It’s aim is to ‘send a message to World Governments that they must take action to help avoid Climate Change’.

Why So Important?
At the end of 2009 in Copenhagen, the UN Climate Change Summit will take place, and WWF are hoping that this massive event will have an impact on topics raised and policies discussed by the heads of nations. This Summit is going to decide on future International Climate Policy – so really it is the planets ‘Moment of Truth’.

We are already seeing signs of that change across the world in the flooding and diseases affecting corners of the globe – freak weather, sea-level rises and warming temperatures are all impacting on peoples lives, and it will only get worse. 

And where ever on Earth you are taking your green holiday – you must join in – otherwise the very place you are visiting could suffer in the years to come!

What Can You Do?
If you plan to take part, make sure you register and get everyone you know to register too. Although just turning out your lights for the entire hour will show others you are involved, you will not count towards the actual recorded movement as the WWF will not know that you took part. There will be no written record of the part you played.

Last year 50 million people signed up, but many more joined in, but went uncounted. If this years Earth Hour is to reach 1 billion, you must sign up and be counted.

Wherever you are in the world you can make a difference, and every time zone has it’s moment on the global stage – it’s hour of darkness. Like a giant Mexican wave passing around the planet – at 8.30pm wherever you are – you will join others from the very north to the very south of Earth in blanking out the night skies for 60 minutes.

There are national and local events being organised if are not in your home town and want to get involved with the community where you are – or you might get to see a famous landmark plunged into darkness if you change your travel plans to be in a big city on the night! Imagine Sydney Harbour Bridge disappearing from the harbour side glow – or the Golden Gate Bridge on the other side of the world plunging into shadow!

Maybe you will be flying high over a country at the crucial time and you will get to see the stark contrast the Earth Hour has on the worlds surface as you cross from one time zone to the next – from bright to dark in a solid line across the horizon!

Next Step:
Go to the WWF Earth Hour web-page and get all the facts. Make sure you sign up to show your support and to get details of international events and how you can help.

Make sure you involve others in your plans – as the more people you can get to attend your events – the less people will be at home at 8.30pm with their lights on!
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