Fighting climate change can often feel overwhelming. You’re acutely aware that you’re just one person, up against an establishment that’s determined to maintain the dirty status quo. How can one person change anything?
That’s where communities step in. Finding your tribe – a group of people who think the same as you – will help you maintain your motivation, enthusiasm and resilience when things feel tough.
Here’s our Big Green Ideas List for achieving climate goals through action and community.
Support a campaign
Join online campaigning organisations
Join online campaigning organisations like Avaaz & Ekō (formerly known as SumOfUs) and support projects that you agree with.
Join environmental campaign groups
Join environmental campaign groups e.g. Greenpeace and Extinction Rebellion.
Protest against infrastructure or building projects that are not environmentally sound
Use your social media network to link up with others who support your cause locally, or google to find groups to support at a national level, e.g. HS2 Rebellion.
Take part in a national school strike
School strikes, inspired by Greta Thunberg’s actions, are a direct challenge to leadership (teachers, governments and parents). Not to be taken lightly due to the impact on education, they have been proven to be a valuable attention-raising tool in the fight against climate change.
Find out more about school strikes.
Be the change
Start or join a “Library of Things”
How many things do you own that you’ve only used once or twice, and are now taking up space in your shed, garage or kitchen cupboards?
A Library of Things is a collection of things that people are willing to loan or rent to others as part of the “sharing economy”. People who use a Library of Things buy and store less “stuff”, saving money, space, and the resources that would have been used to manufacture and transport multiple versions of the same item. Examples include power tools, rarely-used kitchen equipment (like cake tins and pasta makers) and garden tools.
Set up a TerraCycle collection point (official or unofficial)
TerraCycle is an international, innovative recycling company that develops ways to collect and recycle hard-to-recycle waste.
There’s no denying that, where possible, it’s better to avoid packaging altogether. Zero-waste is the goal. But that’s a process which takes time, and in the meantime, TerraCycle can help reduce the amount of waste that’s sent to landfill or incinerated.
Even if the official collection point for your area has been taken, you can still set up a convenient unofficial collection point for your village/school/workplace and take what you collect to the official point.
Start or join a Community Fridge
Community fridges allow individuals and businesses to donate or receive surplus food. According to Hubbub, the environmental behaviour change charity, each fridge can save more than 2 tonnes of food every month.
At the time of writing, Hubbub has helped set up 300 Community Fridges in the UK, with more being started all the time. Find your nearest community fridge here. (The fridge icons are pale blue rectangles and very hard to see, but there is a list on the left-hand side where you can look up your town by name.)
Let a neighbour use your garden
If you can’t use your garden yourself due to lack of time or physical restrictions, let a neighbour use it to grow fruit and vegetables that you can share. If you don’t know anyone, ask at a gardening club, or try Lend and Tend (UK), AllotMe (UK) or Shared Earth (US).
Join a local group
Join a growers’ collective or gardening club
You can swap seeds, seedlings, produce, and advice to help your crops flourish. They may also give you discounts at your local garden centre.
Join or create a green group
Finding a group of people who are on the same path can really help when your motivation gets low. Talking through problems and sharing solutions will help all of you make faster progress, and create a visible hub that people new to “going green” can join.
Join local organisations
Check local news sites, Facebook etc for local environmental projects that need support, e.g. wombling (litter collection days), clearing rubbish from wasteland or ponds, beach clean-ups, setting up and maintaining nature reserves, or establishing natural verges.
Start shopping at a zero-waste shop
Zero-waste shops are usually run by passionately green people. They’re likely to be very knowledgeable about environmental issues and keen to encourage you, so it’s a great place to feel part of a “tribe”. As well as buying your day-to day produce and treats, you’ll be able to get advice on all sorts of issues, from how to clean the interior workings of your washing machine, to which vegan chocolate is best.
Read more about shopping at a zero-waste shop
Join a clothes-swapping group
Pass your unwanted clothes on to friends, friends-of-friends, or in a clothing-swap group – like this one that helps Oxford-based mothers-to-be swap maternity clothes.
Talk about the changes you make
Share your sustainable actions with friends, colleagues, family and people in your community. Make it clear you’re there if anyone wants help or advice. Enjoy your new role as the neighbourhood/company/family greenie.
Find your tribe online
Find a community
Find a community of people who share your values on Facebook, Instagram, or sites dedicated to an aspect of sustainability, like Freegle or Depop
Follow and support eco-campaigners
Putting your head above the parapet can be lonely and dangerous. Follow Greta Thunberg, Isra Hirsi, Xiye Bastida, and other eco campaigners on social media; post supportive comments, contribute to the discussion and help drown out the trolls. It makes a real difference.
Join a vegan dating site
Putting this under “action/community” sounds a bit like a double-entendre, but, if you’re looking for someone who shares your values, join a vegan dating app like Veggly.
For more ways to influence companies, politicians and people you know, see our Influence page.
Get involved in politics
Become a member or “friend” of your local Green Party
“Friends” are allowed to be members of other political parties, meaning everybody can support green issues no matter their political leaning. Find out more about becoming a member or friend of the Green Party here.
Get elected to your local council (parish, town or district)
If you have some time on your hands, don’t mind bureaucracy and want to make a difference in your area, put yourself forward for a local council position. Parish councils are often looking for new people to fill gaps and you may find it easy to get a position without even being elected. Town or district councils are harder to win a place on and would involve a formal election. But being able to make real changes in your area could be worth it.
Image credits:
Climate protesters with Extinction Rebellion flag – photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash
Sunlight through grasses with bokeh – Photo by Johannes Plenio on Unsplash
There is no planet B – photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash
Wheelbarrow and tools against a wall- Photo by Zan on Unsplash
Seedlings – photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash
Smiling woman using a laptop – Photo by Windows on Unsplash