How you can fight climate change
UTS Business School has conducted new research that measures and ranks the effectiveness of various actions individuals can take to reduce their carbon footprint.
Drying clothes on a line is commonly believed to be an effective way to reduce carbon footprint, however the research found that it's not as impactful as other actions such as shifting superannuation to ethical funds. Photo by Gleti via iStock.
According to recent research conducted by the UTS Business School, certain individual actions are more effective than others in reducing carbon footprints. The study identified that among the actions considered, installing solar panels on homes, switching to green energy plans, and shifting superannuation to ethical funds have the greatest impact in fighting climate change.
The research was conducted by the UTS Business School and was included in a new whitepaper published by Australian Ethical Investment Ltd.
“Our research found that, among a set of common everyday actions considered, switching your superannuation over to an ethical or responsible fund was the third most effective way to reduce emissions, but one that most consumers had not considered,” said Associate Professor Gerhard Hambusch.
Only two in five Australians identify themselves as an investor, despite 86% having their retirement savings invested in a superannuation fund.
Switching super or investments to an ethical option makes it harder and more expensive for those companies that are not aligned with the Paris agreement’s targets to access capital or insurance, and acts as a powerful signalling mechanism when collective action is taken.
“The research tells us that many Australians care about climate change, so much so that 96 percent of them are taking action to reduce their carbon footprint,” said Maria Loyez, Chief Customer Officer, Australian Ethical Investment.
“But many people are not sure about the amount of CO2e emissions generated through various everyday actions, and the vast majority are unaware that investing their superannuation in an ethical fund can have a big impact by directing money away from companies that are contributing to climate change.”
Australians on average produce a staggering 15.4 tonnes of CO2e per person each year, which is among the highest in the world, and more than seven times the two tonnes of CO2e per person we need to reach in order to prevent catastrophic carbon change.
However, the research found that Australians think that their individual carbon footprint should be 5.5 tonnes to keep global warming under two degrees in line with IPCC and Paris Agreement targets.
“We started thinking about the best way to provide feedback that would give people a better sense of how much they’re either winning or losing overall,” he says.
