How Businesses Can Help Combat Climate Change [Infographic]

July 4, 2016

The Earth has finite resources, yet the status quo is that they are used in the most profitable way possible, not the most efficient. It has taken decades of government regulation to get auto manufacturers to increase fuel efficiency in their cars, and now fuel efficiency is something consumers clamor for. When businesses take the initiative to make efficiency a top priority, it has the power to change consumer demand for the better.

The United States has less than 5% of the global population but we account for 25% of the consumption of fossil fuels. Businesses can have a serious impact on the consumption of fossil fuels. Auto manufacturers can build more efficient cars. Other businesses can encourage carpooling or public transit use. There’s also a growing movement for telecommuting, which will save companies energy resources in office space and employees time and fossil fuels in their commutes.

Consumption has grown not only in consumer goods and fossil fuels, but also in food. In 1950 the average American consumed 138 pounds of meat annually, but that figure grew to 195 pounds per person annually by the year 2000. Americans consume nearly a ton of food per year, and that also adds to the use of fossil fuels and other earth polluting chemicals. And all that excess food comes in packaging, which is clogging up the waste stream.

Trash output is a serious problem in the United States. We produce 254 million tons of trash per year and less than 35% of that is being recycled. Businesses can help reduce the amount of waste that goes into the trash stream by reducing the size of packaging or making packaging recyclable or compostable.

Learn more about how businesses can combat climate change from this infographic. If we don’t do something drastic soon, future generations are going to have to become really strong swimmers.

Infographic source: Reuse This Bag

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