Aimee Howarth brings you an interview with The Yorker directors on the final day of the advent articles
Aimee Howarth speaks to YUSU's sabbatical officers about their Christmas Day routine for day 17 of the advent calendar
For the final time this term, Vicky Morris updates you on this weeks film news
50 years after the publication of 'James and the Giant Peach', the works of Roald Dahl continue to celebrate success.
A report published this week by the World Wildlife Federation ranked York joint 29th with Sheffield in a league table of of 60 UK cities which have the biggest impact on the environment.
In an attempt to combat the problem, the city’s councillors are encouraging York residents to do more to reduce the city’s overall footprint. But what is a 'carbon footprint', and what can you do about it?
Everyone has a carbon footprint, which simply is your own personal measure of how much carbon dioxide you create and contribute to climate change. Carbon footprints are calculated by your lifestyle, and are affected by how much electricity you use, how you travel, and even where you buy your food.
With climate experts reporting that global temperatures are set to rise dramatically over this century, the need to act on rising emissions of greenhouse gases has never been more prevalent. Global agreements on reducing the nationwide emission of these gases are a start, however, the emphasis is now on the individual. How can we reduce our carbon footprint as students, and will what we do if anything, to help change the bigger picture?
Research showed that we would need 2.99 planet Earths to survive if everyone lived like the residents of York.
It might seem bread and butter to some, but sorting your waste and recycling is a crucial step. Not only are you saving material that would otherwise simply be sent to landfill, you are also reducing further emissions of methane that would arise from the waste once buried.
If you are living off campus, almost all of the student areas of the city are covered by the City Council’s kerbside collection scheme; and every household should have a green box, a green bag and a blue bag to sort their waste into. If you require more info on the scheme, contact the York Pride Action Line on 01904 551511. On campus, you should be fully catered for in terms of recycling bags, if not, contact Cleaning Services.
Energy use in the home accounts for about a quarter of overall UK energy consumption, and student residences and households are notoriously poor at conserving energy. It’s back to basics with this one, making sure that unused appliances (particularly phone chargers) are switched off, and that the heating isn’t on with the windows open, etc. Energy saving lightbulbs can require as little as 20% of the energy of a normal bulb, and if you buy one to replace a bulb that’s gone, they payback the extra cost in 6 months or less!
The decisions you make while shopping can also lower your carbon footprint. If you shop for locally produced, organic food, you are ensuring that carbon intensive agricultural processes have not been used in the farming of the product, and also that it has not been flown or shipped halfway around the world for sale in the UK. There are several local shops, such as Alligator Wholefoods on Fishergate, that fit the bill, or on a trip to the Newgate market you should find what you’re looking for.
Alternatively, if you are looking for furniture, getting it 2nd hand means that you are creating a double dividend for the environment; in that you are stopping used furniture going to landfill, and you are also forgoing the purchase of a new product, which would generate carbon emissions in its manufacture.
Another proposed way of 'neutralising' your carbon emissions is to ‘offset’ them using a scheme which, for example, could afforest a certain area to 'sequester' the carbon that you emit. Some offsetting schemes feed the money you provide into the UN’s Clean Development Mechanism, resulting in emissions savings in developing countries. If you are intending to offset, ensure that the scheme you choose offers ‘Certified Emissions Reductions’, which are approved by the UN.
For the more enthusiastic student, monitoring your energy and gas use can be a great way of getting to grips with your carbon footprint. Why not start slow, keeping records of your monthly meter readings of gas and electric, and then set your house or hall a target to reduce them by? Not only can all these ideas save you money, but can improve your quality of life.
But however you go about it, remember to take it one step at a time: like crash diets and kicking the habit, it helps if you make the little changes often, to make sure that they stick!
To calculate your current carbon footprint, and for more tips on how to reduce it, visit www.direct.gov.uk/ActOnCO2
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