Fight Climate Change – Protect Nature Challenge

Climate change is one of the top five causes of biodiversity loss and ecosystem decline.

Forests, wetlands and grasslands are important nature-based solutions to climate change, capturing carbon dioxide at a rate equivalent to about one third the amount of fossil fuels burned globally.

Here are the top five ways to combat climate change and protect nature:

1. Choose transportation wisely.
   • Walk, bike, take public transportation
   • If you need a car, consider car pooling, sharing or buying a zero-emission vehicle
2. Reduce water use.
   • Repair leaky faucets
   • Take shorter showers
   • Turn off the tap while brushing your teeth
   • Use rain and household grey water to water plants
   • Reduce the amount of water you use to leave some for wildlife and nature
3. Save energy.
   • Set your dishwasher to air-dry dishes
   • Wash laundry in cold water
   • Use a programmable thermostat, which could reduce the amount of energy your home uses for heating and cooling
   • Use energy-efficient light bulbs in your home
   • Close curtains on hot days instead of using an air conditioner
   • Use energy-efficient appliances
   • Hang your laundry up to dry instead of using a dryer
   • Turn lights off when you leave a room
   • Unplug, shut down, or turn off appliances that do not need to stay on
   • Instead of turning up the heat in your home, dress warmer
4. Don’t waste food.
   • Plan meals to make better use of food and reduce waste
   • Grow fresh herbs in your home or plant a food garden in your backyard
   • Use reusable plates and cutlery instead of single-use products
5. Protect forests and natural spaces.
   • Plant trees to reduce wood-product waste and support projects that help conserve forests here in Canada and around the world
   • Help conserve wetlands, grasslands, oceans and other wild spaces

For more tips, check out:

• Take climate action
• Eight things you should know about natural solutions to climate change.

Let’s do this together

Share these challenges with your friends and family and show us what you are doing by tagging us in your social media messages and by using the hashtag #ProtectNature.

We’re on Instagram @canenvironment, Facebook @EnvironmentandClimateChange and Twitter @environmentca.

Need inspiration?

Check out our list of challenges to help protect nature.