We understand that the climate crisis can be overwhelming – climate anxiety can easily affect each and every one of us, especially when it feels like we’re too small to contribute.

But you CAN contribute to saving the planet, and it really is easier than it sounds!

Here are FIVE simple ways to do just that...

1) Manage your emails

How many emails do you think are sent in a day? 10,000? 100,000? 1 million?

Turns out it’s actually 347 BILLION (that’s right - with nine zeros)! And sending, receiving, and storing these emails take up loads of energy.

So what you can do is delete old emails that are piled up in your account and unsubscribe from the email services that you don’t need.

Simply by doing this, you’ve already saved loads of energy and reduced your carbon footprint!

But for more such tips, you really should subscribe to our email lists – and don’t worry, we don’t spam our students 😉

2) Correctly dispose of your electronic equipment

As a general rule, electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) shouldn't be disposed of along with the household waste.

EEE may contain hazardous substances which, if exposed, could cause a seriously detrimental effect on the environment, wildlife, and human health.

So what can you do? Well, if your equipment is working, you can donate it to charitable organizations near you.

If not, the nearest recycling bank is Tesco at the Salford Shopping Centre. And don't forget you can get there for free on the 50 bus – why not save the planet before doing your grocery shopping? Which reminds us...

3) Reuse your shopping bags

Plastic waste is one of the biggest problems our planet faces today, and a large part of this is due to single-use plastics... enter, the carrier bag! 

We all forget to bring bags for grocery shopping sometimes and need to buy some at the store, and that’s all right! But make sure those bags don’t end up in the bin after a single use.

You can reuse them in multiple ways – grocery shopping, liners for your own bins, use as a wet bag, smaller bags can be used to pick up dog... you know what... and so on.

And if you want to take this a step further, you can even invest in buying cloth bags for groceries! They definitely don't break as often!

4) Donate your time

Volunteering is one of the most impactful ways of saving the environment.

And by being a part of a team, you can make changes on an even larger scale!

It's also great for so many other reasons - here's a few...

• Help local communities
• Learn new skills
• Meet new people
• It looks GREAT on your CV

And here at your SU, there's loads of groups you can volunteer with, so check out our Volunteering Hub to find out more!

And finally...

5) Take brisk showers

Assuming you ARE taking showers, we advise taking brisk ones – taking short showers saves time, water, and energy needed to heat up the water.

Apart from reducing your carbon footprint and saving the planet, you will also spend less on energy bills!

These small efforts make BIG changes, so make sure you start doing these and share this article with a friend to show them how easy it is!

If you already have a way to tackle the climate crisis that we haven’t mentioned, let us know in the comments below! 👇