News from is my Planet (MIMP)

MIMP climate change survey

The government, backed by scientists, states that climate change is the greatest environmental challenge facing the world today. Our challenge is to help people understand what this means – what climate change is, what effects it will have on us, and what we can all do as individuals to help tackle this issue.

is my Planet and the Evening News are launching an online survey in February. The survey aims to gauge attitudes towards climate change amongst the general public across Greater :

· Do people believe what they are told about climate change?

· What, if anything, are people prepared to do to take action?

The survey aspires to highlight how passionately Mancunians feel about their environment, and how much they are willing to work together to impact on Greater ’s commitment to tackle climate change.

Keep an eye out for the survey, which will be launched on Monday 5 February in the Evening News. It will be available on the is my Planet website, for two weeks. Please take just a few minutes to answer the survey and give us your thoughts. Answers are completely confidential and anonymous.

As an added incentive, everyone who completes the survey is entered into a draw to win one of five copies of Al Gore’s fantastic climate change film, ‘An Inconvenient Truth’.

Switch off to save energy

With reports emerging that Britain is bottom of the league as chief energy waster in Europe, what are we in Greater going to do about it? Energy ‘wasting’ includes leaving lights on, phone chargers plugged in, and leaving electrical items on stand-by.

Evidence shows that millions of us across the UK are not taking the simplest of steps to tackle climate change. So, what happens when we ‘waste’ energy like this?

The biggest source of CO2 emissions in the UK is from burning fossil fuels in power stations, which we contribute to when we use any appliance that uses mains electricity. Therefore, the more we switch off unnecessary lights, switches and plug sockets and don’t leave appliances on standby, the more energy and CO2 we save – simple! Let’s show the UK how it’s done!

Fact or Fiction?

There are many myths surrounding climate change – some people don’t even believe it is happening. This section aims to eliminate some of the confusion surrounding this issue, and give you some facts to tell your friends and family about climate change.

Fiction

“The climate is always changing – we’re not making it worse.”

Fact

Scientists have done the calculations and it is our actions over the last 150 years – such as the use of fossil fuels in industry, transport, and everyday activities – that have contributed to an increase in the amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.

Our actions and the way that we live are affecting the climate. We produce greenhouse gases when we use any electricity or heating in our homes, or fuel for our cars that has been generated by burning fossil fuels. Such actions mean that concentrations of these gases are increasing, which changes the balance of gases in the atmosphere, and heats up our planet.

Leila O’Sullivan, MIMP

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