Questions & Answers
The questions concerning „Become Sustainable“ that we come across and the concerns we hear during our discussions you will find in the list below. If your question or concern is not answered here, please send an email to info@BecomeSustainable.org and we will try to help you.
Here you can find a lot of general questions and answers concerning carbon footprint, green house effect, carbon neutral, net carbon zero, compensation etc.
Q: I use a car to come to meetings and have no alternative, how can i reduce my CO2 footprint?
A: There are different options. You can try to drive together with friends in one car to reduce emissions per head. Your club could conduct online meetings e.g. once/month. If you want to invest in anew car, opt for a small fuel efficient or electric car. Charge an electric car with renewable energy.
Q: Why do we have to act as Rotarians?
A: To reduce the amount of global warming to a minimum it is necessary that everyone acts and each individual action counts! Some governments are starting to act and more and more companies start as well. As Rotary we should be in a leading role or even a role model – and not the last ones to act! Otherwise we will not be relevant and accepted in the future!
Q: Why is the Rotarian 4-Way Test also urging us to act?
A: The fourth question in the test: „Will it be beneficial to all concerned“ is giving us a clear direction: The climate change is certainly not beneficial especially to people in poorer countries, they are endangered by rising sea levels, no rain or too much rain etc. Therefore we have to start now to reduce our CO2 emissions and make our contribution to keeping the global warming as low as possible.
Q: Do you also calculate the private footprint of all members as part of the club CO2 footprint?
A: No, we think it is important to calculate only the CO2 footprint of the club activities. Therefore we also do not calculate meals – if there was no meeting you would also eat at home, wouldn´t you? It is a private decision if a member wants to reduce his footprint or not. What we see is that the discussions in the club about sustainability topics, the „5 minutes for sustainability“ gradually raise the awareness of more and more members and is influential on their private behavior and their business decisions.
Q: Do you propose to stop regular meetings and conduct only online meetings to reduce emissions?
A: No, we think it is very helpful for a healthy club life to see your friends personally on a regular basis. Instead we think it makes sense to conduct club meetings and events in a smart way: by choosing public transport (where possible), electrified vehicles or bikes etc. you can dramatically reduce the footprint of meetings.
… list will be continued …