A new year. New cubs. Fresh, untracked snow. As 2012 begins, take a moment to think about your habits and find ways to increase your commitment to a low-carbon lifestyle. Will this be the year you switch to reusable bags? Conduct a home energy audit? Stop idling your car and walk inside?
We all have good intentions, but how do you turn a resolution into a habit? Recent behavioral studies offer insights.
One key to success is to break big goals—like exercising more or reducing your carbon footprint—into simple, specific actions. So, to successfully lower your carbon output, begin by making a short list of achievable goals. (Visit our How to Live Greener page for some ideas.)
Next, develop a set of signals to trigger those behaviors:
- A five-minute sand timer sitting next to the soap in the shower will serve as a reminder to take shorter showers.
- Placing your reusable bags on the passenger seat of your car will increase the likelihood that you’ll remember to bring them into the grocery store.
- And jotting reminders on your calendar to switch to meatless Mondays could help you transition to an increased number of vegetarian meals.
Studies show that it takes an average of 66 days to form a new habit. We suggest starting with two or three behaviors that you want to change—and then starting another list after you've achieved them. The science shows that multiple small actions do add up. To paraphrase Gandhi, Let the change begin with you.
Siku, a polar bear cub being hand-raised in Denmark at the Scandinavian Wildlife Park, one of our Arctic Ambassador Centers, is raising awareness of melting arctic sea ice by melting hearts worldwide. His New Year’s wish, according to Park Director Frank Vigh-Larsen, is for each of us to reduce our carbon footprint to help save polar bear habitat.
Top photo, ©Daniel J. Cox/Natural Exposures. Bottom photo, ©Soren Koch, Hilmer & Koch Naturfotografi/Skandinavisk Dyrepark.
|
