Tips and tricks for reducing your carbon footprint

Together with our partners, myclimate and MYBLUEPLANET, we have put together some tips and tricks on how you can reduce your carbon footprint. There are many ways in which you can reduce it and help the environment; whether you’re at home, work, or you’re travelling, small changes can make a difference.

Our top 3:

Less is more. Reduce your CO₂ footprint with mindful consumption – this doesn’t just reduce your carbon footprint, it also saves you money.
Use energy-saving bulbs and LEDs. They will last longer and are more efficient, allowing you to save up to 7 kg of CO2 per year. For 20 light bulbs in a house, this equates to about 140 kg of CO2 per year.
MYBLUEPLANET has set up a dedicated ClimateActions App which shows you how you can save CO₂ and conserve resources in your everyday life.

At home

Switch the lights off when you leave a room.
Let your clothes dry naturally on a drying rack or outside on a rotary dryer.
When cooking and especially when boiling water, cover your pots with a lid. You’ll use less energy and save time.
Buy a thermometer to track the temperature in your home. The Federal Office of Public Health recommends a room temperature of 20 to 21°C. You may be able to lower the room temperature by a degree or two, which can reduce your CO2 footprint. In 2022, 15% of Swiss greenhouse gas emissions were related to household energy consumption, mainly heating. For example, the residents of the city of Zurich emit 1.9 tons of CO2 per person each year.

Transport

Use public transport such as trains or buses wherever available. In Switzerland, it is 25 times climate-friendlier to travel by train than by car. In France, it is 12.4 times and in Germany, 3 times climate-friendlier.¹
Avoid flying if possible. When compared with other forms of transport, planes produce the highest carbon emissions. This reduces an individual’s carbon footprint drastically.
Use your bicycle to get around whenever possible.

¹ The differences here can be explained by the different energy production methods used in these countries. Based on the resulting energy mix, train journeys produce more or fewer emissions, which are damaging to the environment. (Source myclimate)

Shopping

Purchase second-hand clothing whenever possible.
Consider renting products that you rarely use and opting for shared services, such as car sharing.
Remember that every product, not just electronic equipment, produces greenhouse gas emissions throughout its entire life cycle – from production, transportation and use through to its recycling. The average Swiss buys about 65 new items of clothing a year. A simple white cotton T-shirt (220 g) with a lifespan of about 55 washes causes around 11 kg of CO₂ emissions, that is, about 50 times its own weight.
Buy local products: For example, a T-shirt made in Switzerland with organic cotton has an 80% lower carbon footprint than a T-shirt from overseas.

Food and groceries

Take a look at what you eat and where it may have come from. Try buying regional products that are in season.
The CO₂ emissions caused by animal products significantly exceed those of plant-based products. For example, 1 kg of fruit or vegetables produces around 1 kg of CO₂, while 1 kg of beef produces around 20 kg of CO₂.
Did you know that an average meal produces 1.6 kg of CO₂ per serving? MYBLUEPLANET has created delicious low-carbon recipes with only 600g of CO₂ per serving.

These tips and tricks were developed together with our partner organizations:

Further information:

Do you want to be continuously challenged to find different ways of helping to save the environment? Use the service provided by our partner, MYBLUEPLANET: the ClimateActions app shows you how you can save CO₂ and conserve resources in everyday life.
Find out more about the topic of climate protection with the myclimate climate booklet.
If you’re interested in learning more about our carbon footprint tracker, please read our FAQs.

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