You want to save the rainforest and are looking for effective everyday tips? Then you've come to the right place! Tropical rainforests are, among other things, CO2 and water reservoirs, suppliers of medicines and, last but not least, the most biodiverse habitat for countless animal and plant species on our planet. Unfortunately, we humans are their biggest threat. The Deforestation for human purposes is the essential cause of this.
So, bizarrely, we have to protect the rainforests from ourselves. Fortunately, there are many ways and means to actively or passively support rainforest protection in everyday life.
In this article, I would like to introduce you to the most valuable tips that you can use to save the rainforest. Let's go!
16 tips: How can I protect the rainforest in my everyday life?
The rainforest is the green lung of our planet and one of the largest CO2 reservoirs. Every square meter that is burned, cleared and taken away for human "needs" restricts the rainforest in its function. climate change, species extinction and rising sea levels are just some of the ecological consequences that we humans cause through our greed.
Here I would like to show you now the everyday things with which you can protect the rainforest and the Stop species extinction simply by following your heart.
1. stop the consumption of palm oil
Nowadays, palm oil is in every second supermarket product. In cosmetics, cleaning agents and above all in food! For corporations, they mean big profits - for many small farmers, unfortunately, existential fears. The diverse rainforest must Palm oil plantations and thus contributes significantly to the species extinction with. These monotonous plantations have spread worldwide to the size of the area of New Zealand and are costing the orangutan its habitat, for example.
Tip: It is best to scan products briefly with the App CodeCheckto find out at a glance whether it contains any substances of concern such as palm oil or even Microplastics are included.
2. do not buy garden furniture made of tropical wood
Why does a wooden garden chair have to be from the tropical rainforest? Our domestic wood species (oak, robinia and larch) are also robust and do not require long transport routes, illegal logging and the endangerment of particularly species-rich rainforests. Orient yourself when buying also on the FSC seal for sustainable forestry.
Tip: Look times in the Furniture DIY Blog over. For example, you can also get a Build dining table yourself from old oak planks.
3. stop your meat consumption
Yes we have always eaten meat and also needed it for survival in early human history. But today we chew it only out of tradition, habit, convenience and taste. But it has long since ceased to be essential for life.
On the contrary, the regular consumption of meat is one of the main reasons for today's Diseases of civilization such as heart disease, high blood pressure or obesity. And the rainforest? The main reason for its deforestation are other Livestock pastures and the Cultivation of animal feed. Nearly three quarters of the world's soybean harvest ends up as crushed animal feed in industrial Factory farming.₁
So reduce a meat consumption, cook only vegetarian or start directly with a vegan trial month, in order to Variety of vegetable, animal and climate friendly cuisine. appreciate
Tip: If giving up meat is hard for you, be sure to check out the Dominion film on. If you have a heart for animals, it will motivate you no end.
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Eat animals13 €
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Vegan is nonsense!24 €
4. do without barbecue charcoal from tropical wood
For a long time I didn't know myself that tropical wood is processed into barbecue charcoal. I became aware of this through a Investigation by Stiftung Warentest, which took a closer look at different brands of barbecue charcoal sold Germany.
The result: about 30 percent of the products contained tropical wood.₂ And another supplementary fact: around 85 percent of the barbecue charcoal consumed in Germany is imported.₃ Thus one has set fire to the rainforest quasi proverbially itself - just in your own garden.
So if you want to save the rainforest, it makes perfect sense to simply find a forest-friendly alternative. For example Barbecue charcoal from corn on the coba waste product of the corn industry. Personally, I now simply grill with a Electric grill and green electricity, so that in the long run no more forests have to be cut down for my barbecue enjoyment.
Tip: At vegan barbecue you'll get plenty of inspiration to protect not only the rainforests but also the animals at your next barbecue.
5. print out only what is necessary
A rather crucial reason for the deforestation of trees is our high Paper consumption. Just be more aware of the resource wood and paper, use recycled paper and only print something when it really makes sense.
Save files digitally insteadThis saves paper and a lot of time searching for the right folder. There are really countless ways to Save paper.
Tip: Also under Paperless office you will find many more ideas and tips.
6. do not fill up with biofuel
Biofuel often contains plant-based raw materials, such as Sugar cane or Palm oilfor which rainforest is cleared. The price of a liter of gasoline is therefore usually much more expensive than the one on the display at the gas station. It is only paid by the environment, animals and other people.
Therefore, if you have the opportunity, you should try, get along without a car and as often as possible, the public transport or the bicycle to use.
Tip: I have written you a detailed article about sustainable driving written. Feel free to check it out to make driving more eco-friendly if you absolutely can't manage without a car in your daily life.
7. learn to live vegan
Veganism is about, Put an end to the exploitation of animalsThe aim is to achieve this by completely eliminating the consumption and use of animal products such as meat, eggs, milk, fur and leather. Due to the decreasing or lack of demand must then also be no rainforest cleared for animal feed cultivation become. The positive, environmental, health and ethical impacts are key in the fight against almost all Environmental problems of our time.
I know. Meat, milk, cheese, eggs... these are all things that you've basically eaten or bought all your life. And now it's just supposed to end? I, too, have consumed animal products for 30 years of my life. But then I learned why I should stop doing it - and went through with it.
Tip: In the article "Why vegan? The reasons for veganism"I'll explain what exactly motivated me to do this. Also, I can give you the article about Veganism and human rights to the heart. There you will learn why vegan living is not only for the animals, but also for indigenous peoples in the rainforests, for example.
8. make your food shopping more sustainable
If you want to save the rainforest, you should get your Make purchasing more regional and especially for tropical products, such as coffee, cocoa or exotic fruits (e.g. avocados), on the Fairtrade- and Organic seal pay attention! Please also think of palm oil as an additive in many foods and cosmetics.
You are not sure whether palm oil is in a product? Then it's best to use the App CodeCheck, in order to Scan barcode and to find out in seconds whether it contains palm oil for which the rainforest is being cut down.
9. value the precious metals in smartphone & Co.
Where would we be today without a smartphone? It helps to be aware of how good we actually have it - and how valuable the natural resources are actually in the device. Of course, we do not need a new phone every year!
Rare precious metals like Cobalt or Palladium are usually only found in the soils of tropical forests. If you want to protect the rainforest, you should therefore try to take good care of your smartphone and other technical devices so that you can use them for as long as possible - instead of chasing new trends.
10. reduce your petroleum consumption
Not only biofuel destroys the rainforest. The untouched soils of the rainforests are usually rich in petroleum. In order to protect the deposits and thus also the forest, you should therefore consciously Save gasoline.
In the same way you should Reduce plastic consumption. Because Plastic consists of petroleum or raw gasoline. For example, avoid disposable products and use reusable alternatives in order to save the raw material petroleum and also your to save your own wallet.
Tip: At plastic free living, you'll learn about lots of other potential for making less single-use plastic waste in your everyday life.
11. save aluminum
Rainforests are also being cleared to access coveted mineral resources such as aluminum ore. Bauxite to get there. But even by making conscious purchasing decisions, we can reduce the use of Reduce aluminum.
Find alternatives or minimize your consumption of the productswhich often contain aluminum or are packaged with the help of the raw material. For example, yogurt lids, beverage cans, deodorants, tetra packs, coffee, chocolate bars, chewing gum - and not least the classic aluminum foil.
It is not always possible to avoid the consumption of aluminum products. Through the Feeding into the recycling circuit the valuable metal can then still be reused as sensibly as possible, so that the soil kingdom of the rainforests is conserved.
12. use Ecosia as search engine
You want to know something? Then use for your questions in the future simply the sustainable search engine Ecosia. The quality of the search results is extremely high.
The difference between Ecosia and traditional search engines is that Ecosia 80 percent of the surplus revenue to charitable organizations which primarily counteract the deforestation of forests. According to its own information, the company also plants a tree for every 45th search query.
13. reduce your personal CO2 emissions
Climate change is having a massive impact on all global ecosystems. So by reducing your personal carbon footprint, you're also helping to protect rainforests.
Drink for example Tap water instead of the water from the plastic bottleThe production and transport of which releases huge amounts of CO2. Also renounce the consumption of animal products. Because about 15 percent of all greenhouse gases caused by humans worldwide, are attributable to livestock farming alone.₄ Of course, also try to get on a plane as little as possible and prefer instead a more sustainable travel behavior.
Tip: Have you ever thought about changing your Offset CO2 emissions. For example, you can offset the climate impact of your unavoidable flights and car trips by donating to climate protection projects.
14. start and sign petitions
A really effective way to get a rainforest-specific grievance out of the world offers you the Start an online petition.
You must have such digital Signature collections not even bring it into being yourself. Maybe you will find here at Adventure rainforest.com already have a petition that appeals to you. You can then of course not only sign it, but also share with friends or your followers.
If we want to save the rainforest, we have to follow the Lobbying of the companies profiting from the clearing definitely work against it collectively. Petitions are a sensible, effective means in this respect.
15. support rainforest projects
If you want to protect the rainforest, the animals and plants that live there, and the indigenous peoples, making a financial donation to organizations that work every day to protect the rainforest will also help. Here are some examples:
- Amazon Watch
- Rainforest Action Network
- Rainforest Trust
- WWF
- …
Through your donation, you are helping to prevent the extinction of species. The projects are dedicated, for example, to the protection of birds or gorillas - and of course also to the protection against land grabbing.
Tip: How about dedicating your professional life to rainforest conservation as well? Have a look at the sustainable job portal after. Maybe you will find a suitable job there!
16. share your attitude
At the latest now you know how you can save the rainforest in your everyday life. And now that you know better, you can also act better and take a Be a role model for other people.
Recognize and use appropriate opportunities in everyday conversationsto show them how they themselves can contribute to the protection of the rainforest. Drive the positive change in our society towards a more sustainable lifestyle ahead. In this way, you not only make your own everyday life more "rainforest-friendly", but also the lives of other people.
Save rainforest and protect our planet!
You can even save the rainforest by doing nothing. For example, by avoiding unnecessary car journeys and pointless printouts in the office. Avoiding meat and cow's milk is also super easy these days, since there are so many plant-based alternatives like meat-like soy and pea patties or oat, almond and soy milk.
And if you then want to do even more for the rainforest, then raise your voice, support petitions and organizations that fight daily to protect tropical forests.
"To cut down a beautiful tree, it hardly takes half an hour. To grow until it is admired, it takes, consider it, a century!
Eugen Roth
I hope I could give you some tips for rainforest protection. Do you have any questions or ideas? Then just write me a comment.
Stay sustainable,
PS: For example, you count the deforestation of the Amazon rainforest as one of the major Climate tipping points. In the linked post, you'll learn what other tipping points are further accelerating climate change.
References:
₁ Albert Schweitzer Foundation for Our Environment: Why Soy Sausage Doesn't Harm the Rainforest (Accessed 01 Jun. 2018). https://t1p.de/jzvz. [20.06.2023].
₂ Stiftung Warentest: Grillkohle - Wo ist Tropenholz drin, welche ist ökologisch unbedenklich? (As of: May 21, 2019), available at https://www.test.de/Grillkohle-CSR-Test-5474364-0 [20.06.2023].
₃ BILD: The Dirty Business of Barbecue Charcoal (as of 04.07.2018), available at https://www.bild.de/ratgeber/verbrauchertipps/grillen/traegt-zur-zerstoerung-von-urwaeldern-bei-56211078.bild.html. [20.06.2023].
₄ Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO): livestock's long shadow environmental issues and options, available at https://t1p.de/2044 [20.06.2023].
