The Keep Leicester Cool campaign aims to promote a Top Ten of easy, affordable actions everyone can take to reduce their own individual contribution to climate and deal with the consequences. The ten key steps you can take to make a difference are:
1/ Insulate your home - This will help to reduce the amount of fossil fuels used for heating - and save you money at the same time. Residential houses produce more carbon dioxide through room heating than anything else!
2/ Switch to renewable energy - The sun's rays can be used to heat water with solar panels or produce electricity with photovoltaic panels. You will have to invest some money to buy this equipment, but government grants are available to reduce the cost and it will pay off in the long-run. You could also get a green tariff from your electricity company, so all your electricity will come from renewable sources such as wind, wave and solar power. Companies like Ecotricity will match the price of your local supplier.
3/ An even simpler step is to remember to switch everything off when you are not using it! Why waste money and add to global warming by leaving heating, lighting and appliances on when you do not need them.
4/ Recycle - Waste has to be transported to landfill sites and gives off greenhouse gases as it is left to decompose.
5/ Start composting - Instead of adding to the burden on landfill sites, use your green waste a great, natural fertiliser for your garden.
6/ Make your garden greener - You will be helping to provide a natural remedy for global warming. Trees and plants soak up carbon dioxide, the main gas which causes the problem.
7/ Look at the way you travel - Walk, cycle or use public transport whenever possible to reduce the amount of petrol used.
8/ And think before you fly - Despite being a form of public transport, air travel requires an enormous amount of fuel.
9/ Buy local goods - This will reduce the amount of transport needed to deliver them to your area and also boost the local economy.
10/ Save water - Whatever action we take now will take at least 50 years to make a difference to global warming. In the meantime, we must learn to live with the effects of climate change. One of the most important steps we can take is to save water wherever possible. This precious resource needs to be looked after carefully if we are going to experience drier summers and wetter winters.