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Transport

In most high-income countries, personal transport is the lifestyle domain with the largest contribution to the overall .

The world¡¯s roadways are clogged with vehicles, most of them burning fossil fuels. Fossil fuels power the ships that carry trade and the airplanes that allow us to travel.

 have more than doubled since 1970, with around 80% of this increase coming from road vehicles.

 account for 80% of total motorized passenger-kilometres, with much of the world¡¯s population hardly travelling at all.

But we do have alternatives to driving that can make a difference. Walking, biking, urban public transit and trains help reduce air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.

 can help reduce emissions, improve air quality and boost green jobs ¡ª if the electricity is not powered by fossil fuels. By achieving a 60% share of battery-electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles on the road, more than  between now and 2050.

Domestic and International aviation is responsible for about , and an estimated  is responsible for more than half of these emissions.

Food

Three billion people cannot afford a healthy diet. Two billion are overweight or obese. Food systems generate one-third of all greenhouse gas emissions and are responsible for up to 80% of biodiversity loss.

. This amounts to a big waste of resources used in production, such as land, water, energy and other inputs, and unnecessary greenhouse gas emissions. By reducing food waste, you can save money, reduce emissions, and help preserve resources for future generations.

Meat and dairy provide just  consumed, but use 83% of global farmland and are responsible for 60% of agriculture¡¯s greenhouse gas emissions.

Shifting to healthy diets that include sustainability considerations can contribute to reductions in environmental impacts on land, energy and water use.

, such as vegetables, fruits, whole grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds, and lower in animal-based foods, has a lower environmental impact (greenhouse gas emissions and energy, land, and water use).

Fashion

Being stylish does not mean being wasteful. Buying fewer clothes, shopping second-hand, or upcycling, i.e. creating new clothes out of old ones, helps save water and reduce waste.

, clothing production has doubled while the number of times a garment is worn before being discarded has decreased by 36%.

The fashion industry (clothing and footwear) produces  and  annually.

It takes about  -- from the production of the cotton to the delivery of the final product to the store. 

 although most of these materials could be reused. Every second, the equivalent of one garbage truck full of textiles is landfilled or burned.

Some  -- enough to meet the consumption needs of five million people -- is used by the fashion industry annually.

Waste

Every year, an estimated is collected worldwide, and decay of the organic proportion of solid waste is contributing about 5% of global greenhouse gas emissions.

Where waste cannot be avoided, recycling leads to substantial resource savings. For every tonne of , 17 trees and 50% of water can be saved.

: the recycling sector employs 12 million people in Brazil, China and United States alone.

. About 12% has been incinerated, while the rest ¡ª 79% ¡ª has accumulated in landfills, dumps or the natural environment.

Using a refillable bottle, bringing your own reusable bag, and asking the restaurants you frequent to stop using plastic straws helps reduce plastic waste.

Around the world, , while up to . In total, half of all plastic produced is designed to be used only once ¡ª and then thrown away.

From 2010 to 2019, grew from 5.3 to 7.3 kilograms per capita annually. Meanwhile, the environmentally sound recycling of e-waste increased at a much slower pace ¨C from 0.8 to 1.3 kilograms per capita annually.

Water

Water is a precious resource: , of which 2.5% is frozen in the Antarctica, Arctic and glaciers. And  than nature can recycle and purify water in rivers and lakes.

Using water smartly can help us ensure a steady flow of clean, safe water.

You can save water by taking shorter showers, turning off the tap when brushing your teeth, installing a low-flow toilet, and many other ways.

With one shower of about 10 minutes a day, an average person consumes the equivalent of over  every year.

, or nearly two thirds of the world population, at least one month each year.

, accounting for 72% of annual water withdrawals globally. Shifting towards a plant-based diet is one of the most impactful actions one can take to save water.