5 Ways to Curb Climate Change:Governments, businesses, and utilities are moving toward cleaner energy. But the push to trim carbon emissions begins with changing how we live.

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/climate-change/how-to-fix-it/index.html

Transportation

If you want to use the cleanest mode of transportation, nothing beats walking or biking, which create zero greenhouse gases beyond those produced making the bike and the food you eat. From there, it’s far more complicated. According to the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, transit buses use more energy per passenger-mile than cars. For long distances, you’re better off flying—carpooling in the sky—or, for the ultraprudent, taking a train.

Calculations will change as the world’s fleet shifts from fossil fuels to electric. “By 2035 there will be very few conventional gasoline or diesel cars being sold,” says Dan Sperling, director of UC Davis’s Institute of Transportation Studies. Global trends toward mass urbanization make infrastructure planning easier. They also raise the likelihood that more people will take trains, bikes, or their own feet to get from A to B.

Repowering

To move toward cleaner energy without sending power plants into premature retirement, companies are making over plants, switching fuels, and boosting efficiency. Some utilities are “repowering” coal plants like this one in Newburgh, New York (above), to run on cleaner natural gas or biomass; nearly 50 units are slated for retrofits in the U.S. alone. “Repowering” is an industry term, but the concept also applies to trucks, buildings, and land. For businesses loath to see valuable assets become obsolete, it’s a no-brainer. California garbage hauler Ratto Group is replacing the guts of 17 diesel trucks with electric systems that will meet state air regulations. “This gives me the ability to keep the vehicles that I currently have,” says COO Lou Ratto, “and keep these things going for as long as I want to.”

Cities

More than half the world’s population lives in urban areas. By 2050 cities will likely be bursting with two-thirds of the people on the planet. Since urban areas already account for an estimated 76 percent of CO₂ emissions from energy use—and many are especially vulnerable to flooding and higher temperatures—it makes sense that city officials are taking on climate change. After all, doing so also gives them a shot at reducing pollution, improving aging infrastructure, and making their cities more attractive to residents and businesses.

 

Nations

In 2014 the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change warned of “severe, pervasive and irreversible impacts” unless greenhouse gases are curtailed. More than 830 scientists, bringing the concerns of the 80-plus nations they call home, contributed to the report. Within their borders and on the world stage, nations wield influence that individuals, cities, and businesses cannot. Their policies can spur green innovation or stunt it, toughen pollution standards or weaken them. The fate of any accord on climate change lies in their hands.

 

World

Geoengineering is a catchall term for deliberate large-scale interventions in the planetary environment that are designed to counteract climate change. As global carbon emissions rise, advocates say more research into geoengineering is needed. But hacking the planet carries unknown risks, and the politics of planetwide climate intervention would likely be complex. For starters, governments might need to agree on whether to even try cooling an overheated Earth, an extreme measure that could harm some countries while helping others.