Hey team, and welcome back to one5c! We’re going to do something a little different today. Rather than us delivering a dive into how you can live a more climate-conscious existence on a given topic—like dialing down your AC usage or wading through what to do about palm oil—I’m handing the mic over to you. Why?
The thesis of one5c is that small changes add up—and that change creates more change. Living our lives in a way that respects and conserves resources is as much a mindset as it is a checklist of climate-action to-dos. That is to say: Once you start making tiny tweaks to your day-to-day life, you start to see more opportunities everywhere.
I won’t pretend this is some revelatory notion. I’ve heard from a lot of you about the great habits you already have—from your composting routines to how you reuse the plastic bags your e-comm orders ship in. Many of you signed up for this newsletter to get fresh inspiration about what else you can do. And many of you signed up because you’re trying to figure out where to start.
So, it’s sharing time! We want to know your favorite world-saving tips, tricks, and hacks—the small things that are now unconscious standard practices in your lives. I’ll go first: We have an “eat me first” shelf in the fridge, a place where we move any food that’s nearing the end of its edible life. My household started doing this earlier this year after one5c rolled out our comprehensive guide to reducing food waste, including a range of storage tips. Spoiler: It works great.
Hit the button below to tell us your tip, and we might feature it in an upcoming newsletter. I’m excited to hear ’em! —Corinne
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THE ROUNDUP
In the news this week
The pace of global heating could slow down in the coming decades, according to new analysis in the journal Environmental Research Letters. In 2025, the researchers anticipate the rate of warming will be 0.21 degrees Celsius (0.38 degrees Fahrenheit), but current mitigation efforts stand to slow that down to 0.15 C (0.27 F) by 2050. Naturally, the findings are heavily caveated, as factors like weather patterns can shift things around.
A new poll from Heatmap has ID’d Americans’ top concern with renewable energy projects. It’s not that they think turbines are ugly or that electricity from them could be unreliable. It’s that they’re worried about the projects’ impact on wildlife. The results highlight an existing tension between concerns that are squarely environmental and ones that are squarely climate—one that marketers have long exploited to sow discontent about renewables. The crucial connection to make, though, is that human-caused climate change is itself a major threat to wildlife habitats.
Elon Musk interviewed Donald Trump for two hours earlier this week, and the duo’s perspectives on climate were, unsurprisingly, all over the factual map. Trump, for example, offered that sea-level rise would create more desirable beachfront property. Musk, meanwhile, trotted out some sketch math to support the idea that the world is not actually nearing any major climate tipping point. Bill McKibben’s breakdown on The Crucial Years gets into all the deets.
The world’s largest pumped hydro plant came fully online in China, surpassing a U.S. facility. The facility, called Fengning, can provide up to 3.6 gigawatts of power. The plant uses a novel variable-speed technology to adjust to grid demand. “During times of excess power, pumps are used to push water to reservoirs uphill. When more energy is required, gravity pulls the water back down through a turbine that generates electricity,” Bloomberg reports.
This last one’s a touch old, but we just love it too much. Daiya Foods, which makes a variety of plant-based cheeses, had major lines at its booth at the Wisconsin State Fair earlier this month. Even devoted cheeseheads were reportedly very into the company’s samples of nondairy grilled cheeses and quesadillas. But this last bit might be our favorite part: The booth was set up at the intersection of Main Street and Dairy Lane on the fairgrounds.