Your carbon footprint is the most common way to summarise the individual (or collective) impact on human induced climate change, primarily caused by carbon emissions. There are two main ways that carbon emissions can be reduced:

• Reduction of the personal energy consumption by free will on account of a higher consciousness of the population.
• Establishing appropriate commercial basic conditions within each country and between the countries.

Now changing what happens at an international and national level is a bit beyond most of us mere mortals… so sometimes making an impact on climate change can feel like a tall-order (if not an impossible one).

This paralysis to help change something that many of us feel is important, certainly for those of us privileged enough to live on a beautiful (yet low lying) islands is frustrating.
However, there are ways in which we can make a difference.

The most obvious and also current method is reducing energy consumption on our homes – given the reported electricity bills, this is something most of us would like to do anyway! Saving energy can be done in many different ways in the home: turning off lights, maintaining insulation and windows, maintaining roofs, checking refrigerator/freezer settings, using the economy settings on washing machines and dishwashers and keeping the AC at a suitable level. Saving energy can also help save money, which is an added bonus!

There are other, less obvious ways to help reduce our carbon foot print. One of the most understated methods is to support local produce, or grow your own, if you have the right garden space.

Supporting local island companies such as Caribo’s (homemade sausages and sauces) or East End Gardens and Gifts (nursery and local produce) would help to reduce your carbon foot print.

The Brasserie has a fantastic herb garden, that has a few off-shoots in their car park in Cricket Square – you can literally smell the fresh basil in the air, giving us all a gentle reminder that we can grow our own if we put our minds to it.

Not only does supporting local companies and local produce give the Cayman Islands community an economic boost but the produce is fresh, local and you know exactly who has prepared it!

Local markets are a growing trend in Grand Cayman and you can find fantastic local produce at Camana Bay on Wednesdays and Savannah’s ‘The Grounds’ on Saturdays.

So, there are ways in which we can all make a little difference which do help the overall picture (if everyone changed their habits a little bit, perhaps we wouldn’t have the problem!).

Even if the difference we make helps offset the bigger issues, like long-haul travel, it is better than not to try at all.

For more information,  visit timeforchange.org/global-warming-solutions-energy-consumption