PLANET-SAVING ADVICE

DR Emily Grossman’s tips for how to talk to children about climate change:

Tell them the truth (and if you don’t understand the truth, read the free online guide: Emergency on Planet Earth). Telling the truth will help children trust you. Hold their hand through it, encourage them to talk to you about how they are feeling, and validate their emotions.

Answer any questions they have as honestly as you can. Reassure them we’re not doomed, it’s not too late, and they can make a difference. Emphasise that we’re all in this together — they don’t have to do it on their own, none of us can, but every little helps… and if we all work together we can change the world.

Dr Emily Grossman’s planetsaving tips for children: Cut down on how much new stuff you buy. Repair old clothes or take them to a charity shop

Waste less food, eat less meat and dairy (especially beef and lamb) and buy organic, sustainably-farmed vegetables if possible. Better still, plant your own!

Use the car less and try to avoid planes.

Walk or cycle to school, take public transport for longer journeys, and try a staycation.

Join an eco council at school. If there isn’t one, form one.

Join The Woodland Trust to help plant trees, or another environmental group like Greenpeace.

Write to your local MP to ask them to back green policies.

Talk to your parents about switching to a green energy provider and investing their money in banks that don’t back fossil fuels (many of the big banks do).

Tell your friends and brothers and sisters how they can help, too.

You can find more ideas in

Dr Emily Grossman’s WorldWhizzing Facts (Bloomsbury)