New WildAid campaign addresses climate change, starting at the dinner table

WildAid has launched a new campaign in China to inspire action on simple steps we can all take to reduce our carbon footprint through daily choices around meals. This new "action starts the movement" campaign is a partnership between WildAid and the China Green Carbon Foundation and is supported by UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

Whether it's the staggering amount of food wasted around the world every year, or the plastic pollution from disposable cutlery and take-out containers, or the unsustainable amount of land and resources used for livestock agriculture, all of these impacts come back to the choices we make as consumers.

According to the FAO, global food waste accounts for the equivalent of 3.3 billion tons of CO2 released into the atmosphere each year. Meanwhile, a World Economic Forum report notes that the equivalent of a truck-load worth of plastic is dumped into our oceans every minute. Furthermore the FAO, calculates that livestock agriculture accounts for 7.1 Gigatons of CO2-equivalent per year, which can be greatly reduced by more well balanced or plant-based diets.

"The three meals that most of us eat each day can all be tied to some of these environmental impacts," notes Xie Duanduan, program manager at WildAid. "So we hope that this campaign can help inspire individuals to see the impact their consumer choices have on climate change," she added.

One of China's most sought-after celebrities, actor and singer Wang Yibo, will be leading the campaign, and spreading the message to his 30 million social media followers. WildAid hopes the new campaign will reach over 200 million viewers in China through outdoor advertising and social media partnerships.

Eager to use his public influence to inspire more people to adopt sustainable lifestyle choices, Wang Yibo noted "changing some of our choices for a better future should not be seen as a sacrifice, but instead as a form of progress and innovation. Any effort people make to reduce their environmental impacts should be applauded."

With the tagline "action starts the movement", this new campaign promotes simple actions on an individual level such as eating nutritionally balanced meals or brining your own cutlery. It also comes on the heels of China's announcement to go carbon neutral by 2060, an effort that will require extraordinary action by not only government and industry, but by the individual as well.

According to Zhang Zhongjun, assistant representative of the FAO China representative office, "this campaign aligns directly with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, especially on reducing food waste and promoting balanced diets. We hope everyone can participate in helping achieve these goals."

Liu Jiashun, secretary general of the China Green Carbon Foundation, further adds "our aim for this campaign is to bring together government, organizations, media, and business into a coalition to fight climate change."

The campaign is a part of WildAid's new program "EarthAid", using the organization's unrivaled network of media resources and proven campaign methodology to promote a range of lifestyle choices to reduce our own impacts on climate change and the environment.