Air travel (aviation) contributes about 2% of global carbon emissions. Cows account for about 6%.
Energy production is by far the largest source of carbon emissions, so reducing fossil fuel use is the biggest priority, but because transport uses fossil fuel, that is also a sector that will need to change significantly.

In Australia, cows account for about 10% of carbon emissions, so more than the global figure, because Australia does produce a lot of beef. In Australia cars are responsible for about 10% of emissions as well, while aviation sits around the same level in Australia as globally, at 2%.

So reducing air travel, car travel and red meat consumption are all powerful ways to fight climate change, but reducing our reliance on fossil fuels and switching to renewable energy wherever possible is the biggest area to improve.

This is such an interesting question, because of all the different connections between the climate and our behaviour that feedback on each other. The climate is always changing and events like volcano eruptions and heatwaves can impact the climate the climate. Dramatic events can also be socially driven and have an impact on climate, like wars, or COVID-19. That’s because humans are part of the ecosystem and what we do has ripple effects on everything else, especially because there are so many of us now! The world population is over 8 billion people. So how we live, the gases we produce in our transport and food production and the way we change landscapes, removing trees and building large concrete structures can impact the way heat is absorbed and feedback into the climate system.

Although it might not seem as dramatic as a volcano or war, climate change is different to these other types of climate influences, because it is so persistent. It is also getting faster. It’s a bit like falling over compared to rolling down a hill. Collectively, humans add up to a big influence on the gases in the atmosphere that cause climate change. The way we live is increasingly fast paced and impactful, so like gathering speed as we roll down the hill, unless we change our lifestyles, our impacts will continue to trend up rather than slow down. By comparison, other dramatic climate events are just a pebble in our path.

For more information, and a cool graph of how the temperature on Earth has changed over millions of years, check out the answer to ‘Why is climate change a problem if climate has constantly changed in the past?’.

Most of the methane that cows produce comes from burps, rather than farts. Cows fart (and burp) because they have to digest grass, which is quite hard to break down. Did you know cows have four different stomachs? And they chew their food twice? Imagine if you had four stomachs! You would probably fart and burp more too. Seaweed can be added to a cow’s diet to help reduce the amount a cow farts and burps. They are still looking into why this is and how to maximise these results, but it is very promising, as they have found that cows who eat seaweed burp and fart around 80% less.  

Burps and farts produce methane which is a potent greenhouse gas. It makes climate change because it absorbs the light from the sun and so traps the heat in our atmosphere, creating the warming that contributes to climate change.   

We are using modern technology to combat climate change, but not to its full potential (yet). There is still more that could be achieved with solar power technology, batteries, alternatives to plastics and recycling, among many other things. Some exciting and innovative new ideas include paint that can convert energy from the sun – which could then be used on roads or on houses.

There are also efforts underway to produce fully biodegradable plastic alternatives, from seaweed or plant fibres. We also have a lot of exciting development happening in electric cars and infrastructure for solar charging stations. This will all help us move away from a reliance on fossil fuels, which is the main cause of climate change. 

As well as helping us to reduce the causes of climate change, modern technologies can also help us to adapt to the changes climate change will bring. We can use models and satellites to predict extreme events ahead of time so we can plan ways to reduce the impacts. Farmers can use technology to help them plant crops more suited to future climate. We can also use technology to build houses that are more energy efficient, and plan new developments in ways that take into account climate change. 

Modern technology is a useful part of our response to climate change, but we also https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ci6LKz0ajfI&t=7sneed to do other things too, like reducing our consumption (see Curious Climate Schools what can I do?). Climate change needs a range of responses, we can’t rely on technology alone. 

This is a great question as it highlights the important role of thinking about our food choices in responding to climate change. But if everyone in the world was vegan, that wouldn’t necessarily be the best way to help slow climate change because we would need a very large land area to grow enough crops. Cutting down trees to clear land for crops is not helpful for climate change because we need trees to help take carbon out of the air.

So instead of everyone in the world being vegan it would be better if everyone in the world reduced how much beef and lamb they ate to maybe once or twice a week or even less and for the rest of the time ate more chicken, fish or vegetarian meals. It is healthier for us to eat less red meat anyway and in Australia we already eat far more red meat than dieticians recommend. That is because we farm a lot of cattle here and our access to high quality and affordable meat is good.

Being vegan can be a much more environmentally sustainable way of eating if you are eating local (or home grown) produce, but it can have health implications for some people, especially children, so it is important to make the decision considering health as well. So the answer is yes, being vegan can really help to reduce emissions but the key part is being aware of what you are eating.

There are also other options to eat more sustainably. Eating food that you grow yourself is great. Do you have chickens at home? As well as eating more locally produced food, including meat. Trying to reduce waste from the food that you eat is also helpful. Eating kangaroo and wallaby is another great option for red meat! Have you tried wallaby? It is great on the BBQ or in a curry. So it is helpful for climate change and our health to reduce the amount of meat we eat, particularly red meat, but meat is still ok in small amounts. Thinking about what we are eating, how it was produced and where it is coming from and making choices that have less emissions is a really great way to help combat climate change.

What a great question! Bees are so important and you are right that without bees there would be a huge impact because bees are needed to pollinate lots of different types of plants, not just fruit, but nuts and vegetables and seeds.

However, climate change is not the biggest risk for bees, rather chemical use in farms and the loss of home gardens are big impacts for bees. These are things we can help to change! Planting flowers to feed bees in your home and buying produce that has not been sprayed are both very helpful ways to help bees.

Bees don’t just use flowers for food, planting flowering trees as well and keeping things like dandelions can help bees to find food over winter. Climate change may change the types of plants that grow and that can affect bees, especially as the weather gets drier. Bees are certainly important for us to look after and so planting a wide range of plants in your garden (or in pots) is very helpful to feed the bees.