Understand Decarbonizing Your Life

Welcome to the January edition of Stanford University’s Understand Energy Learning Hub newsletter! At the start of a new year, many of us are thinking about positive changes we can make in our lives. What better time to help the climate by taking steps to reduce your carbon emissions?

Globally, the average carbon footprint is 4 tons per person per year. In the U.S., that average is 16 tons. To meet climate goals, we need to reduce our carbon footprints significantly. Small individual actions can reduce your impact. Curious about your carbon footprint? Estimate your carbon emissions with this calculator.

You might not know where to start or what to do next. But Decarbonizing Your Life can be rewarding, empowering, and fun! You can improve your health, save money, and live more comfortably.

In this newsletter, we’ve focused on simple actions within your control. To help organize the journey, we’ll guide you on a virtual walk-through of a home. From the living room to the kitchen to the backyard, you’ll learn simple ways to reduce emissions. No matter your situation—whether you’re a student, homeowner, or renter—there are strategies here for you.

Start with one action, and if it works for you, add another. If something doesn’t work, pick a different idea from the list. Decarbonizing your life is a journey, and any step forward is success!

Living room

The living room is the heart of our virtual home. It’s where you relax, socialize, play, and perhaps even work. Living rooms are significant sources of energy consumption for heating, cooling, and lighting, so they’re great places to start making simple choices to decarbonize your home.

Start small:

1. Close your blinds or curtains on hot days. Direct sunlight on windows can increase indoor air temperatures by several degrees depending on the time of day, making your cooling system work harder.
2. Keep the warm air in on cold days. Use DIY draft stoppers or weatherstripping to seal gaps around doors and windows. You can do this whether you’re a homeowner or renter, and these fixes help soundproof rooms, too!
3. Set up your desk near a window. Taking advantage of natural light saves energy, boosts mood, increases productivity, and is better for your eyes.

Go bigger:

1. Schedule a free or low-cost home energy audit. Learn about your home’s inefficiencies like air leaks and poor insulation—fixing these can save as much as 10% on your energy bill while making your space feel less drafty.
2. Use a programmable thermostat. The U.S. DOE estimates that you can save as much as 10% a year on heating and cooling by turning your thermostat back 7-10°F from its normal setting while you are asleep or away from home. A programmable thermostat automates those changes so that temperatures can be returned to a comfortable level by the time you wake up or get home.
3. Replace your incandescent light bulbs with energy-efficient LEDs. LED bulbs are more efficient and run cooler than incandescent bulbs. Even though LED bulbs generally cost more up front, they last longer and use less electricity, saving you money in the long run. In the U.S. alone, the DOE estimates that LED lighting could save 569 TWh of electricity annually by 2035, equivalent to the output of ninety-two 1GW nuclear power plants!

Kitchen

The kitchen is the hub of the home and one of the biggest energy users. Refrigerators, dishwashers, and ovens account for approximately 13% of the average household’s electricity bill. Food waste adds to the impact. In the U.S., 30-40% of purchased food is wasted, comprising over 20% of municipal solid waste. In landfills, this waste emits methane, a potent greenhouse gas (GHG), as it decomposes. The greenhouse gas emissions from landfilled food waste are equivalent to the annual emissions of 15 coal-fired power plants. A few simple changes can improve your kitchen for you and the planet.

Start small:

1. Use your dishwasher to save energy, water, and time! Maximize your savings by skipping the pre-rinse, loading the dishwasher properly, choosing ‘eco-mode’, and using the air-dry rather than heat-dry setting. Set your dishwasher to run when electricity demand is low, like in the middle of the night, or in the daytime if there is an abundance of solar on your power grid.
2. Match your pots to burner size and use lids. Using the wrong size burner wastes up to 40% of the heat from your stove. Lids keep the heat in and reduce boiling and cooking times.
3. Freeze leftover food. Learn freezer tips like using ice cube trays to freeze extra sauce. You can even freeze bread and cookies, and they’ll still taste delicious!
4. Unplug devices like coffee pots, toasters, and microwaves when not in use. Idle devices can cost you about $100 a year!

Go bigger:

1. Track wasted food. Studies show that tracking your food waste can motivate behavioral changes, like right-sizing your food purchases and meal planning, that reduce waste. Waste less food and you’ll save money, too.
2. Prepare more plant-based meals. Plant-based foods tend to have a lower carbon footprint than animal-based foods. Eating more plant-based meals can benefit both the climate and your health, and your taste buds don’t have to suffer! For families, these simple, kid-friendly recipes can get you started.
3. Compost your food scraps. Composting keeps the food you don’t eat out of landfills and produces a nutrient-rich soil amendment that can be used to benefit lawns and gardens. If you’re new to composting, the EPA’s composting resources can help you get started. Even if you don’t have outdoor space, you can still compost through a collection service, a community program, or new innovative options (e.g., Mill or others).

Garage

Our transportation choices can significantly reduce carbon emissions while improving our health. Transportation is responsible for 28% of U.S. GHG emissions. Globally, the transportation sector contributes 16% of GHG emissions. It also contributes pollutants like particulate matter that increase mortality, particularly in underserved communities. Visit our Transportation Fast Facts for more details.

Start small:

1. Walk or bike. Carbon-free transportation is good for you as well as the climate. Consider walking or biking for short errands.
2. Drive efficiently. Avoid hard acceleration, excessive braking, and speeding, all of which decrease your car’s fuel economy. At 60 mph, every additional 5 mph in speed decreases fuel economy by 7-23%. Efficient driving also reduces crashes!
3. Remove excess weight from your car. Empty your trunk, remove the roof rack when not in use, and avoid carrying around things you don’t need. With these quick changes, you can improve fuel economy by 1-25%, depending on your car.

Go bigger:

1. Monitor your vehicle’s tire pressure. Proper tire pressure can improve fuel efficiency by up to 5-10%, saving fuel and reducing emissions. You can check tire pressure and put air in under-inflated tires at most gas stations.
2. Carpool with your co-workers. This not only reduces emissions, it saves money, reduces wear and tear on your car, and can lead to a more connected community.

Backyard

Your backyard can be a surprising source of GHG emissions and resource use. Gas-powered lawn equipment in the U.S. emits about 20.4 million tons of carbon dioxide a year. And landscape irrigation is estimated to account for nearly a third of all residential water use. Delivering water is an energy-intensive process. Water must be treated, pumped to our homes, and then pumped to wastewater facilities to be treated again. Small changes in your backyard can chip away at these impacts and save you money.

Start small:

1. Only mow your lawn every 2-3 weeks and leave grass clippings behind. Mowing less frequently saves gas or electricity and gives you more free time. It’s better for the grass, too. Letting grass grow taller increases the size of the roots below, improving plant health and increasing soil’s capacity to absorb excess water.
2. Only water where and when needed. Adjust your watering schedule based on the weather and time of year. Smart irrigation systems are available that alter the schedule automatically.

Go bigger:

1. Add a drip system for watering your plants. Drip systems deliver water right to where it needs to be, reducing water waste.
2. Avoid burning in your backyard. Burning yard waste or trash outside is damaging to the climate and human health. Try composting, use your yard waste bin, or find a local recycling center that accepts yard waste.

Playroom

The playroom is packed with opportunities to teach kids about making choices that help the planet and empower them to contribute to solutions. Have fun exploring these steps with little and big kids!

Start small:

1. Watch “Worse Than Poop” with your kids. This six-minute video is a great introduction to the science of climate change (with plenty of silliness).
2. Add recycling bins and reuse materials for fun projects. Reusing and recycling can encourage a lifelong habit of awareness and resourcefulness.
3. Switch off electronics when you’re done with them.

Go bigger:

1. Encourage your child to take the bus, walk, or bike to school. Driving your kids to school emits GHGs and creates congestion on local streets. If your child is too young to walk or bike alone, try starting a walking school bus or bike train in your community!
2. Mend broken toys rather than buying new ones. Trade toys with your friends when you’re looking for something new to play with.

Thank you for taking our virtual tour! Visit our Decarbonize Your Life page for additional resources and the sources for this newsletter.

The data in this issue are current as of January 2025. For the most current data, visit our Decarbonize Your Life page.

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