Bike to work day
A light conversation about its environmental impact and how to minimise it
The word on the street is that we should reduce our carbon footprint, right? But do you really know what this means?
In a world with so much information everywhere, sometimes we need to take a step back and go for the easy but clear information that can help in our daily life. The science behind carbon footprint is super complex but, in very well put words from a New York Times article:
"A carbon footprint is the total amount of greenhouse gas emissions that come from the production, use and end-of-life of a product or service. It includes carbon dioxide — the gas most commonly emitted by humans — and others, including methane, nitrous oxide, and fluorinated gases, which trap heat in the atmosphere, causing global warming. Usually, the bulk of an individual’s carbon footprint will come from transportation, housing and food."
So basically everything that we do or buy has an impact on the environment, even if you are, like us, biking to work today or just buying water at the shop. Since this is an article related to the international Bike To Work Day (and because transportation is responsible for almost 30% of greenhouse gas emissions), let’s dive deeper into it for a second.
It goes without saying that bikes are a very green way of transportation but even so, like any other transportation, it’s not 100% carbon footprint-free. But, when we compare it with other alternatives, it’s pretty clear why we should cycle as often as possible.
A quick look at this graph shows the huge difference between using a bike and driving a car.
Just like me, you must be wondering “Isn’t walking in the wrong order?” I assure you, it’s not! According to Bike Radar, the crazy fact is that using an electric car is greener than walking (if you get really hungry after your walks and you need to eat all the calories you burned with that, which is not always the case, but will leave this discussion to another time).
Yet, you can see the difference but maybe you are wondering “Is that a lot? Only a few grams doesn’t look like much”. To clarify, we can think in terms of trees and how much it would cost to offset this “small” emission. Let’s say that you move around 20km per day, every day.
→ In a year, that is 7,300 km and 108kg of CO2.
→ One adult tree absorbs around 22kg of CO2 per year.
With that in mind, here is how impactful these numbers are, especially if you are a heavy car user.
How many people do you know who are planting 90 trees per year?
Of course, cycle to work only one day a year will not make much of a difference but it may be a starting point for people to realise that it is a very sustainable and healthy option. Let’s not forget that apart from helping the environment it can also play a big role in our health, both mentally and physically.
And saving the best for last: wondering how you can plant a lot of trees in a very fast, fun and easy way?
Just print your pictures with Stampix using a WeForest code. For each code you buy, we plant 5 trees and you get 10 printed pictures (from our neutral CO2 printer).
If you are a brand, you can always choose to join our WeForest project in every campaign, making an impact not only on your customer life but also on the environment.
Bottom line is that we, as individuals, still have a long way to go when it comes to making amends with nature and our planet but every little action counts.
Luckily for us, Stampix HQ is located in the lovely bike-friendly city of Ghent, which makes cycling an experience more than just a transportation method. That’s why, almost all of us, cycle to work every day.
Happy (go) cycle to work day (every day)!
