The One-Tonne Challenge

It was in Grade Six that I realized deodorant gave people special powers. Remember Track and Field Day in public school? You and your classmates had to put one toe on a line etched across the dusty playing field. While waiting tensely for the teacher to blow the whistle that would launch the P.F. Flyer-wearing horde, you suddenly realized that Grade Six was divided into two groups: the kids who wore deodorant, and the rest of us, who smelled nervous.

After the race the winner got a red ribbon embossed with gold lettering. There were orange slices offered to the confident, coordinated winners, while over by the slide huddled the stinky, non-deodorant-wearing nervous types without athletic talent.

That's when I put it together. The winners smelled good. Deodorant was the secret to their prowess.

I explained to my Mum how deodorant would give me the competitive edge. Resignedly, she took me to the discount department store. I chose a bottle of Sure roll-on. I decided to test it, quietly, behind a pantyhose display rack. It rolled on smooth and smelled slightly less acrid than I did.

The downside was that it required 20 minutes to dry. So I was forced to walk up and down the footware aisle with my arms up in the air, blowing alternately on each armpit. It's a good thing they knew us at that store.

I can think of one way to bring back the excitement of Grade Six: a little friendly competition between all of us. Just like Track and Field Day, only without the orange slices and the yelling. And the smelling.

Well Tonne!

Let me explain. The world is getting warmer. Some scientists think that climate change has nothing to do with human causes. Most scientists, however, think that the carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide and methane released into the atmosphere by human activities is definitely part of our changing ocean currents and weather patterns.

You can choose to believe whichever group you want to, and engage in spirited argument. But morally, if there's any chance at all that humans are helping to cause climate change that's spurring events like the hurricanes currently ravaging the Caribbean, or the droughts that are killing Africans, wouldn't you want to reduce your contribution to the problem?

Here's what I'm proposing; a test that we all take together. Last year, the government of Canada launched The One Tonne Challenge, a program that gives Canadians the motivation and tools to help reduce Canada's greenhouse gas emissions.

After six months, only 10,000 Canadians have pledged to reduce their personal and household greenhouse gas emissions by 20 percent. Think we can we get that number up a little? I do.

Each Canadian produces about 5 tonnes of greenhouse gas per year by driving cars, heating and cooling houses, running appliances, etc. How much is a tonne? 1000 kilograms, slightly heavier than the imperial 2,000-pound ton.

The part that may make you nervous is running your lifestyle through The Greenhouse Gas Calculator. I took the test and blanched. I've got some searing excesses in my profile, caused by outdated appliances, poor attic insulation, and even my incandescent lightbulbs.

However, for the next 30 days, major retailers are joining forces with organisations like The Clean Air Foundation to offer rebates and savings on such things as compact fluorescent lightbulbs. What better time to upgrade to Energy Star bulbs and appliances?

Light the Good Light

Changing your lightbulbs is a great place to start the One Tonne Challenge. I first tried compact flourescent (CFL) bulbs about 12 years ago. They were unwieldy, expensive and didn't fit my fixtures. I was put off, and pretty much gave up on them. But recently I looked again. These babies have come a long way, and are now available in almost any size and wattage you can imagine, including bug lights, tiny vanity mirror bulbs, and flood lights. Now, virtually any light fixture can accomodate a compact fluorescent.

• CFLs use up to 75 percent less energy than traditional incandescent bulbs.
• They last 10 times longer than regular bulbs.
• CFLs produce much less heat than incandescent bulbs, reducing that stuffy feeling.
• If every Canadian household switched just ONE incandescent bulb to a CFL, annual energy costs across the country would be reduced by $73 million. In terms of reducing emissions, we'd get rid of 397,000 tonnes - this would be the equivalent of taking 66,000 cars off the road!
• The amount of energy required to light a Canadian home results in about 300 kilograms of greenhouse gas every year. By replacing the bulbs in just five of your most-used fixtures, you can save about $30 on your annual electric bill.

If you're willing to take the One Tonne Challenge and reduce your greenhouse gas emissions, I applaud you. Tell a friend. Let's see what we can do to clean up our act. We're all in this together. Thanks a tonne.