26/08/2005 - The female
of the species is more environmentally aware
than the male
Women are more willing to protect the environment
than men, according to the Environment Agency’s
World Environment Day 2005 Campaign. Women
are outpledging men in all age groups under
55, and those aged 25-34 years are twice as
likely to pledge their support for the environment
as their male counterparts.
Focussed on UN World Environment Day 5 June
2005, and supported by a host of environmentally
friendly celebrities, the Environment Agency's
campaign encourages people across the nation
to pledge small changes in lifestyle and behaviour
that, collectively, make a real difference
to our impact on the environment.
TV twins Connie and Cassie Powney - the Burton
twins from popular soap 'Hollyoaks' - showed
their commitment by pledging to take a shower
rather than a bath. They proved appropriate
supporters in the campaign indicating that
double the number of young women as young
men are likely to take steps to protect environment.
Television gardener Chris Beardshaw kept the
men's side up, however, attending the London
Green Lifestyles show in Greenwich Park on
World Environment Day to demonstrate how easy
it is to think and act green.
Nick Rijke, Head of Stakeholder Relations
for the Environment Agency said:
"Women are clearly taking the lead in
putting the environment first in their day
to day lives. It seems that we men have got
some catching up to do, or could it be that
women simply care more about the environment
around us than men?"
With the current nationwide tally of pledgers
totalling well over 20,000, the collective
impact of this year’s campaign to date is
saving a massive 384 million litres of water,
enough to fill 154 olympic sized swimming
pools,
cutting carbon dioxide emissions, a greenhouse
gas linked to global warming, by 25 million
kilograms, and
avoiding the need for over 2 million plastic
bags which laid end to end would stretch further
than from Land’s End to John O’Groats
In the battle to be the greenest city London
currently tops the list of towns for World
Environment Day pledgers in this year’s campaign.
It is not just the big cities that performing
well though. The residents of Peterborough,
which currently lies in second place, are
giving those living in London a good run for
their pledges, by promising to reduce waste
by over 30,000 kilograms and to save over
50,000 litres.
People from London have pledged to:
save a massive 66,000 litres of water,
cut emissions of carbon dioxide, a gas linked
with global warming, by 8 million Kg, and
cut down on plastic carrier bags by over 610,000.
Nationally, people have made in excess of
100,000 pledges. It is still not to late too
late to make a pledge, however, as the 2005
campaign will continue into the autumn. So
you can still help to make your town or city
the greenest in England and Wales.
Nick Rijke went on to say:
"We’re delighted that over 115,000 pledges
have been made and that more than 200 organisations
have decided to make a difference and join
the business pledge scheme. Don’t worry if
you haven’t pledged yet, because you can still
go to our website and promise to make a change
to your lifestyle to help create a better
place."
The Environment Agency’s 2005 online pledge
campaign in support of World Environment Day,
allows people to sign-up to one (or more)
of 12 simple pledges. These range from turning
the tap off while cleaning our teeth, through
to taking a showering instead of a bath and
re-using plastic bags.
The campaign pledge website is designed to
keep a running tally of the impact of pledges
as they are made, and provide feedback to
pledgers to show them just how their individual
actions are benefiting the environment. To
make a pledge simply go to the environment
agency website
ENDS
NOTES TO EDITORS:
Photographs of Connie and Cassie Powney pledging
their support for World Environment Day and
swapping their bath for a shower are available.
Contact the Press Office on 020 7863 8710
Celebrated on 5 June every year, World Environment
Day was started by the United Nations in 1972
to focus worldwide attention on the environment.
In England and Wales World Environment Day
is promoted by The Environment Agency and
the general public are encouraged to sign
up to one or more personal pledges that show
how they can make a difference to the environment.
Companies and organisations can also make
pledges to reduce their environment impact.
