It is, very much, the flavour of the month. We have just witnessed an ascendency of the Green Party at local elections, hot on the heels of the Extinction Rebellion protests across UK and elsewhere. There are arguments ‘it is my generation’ that is causing the harm of climate change. No doubt readers will have seen the counter argument doing the rounds that lists all the things that we did whilst we were children or how things were packaged in the 50s, 60s and 70s. I would, however, support Greta Thunberg, who is eloquent and speaks so well for the youth of the world.

Perhaps, also a threat to the sustainability of humans as a species is the return of childhood diseases that have been all but eradicated, but are returning due to the increasing numbers of ‘anti vaxxers’.

My wife and I try hard to recycle as much as we can, including clothes and unwanted items through charity shops. We sterilise our milk containers and buy our milk from a local farm that has a milk point. Our vegetables are delivered in reusable boxes without packaging, except for potatoes in a brown paper bag.

We have been working hard on using less water and this has paid off dramatically. Today’s mail had our six monthly water account which is a third of the previous six months. So it is possible to make noticeable changes.

Where we are guilty is travel, back to the Far East twice a year, so twelve hour flights and all that entails, we pay to offset carbon, but still make the flights. My guilt is assuaged by the fact the Dame Emma Thompson flew to the extinction rebellion rally from the US.

Here is the dichotomy of our situation. The Air Miles I earn from my travels have been converted into vaccinations for the poor in Asia, helping to prevent the spread of those childhood diseases. It has been my small altruistic action, as I can afford it and never end enough to even get a plastic pen, let alone upgrades; so I feel good with myself at the end of family visits. Sadly now my chosen airline is only taking the donations in blocks of 10,000 air miles and I only earn hundreds per trip.

Saving the world and humans has become more of a challenge, but we could fly more!