The terrible weather we are experiencing around the world is only making it clearer that we need to act fast on climate change. Heat waves, droughts and floods have arrived and disrupting our lives.  So, what can we do to combat climate change that will have a big and immediate effect? What we need to be focussing on the most is cutting our carbon footprint because this reduces our impact on global warming the most.

There are apps that make it easier to reduce your carbon footprint. Research show that people are confused by how they are causing carbon emissions and need information how to do this. By using these apps suggested below, you can take tonnes of your annual carbon footprint through tree planting, reducing food waste and changing energy use at home. Many reviews show they are easy to use and help save time, money and personal energy running their household. Here are some examples of apps that help to reduce carbon emissions.

Apps that help to calculate your carbon footprint: Earth Hero, Pawprint, AWorld, Klima

Earth Hero, Pawprint, AWorld and Klima helps you to understand where your carbon emissions are coming from. The information is likely to surprise you as research suggests most people misunderstand what contributes to their carbon footprint the most. These apps are useful because it can help you direct your efforts to reduce your carbon footprint in the most effective ways.

Tree planting: Ecosia and Treeapp

Ecosia is a search engine like Google and Yahoo. When you click on an advert, money goes towards planting a tree. Ecosia has been very successful since its launch in 2009 and they have planted 250 million trees worldwide. Treeapp is another app that allows you to plant trees for free around the world. You only need to watch an advert for 30 seconds to plant a tree in a country of your choice. Treeapp has planted 5 million trees since 2020.

Free items from the neighbourhood: Olio and Freecycle

Olio and Freecycle are a platform for neighbours to give away their unwanted items. All sorts of things, from furniture to food, are put on there and sometimes go within minutes. These apps are particularly good for close neighbourhoods in urban areas. Olio is an app that only operates in the UK but Freecycle operates in 110 countries.

Buying and selling clothes: Vinted and Good on You

Vinted app is a platform that allows you to buy and sell clothes. It operates in 20 countries mainly in Europe and North America. It has boomed in popularity and it is a great alternative to fast fashion where you can expand your wardrobe choices at low cost without harming the environment. Good on You app is an app that can inform you on over 3000 clothing brands and they rate them according to their environmental credentials, animal welfare and labour practices. They look at international brands and should be useful in most countries.

Reduced price food from the high street: Too good to go and Karma

On these apps, you can search for food items being given away or at a reduced price by cafes, restaurants and bakeries. This reduces the amount of waste created by the high street and food will be edible for days, particularly if you use your freezer.

Food management at home: Fork Ranger, Nosh, Nowaste and Kitche

Fork ranger app helps to burst myths about sustainable eating through quizzes and climate infographics. It provides lots of recipes which are not restricted to vegan and vegetarian diets. Apps such as Nosh, Nowaste and Kitche help with food management at home. It stores information on your weekly shopping list, expiry dates and meal plans so you can minimise food waste and stop you buying too much food. From this information, you can work out which ingredients to use first in your fridge before it goes off, how to shop for your weekly meal plan and operate within a budget. This saves money and time as well as reducing your carbon footprint.

Energy saving apps: Ivie and Loop

There are lots of energy saving apps such as Ivie and Loop that link to smart meters in your home. This can help you track how you are using energy in your home and manage your gas and electricity use. This will save you a significant amount of energy and money over the year.

Cutting plastic waste: My Little Plastic Footprint

My Little Plastic Footprint calculates how much plastic waste you create, which they term your ‘Plastic Mass Index’ a bit like Body Mass Index (BMI). If it is high, they will suggest a ‘Plastic Diet’ and help you towards reducing the amount of plastic you use.