My JAGS Resolution for 2021

My 2021 JAGS resolution is to decrease the amount of energy that I use at home and while travelling. Energy is a very important part of everyone's life and it plays a vital role in powering the devices and appliances that we use everyday, but we often take advantage of the easy accessibility of electricity which causes us to overuse it. This is something that I have identified in my everyday life as a bad habit and getting rid of this habit can help extend the impact of the multiple of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

The main ways that I plan to achieve my goal of decreasing the amount of electricity that I use is to only consume as much energy as I need, rather than as much as I want. To take action, I will do my best to only turn on light switches as I need them, rer than turning half the lights on in the house when I come down stairs in the morning (yes, I am aware that this is a very bad habit), and I will unplug chargers and appliances that can be unplugged when they are not in use. Small sticky notes on light switches and outlets will serve as daily reminders for me so that I can maintain this resolution over an extended period of time.

Decreasing electricity usage plays an important role in the United Nations Sustainable Development goals, specifically numbers 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production) and 13 (Climate Action). Using a high amount of energy and electricity in your household leads to more toxic fumes released by various power plants who generate energy. SDG Knowledge Hub claims that “energy contributes 60% of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and energy consumed for daily routines contributes greatly to climate change,” which is the main focus of goal 13. It is therefore very important that we manage our resources well and that we consume and produce energy responsibly, as discussed in goal 12, so that the amount of energy that we use has a minimal effect on our environment and on climate change. Not only does conservation of electricity have a positive impact on our environment, but it lowers electricity bills as well. Doubling the global rate of energy efficiency improvement by 2030 is one of the main objectives of goal 7, and by using less electricity to perform the same tasks, I will be contributing to this goal in a very small, but very important way.

While me doing this at home and encouraging my friends and family to join me will not fix or help these issues on any global scale, small things like turning off light switches and unplugging things like chargers and toasters can still make an impact at the local level while also reducing energy costs. This is why I am committed to reducing my electricity usage from now on as my 2021 JAGS resolution and I will like to encourage my friends, family, and YOU to do the same so that we can all .