Are you ready to embrace a brand-new challenge?
While the reality of climate change may feel worrying, the collective efforts of Hampshire residents are making a genuine difference. Whether it’s through volunteering, reducing food waste, or pledging to swap just one car journey for a greener alternative, plenty of actions are taking place each day.
As your County Council, we are continuously reducing our climate impact across our services. Working together, we can make a positive difference to the bigger picture. Here are some of the things we have done – what could you do?
Some things we have done…
REPLACED
old windows with double glazing in 82 buildings
HELPED
deliver solar panels to 2,100 households in Hampshire
COMMITTED
£1.2 million to the protection and enhancement of Hampshire’s natural environment
STARTED
renovations on ourfirst Green Library to include a new air source heat pump
SWAPPED
to recycled fuels across all our vehicles
INSTALLED
258 solar panel projectsacross our estates
AWARDED
over 100 grants tocommunity-based waste prevention projects
What have others been up to?
Across Hampshire, young people are striving to make a difference through climate action. Here are some of their climate stories.
- The students of Osbourne School won £250 from Dragons at the Winchester Sustainability Pyramid Competition held at Sparsholt College in March 2024. They presented the idea to add QR codes to recycle points around campus. Each time a student scans the QR code, they get a chance to spin a wheel and win prizes donated by local businesses.
- The students on the Eco Council at Treloar's School and College have successfully changed school policy to ensure that recycling bins are present in every classroom and reusable water bottles are used on trips in place of single-use plastic.
- The members of the Young Alton Climate Action Network (Young ACAN) have hosted four pop-up thrift store events called 'Back on the Rack' to encourage young people in the local area to find an alternative to fast fashion.
What could you do?
Sign up
for our free food waste prevention tool
Did you know that a quarter of the average household bin is food that could have been eaten?
Our Waste Prevention team is working hard to help people across Hampshire to cut down on waste. They have a free tool to learn more about food waste. Sign up to Hampshire Kitchen Heroes, earn points, win prizes, and see how much money and carbon you can save.
What could you do?
Reduce your impact
with Smart Living
Did you know that producing one t-shirt and a pair of jeans requires 13 years of drinking water?
Almost half (45%) of UK citizens purchase clothing at least once a month (WRAP). The UK also throws away 300,000 tonnes of clothing each year (WRAP). This means we can all do our bit to reduce our purchasing behaviour. Can you opt for reusing or choosing second-hand on your next purchase?
What could you do?
Repair
don’t replace
Our Waste Prevention Programme has helped Repair Cafés across Hampshire to fix over 11,000 items and save them from going to waste.
It can be tempting to buy a new replacement for something a bit old or broken. But how much carbon and money can you save by reusing and repairing? There are over 21 Repair Cafés in Hampshire. Find your local one today.
What could you do?
TRACK
your impact
There are many ways to visualise your carbon footprint. The WWF website breaks it down by home, food, travel, and stuff, and provides ways to reduce each one. They even have an app that allows you to choose and track challenges to help you make small changes that add up to something bigger.
Why not calculate your score, and see how you measure up to the rest of the UK and the world?
What could you do?
CHALLENGE
a friend to get involved
Making lifestyle changes, no matter how small, is always easier when you’re doing it with someone else. Can you engage in some friendly competition with a friend? See who can earn the most points on Hampshire Kitchen Heroes or find out who can swap the most car journeys for a greener alternative over the course of 30 days.
What could you do?
STAY UPDATED
with what we are doing
Remember – you are not alone. We are all working together to make a difference. Sign up to our seasonal newsletter below to keep motivated and inspired by our updates, opportunities and incentives.
Find out more about our projects
- read about Bridgemary Library in Gosport, our first Green Library
- find out about some of the waste prevention projects we have funded
- learn about the ways Hampshire County Council’s Transport Management Team has implemented greener fuels across our fleet of vehicles
- discover the Solar Together scheme, which is now closed for 2023 applications