Individual Actions Matter — Here are the Ones I’m Taking to Combat Climate Change During COVID-19

We all have a part to play in serving others during the COVID pandemic, whether that involves keeping our global infrastructure running, 3D printing PPE and ventilator parts, or following social distancing guidance and helping to flatten the curve.

Although our world faces many challenges, the pandemic has also proven what we may have forgotten -- that every individual can make a difference in the world. This lesson can be applied in many areas, like solving our world’s climate crisis. If we each take individual action, our collective impact can make a change on a global scale.

Each of us has been part of the global social distancing response to the COVID pandemic, which has also dramatically contributed to global pollution reduction. The World Economic Forum estimates that emissions of NOx in many regions has been reduced by up to 40 percent. People in northern India report seeing the Himalayan Mountains for the first time in decades.

This spring marked the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, a day to remind us that our individual actions matter to society and to our planet. It was fitting that the theme of this year’s Earth Day was climate action.

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The world’s Covid-19 response has illustrated that all of us can make a difference – regardless of where we work. Many of us have made a shift to remote work, something we never would have dreamed possible a year ago. Perhaps when we start to return to our traditional workplaces, we will continue to work in new ways that will have positive environmental impacts.

As for me, at home I have committed to taking small steps that reduce my family’s environmental footprint. Things like walking more as an alternative to driving and improving the efficiency of our home HVAC system.

At work I have redoubled my efforts to help the energy industry develop new technologies to decarbonize the energy industry. In these dynamic times, our company’s commitment to the energy transition remains strong.

The fight against COVID-19 has not come without dire economic consequences for many sectors of the economy. Our challenge is to find ways to utilize technology, policy and personal behaviors to maintain some of the environmental gains we have recently made, while also stimulating a robust and sustainable global economy.

It’s not an easy challenge, but it is one that I am firmly committed to along with my family and my colleagues at Baker Hughes.

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This article was written by Allyson Book, Vice President for Energy Transition at Baker Hughes. Fairygodboss is proud to partner with Baker Hughes. Find a job there today!