Will we be on the right side of history?

Frequently asked

• What is Gen Less?

  Gen Less engages New Zealanders in addressing climate change by changing how they use energy.

  It mobilises New Zealanders to change how they think about and use energy at home, work and on the road, in order to address climate change. The movement unites individuals, organisations and the government, to live and work in more climate-friendly ways.

• What does "on the right side of history?" mean?

  When we look back at pivotal moments in history, it's often easier, with the gift of hindsight, to be able to see there was a wrong and a right side of history.

  We are at a crucial point for climate change action. We are not on track to reach 1.5 degrees of warming next decade, according to the IPCC, so the need for action is urgent.

  We know that Kiwis believe climate change is an urgent problem, but very few are making the changes that will have a real impact.

  By asking, "will we be on the right side of history?", we're asking whether we’ll be able to look back in 10, 20 or 30 years and say we did everything we could to make the future better for everyone.

• I want to get involved – what can I do?

  Tackling climate change will take all of us: individuals, communities, businesses and the government. So we're documenting actions, big and small, that we're all taking. We'll share photos through our website, social media channels, our TV and online ads, and on stuff.co.nz(external link).

  Share your climate action by posting a photo online, using the hashtag #RightSideNZ, or email us at rightside@eeca.govt.nz.

  By making climate action visible, our belief is that it will snowball: more people will join in with their own actions and expect, or even demand, more from business and government.

• Can you give examples of how energy-related actions can help address climate change?

  There are plenty of things you can do, and lots of information about them on our website. Transport is one of the biggest ways we can collectively make an impact: If 100,000 people didn’t take an Auckland to Wellington flight each year, that would save about 5,000 tonnes of CO₂ emissions from entering our atmosphere.  That’s about the same as taking 2,000 petrol cars off the road each year.

  If 20% of people who drive to work stayed at home to work one day a week, we would save 35 million litres petrol. That’s a greenhouse gas emissions reduction of 85,000 tonnes of CO₂e.

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