Low Carbon and Life: Green Exploration in Urban Fireworks
In this era of information overflow, a C-Talk sharing session called "Let's Talk About Carbon" was staged in Guangzhou, with the theme of "Low Carbon and Life", leading us to explore a sustainable, circular and low-carbon urban life. This carbon talk let us know about those who are already practicing or preparing to practice low-carbon, and they are called "awareness pioneers".
The city's fireworks can be found vividly in the wet market. Zhong Shuru, a Ph.D. in anthropology, uses her unique perspective to lead us through different urban markets, showing the most down-to-earth side of the city. This is not only a market journey, but also an in-depth analysis of low-carbon and life.
"This is Macau's Ha Wan Market, selling frozen shark fins, and there are Guan Gong and God of Wealth next to it. "This is the Shahe Grand Gathering in Beijing, a real fireworks in the world, and the things sold are very cheap and strange. "This is the market in Qingdao, and like Guangdong, they like to write the use of the product with slogans, such as Laiyang pears, they will write 'real Laiyang pears, thin skin, fine flesh, small core and no residue, moisturizing the lungs and relieving cough with excellent effect'." ”
The vegetable market has become the best representative of the city's "fireworks". Here, people can not only feel the abundance of ingredients, but also experience a direct connection with nature. In Guangzhou, a city full of life, the wet market is not only a source of food, but also a place to experience the changing of the four seasons. It's a place where smallholder local farmers can trade their own produce and a bond that connects the community.
However, with the process of urbanization, wet markets are quietly changing. Chung reminds us that despite the fireworks in Guangzhou, public spaces such as wet markets are also decreasing. In 2017, there were still 670 wet markets in Guangzhou, which has decreased to 460 in 2022, with an average of more than 30 wet markets disappearing every year. The decline in this number seems to silently tell us: don't take the good for nothing, and low-carbon should not be just a slogan, but should be a ubiquitous practice in life.
In this carbon talk, there is also a special guest - Zhu Hui, founder of REDO Redesign. He proposed that "food mileage" is one of the most relevant low-carbon concepts in daily life. Urbanization has moved agriculture away from cities, leading to an increase in the number of miles that can be transported for food. To solve this problem, Zhu Hui and his team tried to alleviate the problem of food mileage with urban farms. He encourages people to eat fresh, in-season, local food to reduce carbon emissions. This low-carbon approach promoted in cities allows more urban families to participate in the process of growing vegetables, thereby increasing the scale of local agricultural trade.
"To sum up, my advice is, eat fresh, eat in season, eat local. This simple yet practical advice makes one wonder if we can create a better future for the environment and ourselves by choosing a more low-carbon lifestyle in this bustling city.
In addition, there are some unique low-carbon scenarios in the city, which makes us re-examine the combination of tradition and modernity. For example, the "Tianguang Market" near Guangta Road in Guangzhou is a market that starts at four or five o'clock in the morning and ends after dawn. This ancient existence is like a second-hand market, selling not only old things, old books, and even some letters. This kind of market not only enables the reuse of unused items, but also becomes a sustainable way of life. The existence of this market is not only the inheritance of traditional culture, but also the practice of sustainable living.
In this carbon talk, we also got to know a special blogger, Niki. She was a millionaire wedding planner and experienced the extravagance and waste of weddings. Today, she has transformed into a low-carbon lifestyle blogger, showing her fans the beauty of nature through the lens. Her lifestyle is not only a change, but a love for the planet. Through her experience, we have seen that small low-carbon practices have converged into care for the environment and become a force for sustainable development.
Zhu Hui mentioned in the sharing, "We are trying to improve the sustainability of cities in a circular economy way. This circular economy concept allows us to move away from a linear "production-consumption-discard" model, but to establish a more circular and sustainable production-consumption relationship.
There were bursts of applause from time to time at the carbon talk site, which is a recognition of the low-carbon pioneers and an expectation for the future of the city. Low carbon is no longer an unattainable ideal, but a daily routine that each of us can practice. This carbon talk is not only a reflection on the past, but also a call for the future. In the fireworks of the city, low-carbon living has become a new fashion to look forward to. Because, don't be kind and small, low-carbon is the warmest background color of this city.