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Make a Difference on Zero Emissions Day and Beyond

MelanieGreene
Level 1
Employee

We are seeing the effect of climate change, global warming, and depletion of resources on our planet and in our lives.

Zero Emissions Day (also known as ZeDay), September 21st, created by Ken Wallace, was designed to give the world a break from fossil fuels and to raise awareness about the harm caused by carbon emissions. The significance of this day is paramount because it brings to light the necessary actions that we can all take to help our planet.

Veritas’ Sustainability at Veritas Empowered (SAVE) Employee Resource Group’s (ERG) mission is to engage with the community to learn how to minimize the individual and collective environmental footprint and inspire all to take action. On behalf of SAVE, and in recognition of Zero Emissions Day, we believe that spreading awareness and encouraging everyone to make changes in their lives can create impact. We all have a responsibility to ourselves, each other, and the planet­–through inspiration we all can be change agents.

This is what the SAVE family is empowered to do, and we hope you join in...

 

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Vidya Deshmukh | Sr Princ Business Ops Analyst

On Zero Emissions Day I plan to limit electricity usage by shutting down devices and turning off unneeded lights. Through this day, we need to conserve resources and reduce our ecological footprint as much as possible. No more carbon emissions, go greener today!

 

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Jay Vasa | Princ Software Engineer

Zero Emissions Day is a day we can think on what we can do to reduce harmful emissions. Bringing awareness to others and trying to make a difference is key, even if it is only for a day. 

I am happy to participate doing my part. On this day, I play to try to use as little energy as possible. To do so, I am taking the day off from work, and am going to power down my electronics-- so will not use almost everything I normally do, that includes my computer. That also means I will try not use gas, so I’m not taking a shower. I will use candles at night.

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Beena Bhatt | Princ Software Engineer

Today, on Zero Emissions Day, I pledge to reduce my device electricity usage by following the simple mantra “Shut down when not in use”. Zero Emissions Day to me is trying to reach that zero in terms of the carbon footprints we are leaving behind. It is difficult to achieve this in a day but whatever you can start with is a small step towards a better world. There are more ways to reduce our carbon footprints and a lot of details on how all of these pledges impact. Learn how to reduce your carbon footprint here - contribute more towards a better future for us and the world.

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Philip Palmer | Director of IT Infrastructure and Cloud Services

With regard to climate change, it's unlikely that humankind can deal with these challenges without global cooperation.  For Zero Emissions Day, I'm going to park my car and walk or ride my bicycle for the entire week. What will you do to help?

 

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Neha Mehra | Princ Project Manager

Zero Emissions Day to me means giving a break to environment and myself from technology and raising awareness for more climate-friendly options. I believe everyday choices made by ordinary people can help drive reduction in carbon emissions and benefit the environment in longer term. Hence, I pledge to do my bit by not driving my car once every week and instead walk or take public transit.

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Karin McEwan | Sr Princ Software Engineer

I have bought most of my vegetables from a local farmer for about 20 years, but this past year I decided to buy all my vegetables and most of my meats from a local producer. I also started to think about when certain fruits are in season, and only eat them during that time. I have plum, apple, peach, june berry, currant, cranberry, and grape in my Minnesota yard right now and it is a delight to have those fresh and in season. These actions help reduce my emission's footprint because my food delivery and pickup is reduced. For Zero Emission Day 2021 I will pledge to not use any fossil fuels to prepare my food for that day.

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Babu Srinivasan | Princ IT Applications Specialist

Go Electric. Less is More when it comes to ZERO Emissions. 

For Zero Emissions Day, I pledge to power off all gadgets when not in use. Make sure the Gadgets are powered off every night.

 

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Niti Trimbake | Director, HR Business Partner

Zero Emission to me is engaging in an activity that emits no waste products that pollute the environment or disrupt the climate. I pledge to contribute meaningfully in my own capacity to the Zero Emissions Day by self-inflicted power cut for the entire household for few hours. Implying no electricity usage/ internet/ screens anything that runs on electricity. Instead choose to take my family out on a quality time to spend together on a walk or a hike, play a game in the neighborhood park and make it a win-win.

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Brad Vincent | Sr Product Marketing Manager

We only have one planet. The things we do on Zero Emissions Day, we should try to do all year.

I plan to use Zero Emissions Day to spread the word to family and friends about things they can do – big and small – to help protect our planet for future generations.

 

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Shree Gowri Radhakrishna | Software Development Engineer

The way a tiny flutter of a butterfly wing can cause hurricanes, I believe each one of us can create impact and altering the course of this planet. On this Zero Emission's Day, I pledge to make incremental and sustainable lifestyle changes that will reduce emissions and help reduce the adversity of climate change. This includes turning off electricity in my home for some time every evening while we walk/hike/spend time outdoors, habituate conscious cooking and meal preps to reduce the use of fuel, carpool during commutes, and more importantly educating myself and the others around me about where we are headed in terms of climate change and the need for taking immediate actions towards reducing emissions.

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Roger Stein | Product Marketing Manager

I'm pretty low emission normally. I only have to drive a few times a week and I drive a hybrid. I don't have solar power yet. I could turn off my refrigerator, but I'm not sure that is a good idea. I guess I could just run my PC on battery all day but I will still need to have the network plugged in. I could not turn on the lights at night, but they are all low-energy light bulbs. I have my electric bill for the time I was away. I was still using electricity, and I realized it must have just been the refrigerator. Everything else was turned off except for a lamp on a timer. I encourage myself and others to live every day like it is Zero Emissions Day.

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Melanie Greene | Sr Product Marketing Specialist

Zero Emissions Day empowers me to be mindful about the impact of our actions. I reflect on what I can do in my daily life to help our beautiful world and the people of today, and for generations to come. 

I pledge to be more conscious of my actions, such as minimizing my electricity usage and turning off any devices that are not in use. I hope to inspire my family and friends to honor Zero Emissions Day- to engage in sustainable activities on this day, and beyond. I believe that we all have a responsibility to each other, and our planet, in order to ensure the prolonged health and existence of Earth and the precious life that exists. 

Ken Wallace advocated for Zero Emissions Day to revolve around “giving our planet one day off a year” and even though it's just one day, we hope to encourage everyone to minimize their carbon footprint and commit to forming sustainable lifestyle changes. Even small changes will contribute to making the world a better place by helping to preserve life on the planet. 

For Zero Emissions Day, some activities we encourage you to do are:

  • Refrain from driving for the day
  • Turn off the lights when you're not in a room
  • Go for a hike and enjoy nature  
  • Eliminate your device and electricity usage, except for emergency services
  • Live a zero-waste lifestyle for a day (Learn how to do that)
  • Reduce your water consumption

Inspire your family and friends to participate in these activities with you.

Learning about the effects of climate change and sharing your knowledge is vital to motivating others about how individual actions affect the world. You can also:

We all play a vital role in the world, to make an impact now and for generations to come. We all have the power to make a difference, to help one another, and our planet. As primatologist and anthropologist, Jane Goodall said…

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On behalf of SAVE, we ask you, what kind of difference do you want to make on Zero Emissions Day and beyond?