By not having a child, the carbon footprint of an individual living in a developed country would be reduced on average by an extra 58.6 tons of carbon dioxide every year, based on current emission¹ rates. 

 

按照现在的排放速率，每少生一个孩子，发达国家每年的个人碳排放量将平均额外减少58.6吨。

 

This is the biggest impact of all possible actions you could take.

 

The team from Sweden's Lund University came to this conclusion after conducting an analysis of the things individuals can do to produce less greenhouse gases.

 

But they found that while we are told to recycle, no government in the western world is advising its citizens to limit their number of offspring.

 

The study found that the other three main choices people can make in order to cut the amount of carbon dioxide they produce are to eat less meat, get rid of their car, and fly less.

 

The impact of having a child is calculated by factoring in not only the extra impact of the child, but also that of their potential future descendants.

 

Writing in Environmental Research Letters, the authors said: 'Persuading a US family to have one less child would provide the same level of emissions² reductions as persuading 684 teenagers who do not recycle, to recycle comprehensively for the rest of their lives.'

点击收听单词发音