Kati Askola and Pekka Liukkonen are active users of the Climate Campaigners mobile application.
Askola lives with her husband and cat in a detached house in Valkeala. Her interest in environmental issues led her to study Environmental Technology at LAB University of Applied Sciences.
Liukkonen works and lives in Lahti with his family.
Both Askola and Liukkonen try to make sustainable choices in their everyday life. They look for different ways to promote sustainability, for example, food and energy. Recycling also plays a significant role in both households.
Everyday life is full of opportunities to make a change
Many challenges in the climate application are already familiar to Liukkonen and his family. However, the mobile app has helped broaden their understanding of how to make better choices in everyday situations.
The purpose of the climate application is also to share information. The challenges are based on researched data, and the emission calculations for the background were carried out by LUT University.
Liukkonen has chosen a sustainable lifestyle for environmental and ethical reasons. He hopes that the opportunities to make environmentally friendly choices will become easier. Liukkonen has been pleased with the increase in vegan food choices in recent years.
–Now there´s a hundred meters of sausage and half a meter of vegan products, and I am waiting for the moment when the tide turns.
Sustainable lifestyle does not require turning life upside down
For Askola, environmental actions are part of her daily life.
– I like to sort, recycle, compost, and grow my tomatoes.
Although Askola already makes sustainable choices in everyday life, she has found new dimensions and motivations for her sustainability work in the Climate Campaigners app.
–The application reminds you of the little things you can still do for environment.
Askola feels that the mobile app has also made her think about her living environment. Plastic-free week, for example, was a challenge that made me think about the packaging culture in shops.
–It was great because it made me realize how impossible a plastic-free life is.
Climate Campaigners provide challenges for various life situations and allows Lahti residents to participate in a way that suits them.
Askola says we need more sustainable mobility solutions in the countryside. Even though there are many cycle paths, people must use their cars for longer journeys, especially in rural areas.
However, the application has given Askola different options for everyday sustainable choices. For example, a challenge to reduce your speed for a week was a great reminder of how to save fuel and nature by driving a little slower.
You do not have to turn everyday life upside down for a sustainable lifestyle. Even small environment-friendly actions often also support your health and save resources.
It is easy to choose a sustainable lifestyle in Lahti
The ambitious environmental work has been happening for decades in Lahti. The mobile application is just another way of involving residents in active climate work.
Askola and Liukkonen feel that Lahti is a great place to live sustainably. The renewable energy and recycling possibilities are praised by Liukkonen. Askola is particularly satisfied with the conditions for sustainable transport in Lahti.
–It is easy to get to Lahti by train. There is smooth public transport in the city and it’s easy to move around, Askola says.
As a cyclist, Liukkonen also emphasizes how good the daily transport is in Lahti.
–There are excellent cycle paths on my way to work, Liukkonen says.
Energy and transport are the biggest sources of emissions in the Lahti area, so the aim is to reduce emissions in these sectors. Lahti gave up coal in 2019 and now produces district heating locally using renewable, recycled fuels. The sustainable urban mobility program aims to make it possible to move around the city with low emissions in all seasons. A sustainable way of moving is a climate action that increases the quality of life and reduces healthcare costs.
The Climate Campaigners has been developed with the people of Lahti
The Climate Campaigners application has been developed together with the people of Lahti. An important partner has been the students at the LAB University of Applied Sciences, who contributed to both the user experience of the application and the calculation of emissions. The goal of the joint development is that the application fits the lifestyle in Lahti and offers opportunities for sustainability in the city.
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