SDG 13

SDG 13 is: "Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts." The negative effects of climate change are already visible in so many aspects of life. Offsetting the impact of climate change starts with education, awareness, and individual action. We can all do something small to offset our footprint on this planet that we call home. This is an SDG badge.

Meerkat requirements

Our World is changing all the time, and we are going to have to live in it for many years to come. Do 3 of these:

1. Make a poster that shows why we need to look after our world. Include contact details of your local Den and find a place to display it, e.g. library, school, etc. To do this, find out about things like pollution, the ozone layer and global warming.
2. Find out who lives on the earth with us by doing the World Around Us badge.
3. Agree to avoid using plastic bags and plastic straws and encourage your family not to use them either. Click here to download the Meerkat Plastic Commitment Certificate.
4. We can all make a difference in reducing global warming and fighting air pollution. Each Meerkat should decorate a pot, plant a piece of Spekboom, take it home and water it. When it is ready, see if you can find a place to plant it in your garden or at your meeting place. If you can plant more Spekboom at your home, hall and elsewhere, that would be a bonus! Spekboom is indigenous to South Africa, very good at taking Carbon Dioxide out of the atmosphere and easy to grow from a slip, so that’s good news.

Additional resources

• "7 reasons to grow spekboom in your garden"
• "Spekboom: 5 Things You Didn’t Know"

Cub requirements

This was part of the 2020 National Cub Challenge.

1. The overarching theme for Earth Day 2020 is ‘Climate Change’. In celebration of their 50th anniversary, run BOTH Climate Change programmes.

• Energy Savers
• Planet Protectors

Scout requirements

Complete THREE of the following:

1. Earn the Conservation Scoutcraft Badge.
2. Earn the Environmental Awareness Interest Badge.
3. Download the NANO app and upload a minimum of 10 tasks completed.
4. Learn about composting and set up a compost bin in your household. Create a poster/video/ slide show about your experience and share it with a Cub Pack or Meerkat Den.
5. Start a recycling campaign at your Troop/School/Church/Temple. The campaign must run for at least 6 months.
6. Research the impact the meat industry has on the environment. Prepare a poster/slide show/video to illustrate what you have found out. Share your findings with a Patrol.
7. Research how much energy is used to make the plastic bottles used in your house in a week. Share your findings with your Patrol.

Rover requirements

Complete THREE of the following:

1. Earn the Community Service Award.
2. Earn the Project Award.
3. Earn the Environmental Awareness Interest Badge.
4. Download the NANO app and upload a minimum of 10 tasks completed.
5. Run the Food for Life badge for a Patrol or Troop to achieve a minimum of bronze.
6. Start a recycling campaign at your Community Centre/Church/Temple – the campaign must run for at least 6 months.
7. Research the impact the meat industry has on the environment and prepare a poster or slide show or video to illustrate what you have found out. Share your finding with a Crew.

Adult requirements

Complete any TWO:

1. 1. How do you believe climate change is affecting:
      1. You
      2. Your country
      3. Your environment
      4. Our world
   2. What is causing climate change?
   3. How can we reduce it?
2. Investigate ways that you can act against climate change.
   1. Identify 5 ideas of what you can do.
   2. Put all these into action.
   3. Monitor the effect the change might have.
   4. Do a write up on your observations and findings.
   5. Encourage one other person to join you in this endeavour with a different idea.
3. Make two or more of the following changes to your life over the next month and write up your experiences:
   1. Changes to consider:
      1. Reducing energy consumption: Change to energy efficient light bulbs; Unplug your computer, TV and other electronic items when they are not in use; etc.
      2. . Wash clothes in cold water.
      3. Make your diet more climate friendly by eating less meat.
      4. Car sharing.
   2. Was it difficult to change or do you believe this could be sustainable?
   3. Would you consider keeping this up?
   4. Would you recommend it to a friend?
4. Educate those around you on climate change. Start a conversation with colleagues at work or in your community and investigate possibilities of reducing or eradicating anything at work or in the community that is detrimental to saving our world.
   1. Investigate possible enemies at your workplace and/or in your community. For example pollution from smoke stacks; burning of fossil fuels; lights and air conditioners left on at night.
   2. Make suggestions for a greener, cleaner world at work or in your community.
   3. Encourage the use of renewable energies at your workplace.
   4. Document your findings and write up your suggestions.
   5. Explain how you went about implementing this in your workplace.
5. Open the footprint calculator.
   1. Calculate how many earths you are using at present.
   2. How can you better this?
      1. Analyse and invest in strategies to do better.
      2. Document your findings and improvements.

See also

• SDG badges
• National challenge 2020
• Scouts for SDGs