What would you say to someone who believes their actions are too small to make a difference for the environment?

Any action towards the environment is better than none

If the other 8.1 billion people on this planet had the same attitude as you, we'd be better off just ending it ourselves now. It wouldn't take that long for humanity to suffer if everyone had your beliefs.

There is no good in pessimism, but individual criticism isn’t good for corporate responsibility.

If you believe your actions are too small to make a difference, try going to sleep with a mosquito.

One consumer shouldn't be blamed for the mass ecological destruction caused by capitalism, rather direct action should be taken against the multi billion worth cooperations and governments actively destroying the planet- the blame should never be diverted from them.

They probably are but enough people do it, it'll make a difference. For more people to do it, they ave to see how dedicated one person is.

We should vote for a government that will take strong action against companies that pollute the environment.

I'd say they're mostly correct, especially if they're speaking in the narrow context of their choices as a consumer. Given that the best thing we can definitely achieve for the environment as things stand, is to not have children, the situation is dire. The biggest difference we might possibly be able to make would be via the overthrow of capitalism and the ruling class.

Yes, you may not have a big impact as a person. However, the products you buy have a big impact on the environment, and the same is true for disposal. Which leads to a more dangerous environment for younger generations

Everyone has the ability to make a change on the environment

I believe that Ecologism, is a 2 way situation, in some cases this could cause massive protests for the environmental issues of Australia. In my honest opinion, i believe that Ecologism can improve our country regional position on the way of the environment.

We are all beings that exist within the structure of our ecosystem. We are not better or more important that other animals. Aim to coexist and minimize our impact as much as possible. The earth will still be here in for the next millenia, we may not.

they're not. the world's made of individuals after all.

Make the world around you a better place. If everyone did that, it would influence the whole world.

I believe everyone's actions are too small to make a difference to the environment, individually, however people who think and act locally help create a culture where everyone does the same, and the flow on effect is a net benefit to the environment.

I'd first ask them what do they mean by 'environment' – if it basically means 'everything that surrounds us', it's not a very fruitful question to be asking.

I would say that change needs to come from the top down.

Make personal changes, don’t legislate changes. Educate don’t dictate.

Energy and persistence conquer all things; one adds up.

thats even though its just one thing it adds up to a bigger thing and small actions in the long run can make a massive impact

Every bit makes a difference, the little actions are the only way to spark change

I would say that every action, no matter how small, can make a difference for the environment. Collective individual actions add up to significant impacts. By adopting environmentally friendly practices in our daily lives, such as reducing waste, conserving energy, and supporting sustainable products, we contribute to a healthier planet. Additionally, our actions can inspire others and create a ripple effect, leading to larger-scale changes and a more sustainable future for all.

That no actions are too small and everything can make a change to the environment, no matter how small or big the action is.

Its ok and it doesn't have to have an immediate, big change but can rather start off small and then grow big.

I would say, big corporations pollute to ocean everyday, and build almost everything as cheap as possible including the use of child slaves overseas, why are we the working class made to feel the guilt of big corporation greed.

every small actions do matter, however large figures in the world may change the opinions of individuals making small changes

Correct. People in power coupled with the media string together a narrative that paints the people as the ones doing the most damage but fail to do anything about the large corporations destroying the planet. Your actions as an individual impacts the world a lot less. And sure, when you add all the individuals living here together it causes a problem but I still believe they should come second to dealing with the larger problem at hand.

One small action can help cause a revolution. You can see it in history.

No action is too small to make a difference to anything.

They should make a stand for their beliefs, and hopefully the government can take into consideration.

I am a big believer that to reach the goals of sustainability, there needs to be some economic sacrifice. However, once humanity breaks this barrier to entry, the long term economic growth will be significant.

For many things individuals are too small but for other things such as food choice we can make a big difference.

You’re right. The image and notion of ‘climate change’ has been grossly exaggerated, and the world will not end because you threw some plastic out of your car. Still don’t do that though, just because it doesn’t look good, it looks messy and unclean.

When you have developing countries like "CHINA" polluting the world at massive levels a single person in Australia is leaving a rather small footprint

Don’t think yourself as a small person, one person can change the world.

Every little bit counts. If 1 person decides to make a small change- yes, its not going to change the entire world. But if 1 million people make a small change, think of the contribution to that.

No action is too small, they have a snowball effect

You're right, for the most part. Although it does help to reduce your individual impact, in the grand scheme of things, the most carbon emissions and pollution are caused by large companies, so it's best to focus on that rather than individual impact

If everyone thought like this, we would never get anywhere (in relation to every political / social issue in history really)

Maybe but doing nothing is selfish and irresponsible better everyone to do small things then no one doing anything

The impact of minor decisions on the environment may appear to be negligient, but accumulative decisions create significant impacts. People throwing their trash on the sidewalk without any prevention from the government and by their own free volition would make the sidewalk unwalkable. From a policy standpoint, policy that encourages the limitation of action that harms the environment benefits everyone.

They're probably thinking that way because they've seen other people not contribute. If everyone around them also contributed, they'd feel more inclined to

If you want to make a difference, a little change can go a long way over time. Success is the some of small efforts repeated day after day, so even a small change can make a difference.

Keep making those actions as in the end, all these small actions add up to something big that'll help the planet on a large scale.

I would say that if everyone had that mindset, absolutely no change would be made.

Keep doing what they’re doing and hopefully it starts a chain reaction

They’re probably right, need government intervention for action.

If you litter one piece of rubbish once a week, that's a small impact. If 5000 people did the same, with the same mind set, you've got 5000 pieces of rubbish littered in a week. Turn that to 25 million, then the impact is monumental. This can be applied to a lot of different situations. Even if your personal impacts are small, there's about a million others whose impacts are equally as small causing devastating results.

I would tell them that it is a group effort to make such changes.

They can't be blamed, most of the damage to the environment comes from the great corporative groups, we should focus in punishing them.