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Targeted education programs can empower 
individuals around the world to lower their 
carbon footprints.
Devising policies, putting in place regulations 
and providing subsidies that cut carbon 
emissions and protect ecosystems are all jobs 
for governments, businesses and organizations. 
But reversing global warming equally relies on 
individuals changing their behavior. Public 
campaigns, peer-to-peer training and grassroots 
information sharing will be essential tools in 
effecting such change.
Farmers are an especially important audience 
for such education efforts, as sustainable 
farming stands to save tons of carbon 
emissions. NGOs are now teaching sustainable 
farming techniques around the world. For 
example, the System of Rice Intensification, or 
SRI, is a climate-friendly approach to improving 
the production of rice, a staple food across the 
globe. Its key components involve transplanting 
rice seedlings earlier, draining the fields mid-
season instead of continuously flooding them, 
and reducing the use of synthetic fertilizers in 
favor of organic compost. 
The result? More resistant plants and reduced 
greenhouse gas emissions. What’s more, SRI is 
essentially free to use. However, it’s not always 
easy to get farmers to change the way they work 
overnight, as traditional farming techniques are 
often deeply culturally entrenched. That’s why 
SRI is best taught through peer-to-peer training 
that provides farmers with real-life examples of 
its efficiency.
Empowering women farmers must be part of any 
such education program. Even though they 
make up 43 percent of the agricultural labor 
force, women are seldom recognized as farmers 
in their own right. Lacking access to finances, 
education and other resources compared to their 
male counterparts, their fields tend to be less 
productive. Supporting them through micro-
funding and on-the-ground training that teaches 
sustainable farming methods will begin to 
address this imbalance. 
But female farmers aren’t the only group of 
women that could help us combat climate 
change with better access to education. 
Prioritizing the education of girls in general 
would help reduce the world’s carbon emissions, 
in part because educated women tend to have 

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fewer children. Population size is a controversial 
talking point in the climate discourse, but better 
access to reproductive health services simply 
reflects the wishes of women worldwide; 240 
million women in lower-income countries say 
they want the ability to choose when they 
become pregnant. Giving these women access 
to family planning would improve their lives while 
reducing the number of people on the planet, 
thereby saving the CO2 emissions each of them 
would produce during their lifetime.