Meet Ben Clowney. To the unenlightened, he’s a glutton for punishment. To those in the know, he’s a guy who puts his beliefs into action.
Photo: John Millar/Tearfund
Ben has form. Last year he was Tearfund’s Fairtrade Man, living for a fortnight on Fairtrade food and drink.
‘Even during Fairtrade Man, people were saying, “What’s next?” says Ben.
What’s next is Tearfund’s Carbon Fast. Ben is participating in 40 days of environmentally-healthier living, with a simple energy-saving action each day.
But that is not all. To paraphrase Stars in Their Eyes, ‘Tonight Matthew, Ben is going to be Low Carbon Man.’
Except this persona will last more than a night. Low Carbon Man will, God willing, fast for at least a week.
Under canvas
Ben will kick off his carbon-curbing commitment with seven days of camping in the Tearfund car park in February.
In doing so, Ben plans to significantly lighten his carbon footprint. In the course of a year the average Briton is responsible for producing around 10 tons of CO2.
Ben’s plan is to slash his carbon usage by 95 per cent for a week.
So he’s ditching the car and living outside under canvas. He’ll have no heating and live on locally sourced seasonal food cooked on a gas stove.
‘I wanted to take it to extremes to highlight the urgent need to reduce carbon emissions and to protect poor communities around the world who are already suffering from the ravages of climate change,’ says Ben.
Simple actions
‘I’ll miss my car, my bed and warm house to go to at the end of the day.
‘But I’ve been aware that cutting my carbon output is something I could do more about in my life.
‘People have been very supportive and I hope it will have the same success as Fairtrade Man in terms of media profile and getting people to campaign on this issue.’
Of course, you don’t have to go to Ben’s lengths to make a difference. Simple energy saving actions as outlined in our Carbon Fast can make a valuable contribution.