English Unlimited HAK/HUM 4/5, Schulbuch mit Audio-CD und CD-ROM (mit Handelskorrespondenz)

187 Writing guide Sample article task English Targets , a magazine for learners of English as a second language, has asked its readers for contributions to its next issue, which is going to include a special section on environmental problems and a green lifestyle. The author of the best text will win six issues of the magazine and a trip to London. You have decided to submit an article. In your article, you should:   explain what you think a green lifestyle is.   describe at least two ways of actively protecting the environment.   discuss what each of us can do to save the environment. Write around 350 words. Give your article a title. Sample article Start saving the planet NOW! Are you one of those people who complain about air pollution or are afraid of freak weather conditions like floods and storms? Instead of being terrified and pessimistic, we should adopt a green lifestyle, i.e. start tackling environmental problems now and do everything to reduce our carbon footprint, which is easier than you might think. Take recycling, for example: recycling begins at home. It means collecting old materials and reusing them to produce new things. This way, raw materials like wood and valuable resources like clean water can be saved. Moreover, the amount of rubbish, which is growing at an alarming rate, can be reduced. Paper, plastic, glass and aluminium cans are examples of products that are already recycled in large quantities in most EU countries. Another simple way to actively protect the environment is to avoid plastic products as much as possible. In some countries like Italy, plastic bags were banned from one day to the next. Now people have reusable bags that can last for a few years instead of putting their shopping into plastic bags that are usually thrown away after a single use. The same goes for plastic bottles that are so popular among youngsters. Instead of creating mountains of rubbish by buying soft drinks in plastic bottles, we should drink water from glass bottles or a thermos. Avoiding plastic products is not just good for the environment, it is also beneficial to our own health and can save millions of fish which mistake floating bits of plastic for food and die from swallowing it. There are many ways each one of us can contribute to saving the environment: walking, cycling or using public transport instead of private cars is one, eating less meat and more vegetables and fruit is another. Paying attention to how things are packaged and rethinking our consumer habits by buying less of everything are easy options for reducing our carbon footprint. So it is not as difficult as you might think to make a meaningful contribution to protecting the environment. All it takes is to live by the following three principles: reduce, reuse and recycle. Nur zu Prüfzwecken – Eigentum des Verlags öbv