I’m not a huge fan of Carbon Credits and Carbon Offsetting. I fully appreciate that the principal is valid, and probably has a positive effect: replace the co2 you have emitted by investing in projects that have removed (or will remove) a similar amount, or more, elsewhere in the world. However for me the outcome of such an investment is not tangible enough, not guaranteed enough. Can I be sure that the projects I have invested in at a distance are really reducing the amount of global co2 emitted every day? Personally, it’s not my carbon replacement solution.

That’s why I like Cool Earth. Recently launched, this organisation is based on a simple premise: preserving the rainforests of the earth, known to be the world’s biggest storers of co2, by making parcels of land available to “own” by private individuals, schools, businesses and institutions. Not only can you “buy” an acre of rainforest for only £70, but you can keep an eye on it via Google Maps!

The money you invest is literally used to buy rainforest in order to ensure that it can continue to produce the oxygen and water vital to our planet’s existence, and that it cannot be burnt. Burning a single acre of rainforest releases as much as 260 tonnes of co2 - ten years of an average British family’s co2 emission, and, according to Cool Earth, as much as 100 acres of forest are cleared EVERY MINUTE!

I also like Cool Earth because it relies on people power. Like Reduce Your CO2, the philosophy of the people at Cool Earth is that we can’t just sit around and wait for our governments to tell us how they are going to save the planet. We need to act now, and as individuals it’s easy to do so.

So next time you are feeling guilty about taking yet another plane trip, why not invest in a piece of rainforest. What’s more, you will be able to keep an eye on it without ever having to go there.