She finally took (1)____________________
and avoided buying her groceries in supermarkets.
She shops in (2)____________________ food shops instead, which helps her feel (3)__________________ with herself, morally-speaking.
On the (4)_______________, though, being (5)_____________________ can become a real challenge to deal with.
When they moved they decided to become a little bit (6)_____________.
They had previously grown herbs on (7)________________
He admits that shifting (8)___________ around can be (9)___________________work.
They have managed to reduce their (10)________________.
A friend convinced her that being a vegetarian was the only (11)______________________
However, after they slowly (12)________________________, she was back to her old diet.
She finds it challenging to (13)____________________, particularly when eating out.
Quitting red meat can massively reduce our (14)_____________________.
On the street there can be (15)_______________ plastic. Bottles of water, empty (16)____________________, plastic (17)_________________ This is why he has decided to make (18)____________________ against this irresponsible (19)_________________ culture.
Not only does fresh fruit come in some sort of (20)_______________, but finding interesting plastic-free toys can also be a real (21)_______________
Only when he (22)__________________ three of his neighbours at the supermarket did he decide to make a change.
In order not to waste (23) ________________, he made the decision to (24)_____________ the car.
His (25)___________________ motive was to save himself
KEY
1. the plunge
take the plunge (informal) to decide to do something important or difficult, especially after thinking about it for a long time
E.g.
They finally decided to take the plunge and get married.
He finally took the plunge and gave in his notice.
2. environmentally-responsible
3. more at ease
4. downside
5. eco-conscious
6. greener
7. the window ledge
8. soil
9. utterly back-breaking
10. food waste
11. morally sound option
12. fell out of touch
13. keep up
keep up: to continue something at the same, usually high, level
E.g.
We're having difficulty keeping up our mortgage payments.
Well done! Keep up the good work/Keep it up!
14. carbon footprint
15. discarded
16. carrier bags
17. cutlery
18. a stand
make a stand: To publicly assert one's opinion or defence of or opposition to something without relenting. Sp. tomar posición.
E.g.
I know voicing my opinion on this legislation may put my job in jeopardy, but it's time to make a stand. All the other kids in the class were too afraid to speak out, but Georgina decided to make a stand for what she knew was right.
19. throwaway
20. packaging
21. bind
bind: /baɪnd/ an annoying situation that is often difficult to avoid. A difficult situation. Sp. una lata.
E.g.
it's a bind Sp. es una lata
what a bind! Sp. ¡qué lata!
to be in a bind Sp. estar en apuros
22. bumped into
23. fuel
24. ditch
25. overriding
overriding: more important than anything else in a particular situation. Sp. principal.
E.g.
the overriding factor/consideration/concern
Their overriding aim was to keep costs low.
Time was of overriding importance.
Script
Track 009
Narrator: You will hear five short extracts in which people talk about changes they have made to benefit the environment.
Speaker 1:
After saying I was going to do it for goodness knows how many years, I’ve taken the plunge and have stopped shopping in supermarkets. They create so much waste and pollution that I just couldn’t bear to give them any more of my money. Now I’ll only go to environmentally-responsible food shops and, despite the fact that the nearest one is about half an hour further away, not to mention the higher prices of the food, I feel much more at ease with myself, morally-speaking.
On the downside, though, the way I have to run my life - my finances, what my kids need and being eco-conscious - is becoming a real challenge to deal with and gets really tiring sometimes.
Speaker 2:
When we moved home, we decided it was about time we did something to become a little bit greener. We used to live in a flat, and we’d always grown herbs on the window ledge, but now we’ve got this beautiful big garden, and have really bought into the ‘grow-your-own’ lifestyle. I have to say, it is utterly back-breaking work, all that shifting soil around.
Then there’s the planting and re-planting, planning and prioritising which seeds you’re going to put into which patch, and at what time of the year, but the rewards are certainly there. You can really taste the difference. We’ve vastly reduced our food waste and we just feel healthier all round.
Speaker 3:
I first became vegetarian about ten years ago. A good friend at the time was really into animal rights and she convinced me that it was the only morally sound option. I suppose I did it for her, really. Anyway, we slowly fell out of touch, and before I knew it, I was back to my old diet, and happily stayed that way for years.
Recently, however, I stopped eating meat again. Frankly, I’d be lying if I said I’m finding it easy to keep up, especially when I go out to a restaurant, but after seeing a programme about how we should all do our bit a few months back, and how not having red meat in particular can massively reduce our carbon footprint, I just realised – there’s no other choice.
Speaker 4:
Sometimes, you can walk down the street and all you see is discarded plastic. Bottles of water, empty carrier bags, plastic cutlery …that used to be me. But I’ve now decided to make a stand, my own little protest against this irresponsible throwaway culture everyone seems to love so much. So, since last month, I’ve been trying to completely eliminate plastic from my home.
Shopping for food tends to take a little longer these days, as even fresh fruit usually comes in some sort of packaging, and it’s a real bind trying to source plastic-free toys for my kids that they’ll actually want to play with. At the end of the day, though, I’m so pleased that we’re doing it.
Speaker 5:
When I bumped into three of my neighbours at the supermarket, I realised I needed to make a change. The four of us were walking out of the door at the same time and we all got into our separate cars to drive home.
The thing is, we only live about seven or eight hundred metres away from the shop. What a waste of fuel, and it gave me the push I needed to ditch the car and take the bike instead.
Granted, it’s been more of a trial as autumn has turned into winter, but I’m in better shape than ever.
Saving the world is great, obviously, but, if I’m being honest, saving myself is probably my overriding motive.
Vocabulary
buy into something
to believe something, especially an idea that many other people believe in.
E.g.
She had never bought into the idea that to be attractive you have to be thin.
granted: admittedly. Used to show that you accept that something is true, often before you make another statement about it. Sp. es verdad que.
E.g.
Granted, it's not the most pleasant of jobs but it has to be done.
Granted, he is a beginner, but he should know the basic rules.
Granted, John did badly on that test, but the teacher had no right to call him out in front of the class the way he did.
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