What can individuals do to decrease their own carbon footprint?

This is an interesting question because it reveals something unusual and kind of depressing about humans, generally. Many people are highly willing to make symbolic gestures in support of what they believe in, but struggle with the boring, practical minutiae of living out a practical example. The boring fact of the matter is, the most immediate, practical change any individual can make to reduce their impact on the environment is to fastidiously recycle, to reduce waste as far as possible and to endeavor to minimize their use of inefficient transport methods. Our individual efforts are meaningless in isolation but they add up to a great deal if pursued by many.