We put together a list of 10 easy ways for you to be environmentally conscious. Not all of them require huge sacrifices to make an impact. In the race for a cleaner environment, we have to remember that it is a marathon and not a sprint.
The 3 R’s
This is the big one. Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle is a major motto to live by and sets the groundwork for every other tip on the list. The first piece is to limit your production and consumption of non-sustainable materials. Reuse signifies taking those things that are being produced and finding new ways to use them once they have stopped being useful in their original purpose. Recycling happens when the items have met their end of life. Find ways to sustainably shape it into a new product for the future.
BYOB – “Bring Your Own Bag”
California makes this one easy for us, but it doesn’t hurt to mention it once again. Whenever possible, make sure you are bringing and using reusable bags as opposed to single use. Bonus points if your bags are made from natural and recycled products.
Small Scale Farming
This one may require some planning, but if you are able, growing your own food is a fantastic way to cut down on pollution from food production and transportation. You can grow smaller herbs indoors or grow bigger fruits and vegetables outside. If you have a lot more space (and your neighbors are okay with it), you could even keep animals like hens and roosters!
Buy Locally
If you can’t farm your own ingredients at home, the next best option is to buy your ingredients from local farmers. This option has many benefits. You decrease the amount of pollution caused by food transportation. Additionally, you put money into your local economy. It’s a win-win!
Composting
This is a big one that you always see amongst the upper echelon of the environmentally conscious. It’s a way to get your food waste out of the landfills and give it a job to do. Composting not only reduces the amount of time that your food spends in landfills, but it also helps if you need to give more life to your soil and plants.
Reusable Water Bottles
This one is the easiest. If you drink a lot of water and don’t mind drinking from the tap, you can save hundreds of dollars over a couple months. You can also just as easily buy a filter and refill your water bottle with those.
Waste Free Lunches
Try not to use throw away packaging. Make sure you are always using reusable food containers and bags to ensure that there are no extra plastic and paper products going into landfills.
Lower House Temperature
This one is tough. If you can brave the cold when you wake up or when you get home for work, you can be greener daily. This works in the opposite direction during the warmer months. It can also save you some money on your electric bill! Everybody likes extra money.
Take public transit
Reserve several days throughout the month to take public transit. It is easier to reduce carbon emissions if less people are in individual cars. This is even more true if you are using earth conscious public transit systems.
Walk or ride a bike
Like we said, all of these are easy to implement. They are earth conscious and some of them even provide cost savings. Help us celebrate Earth Day by taking some time to try one of these Green initiatives.
If you want to talk more about the environment with us, we have a Free Earth Day Festival on Saturday, April 20th in the courtyard from 11am-3pm. We will be help you make wild seed packets with your kids to plant around the bay area. You can also learn about blue whales and what we can do to clean up their homes. Learn more on our website www.creativity.org/calendar
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