The big concern of our lifetime is the environment. Everything else is mumbo-jumbo in comparison because, without a habitable world, nothing else can exist. Forget politics, economics, business, social structuring, anthropology; everything falls short in comparison to the importance of the environment. With billions of people now living on this earth, it is more important than ever that we find a way to lessen our individual impact and reduce our carbon footprint.
Don’t worry, we’re not going to suggest you walk barefoot everywhere and cover your house in solar panels and only drink rain water. When it comes to caring for the earth, even the most minor actions matter. We can create clean and healthy spaces free of pollution through individual actions that significantly contribute to the whole. Yes, by just making simple eco-friendly changes to your everyday life you can have a huge impact when it comes to saving the planet.
Below are some steps everyone can take to make a greener and more sustainable planet.
1. Getting About
If you can walk or cycle somewhere, then why not walk or cycle somewhere. Not only is this going to have a great impact on the world, it is going to have a great impact on you. Of course, you can’t do this every context, but you can improve your methods by using the tram or train where possible or using the cruise control in your car increase your fuel economy.
2. Energy Supplier
Who supplies us with energy is one of the most important factors and yet it is one that seems to get overlooked and ignored way too much. But by switching to someone like American Power and Gas, who have a rich history in using greener and more efficient fuels, you could find yourself enjoying a greener, more cost-effective and better quality source of energy, and what could be better than that?
3. Brushing Your Teeth
It’s the age-old water saving debacle that is once again led by the issue of turning the tap off while you brush your teeth. But the reason this one crops up so much is that the global water footprint is growing. So let’s say you start turning the tap off while brushing your teeth; you’ve just saved 5 gallons of water in a day. Let’s say everyone in America now does that; we’ve now saved 1.55 billion gallons of water in a day.
4. Go Local
If you’re a vegan and proud of it, good for you. By eating less meat you are doing your part. But before you start gloating about how awesome you are at being an eco-warrior, we suggest you do your research because vegans actually do more harm to the environment. The best thing we can do is eat locally. Banas from Mozambique, avocados from Mexico, soya from the Ukraine; all these air miles add up. Instead, start using services like FarmDrop, which only source local foods.
5. Do It Online
Imagine if we could collectively save 20 million trees a year in the US alone. Well, guess what, we can. If every household was to move away from paper and start using paperless and electronic systems of payment and billing then the world would see a huge improvement on the eco-friendly front. It wouldn’t just be trees saved either. Over two million tons of greenhouse gases would be halted from doing its worst, while over 1.5 million pounds of wasted paper would be prevented too.
6. Sustainable Technology
Newer technologies are presenting us with eco-friendly tools that we can utilize daily. For instance, paying bills online and opting out of billing by paper, taking advantage of federal and local tax credits to install solar panels, switching to a green power supplier, and upgrading to energy-efficient appliances.
7. Going Green at Home
There are so many ways to go green at home:
- Do your laundry using cold water instead of hot.
- Replace regular bulbs with energy-saving ones.
- Switch off power to all electronics when not in use.
- Use natural light during the day, turn off lights in unoccupied rooms, and use a toaster in place of the main range oven.
8. Reuse and Upcycle
Try to reuse or recycle as much as possible. For instance, mend your clothes or reuse them as rags, dye your stained clothing, avoid buying plastic grocery bags, buy reusable ones like jute bags, and make planters of old containers.
Environmental concerns have taken center stage in our world, and their enormity might appear overwhelming to an individual. However, as mentioned, we can all bring about positive change by taking small daily actions.
Salman is a prolific environmental writer, and has authored more than 500 articles in reputed journals, magazines and websites. He is proactively engaged in creating mass awareness on renewable energy, waste management, sustainability and conservation all over the world.
Salman can be reached on salman@cleantechloops.com
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