If you’re serious about living green, you need to take steps now to make the most of your green lifestyle. Living green, however, isn’t about sacrificing style or comfort. It’s about making conscious choices that benefit people, animals, and the environment. Here are 6 ways to live a green life and make the world a better place at the same time.
1. Minimise the use
of plastic
Today, we produce about 300 million tonnes of plastic every year. A lot of our food is prepared, packaged, and shipped in plastic containers. We’ve become accustomed to using plastic in our daily lives. It’s easy, it’s cheap, and it’s readily available.
By eliminating plastic from everyday life, you can reduce your carbon footprint. Cotton bags and paper bags are cheaper and more sustainable than plastic bags. They decompose much more quickly and can be recycled for a long time. You can even eliminate single-use plastics by using paper straws. Using reusable water bottles is a great way to save money and reduce waste as well.
2. Recycle and reuse
One of the easiest ways to reduce your environmental impact is to look at ways you can recycle and reuse common items like clothes, water bottles, and food packaging. When it comes to recycling, plastics, paper, cardboard, and metals are the usual suspects. When you find a can of something that you want to recycle, don’t just chuck it into a recycling bin. Instead, take a few minutes to figure out if there’s another use for it. You might think about turning the jar or water bottle into a flower vase or repurposing the contents of the old jar into a new container.
3. Practice conservation
We like to call this “conservation” as opposed to “minimalism”, because this is about using your resources more effectively and not letting things slip by. But you don’t have to go all out on this one. Just make a conscious effort to use less of your resources.
By practicing conservation, you can save on your electricity bills, and also help the environment by reducing the amount of energy used. For example, this can be using less water while doing the dishes and taking baths, and using cold water for washing. As a general rule, if you’re not actively using them, turn off the lights as well.
4. Grow organic food
The first thing that you should do to improve your health is to start eating healthy foods. You can grow organic foods in your backyard with little to no investment. You just have to make sure to water your garden often so that it can grow properly. It is important to keep your organic foods in an airtight container so that they can stay fresh for a long time. Gardening is a good way to promote sustainability and reduce carbon footprint. However, it’s important to grow only those plants that are beneficial for you.
5. Use public transport
There are plenty of ways to reduce your environmental footprint. This one may come as a shock, but one of the biggest causes of climate change is people driving around in cars. We’re more than seven billion people living on this planet right now, and we’re responsible for tons of CO2 emissions per year. The way we travel affects more than just the planet.
Public transport is a good alternative when you’re traveling from one place to another. It is more eco-friendly and, on top of that, if you do share a car with someone, it can save you a ton of money.
6. Go solar
Today, solar energy is one of the most popular renewable energy sources for U.S homeowners. It’s safe to install, lasts for decades, and gives a great ROI over initial cost. The price of solar panels has been falling drastically in the last few years and coupled with all the tax incentives, now’s a great time to adopt green energy to power your house.
If you want to know more about solar energy and how you can save money, contact Avvio Solar today.
