Ways to Make Your Life More Eco-Friendly:
I love Earth Day. It’s always a great reminder for me to reflect on the beautiful places I’ve been lucky enough to visit and take note of the things I am doing to continue to make those places beautiful. There are so many benefits of choosing to make eco-friendly switches in our everyday lives, both for the planet as well as for our own wellbeing, but often time convenience outweighs those benefits. I had the opportunity to live “off the grid” a few years ago in Hawaii and my time there really put things into perspective for me. It taught me the value of our earth and how much it can provide to us! To maintain its health and beauty, it’s crucial we make choices that have a positive impact and drive change to create a beautiful earth we can all enjoy. Fortunately, we don’t all have to live off the grid to be able to gain an appreciation for Mother Nature! If you’re looking to make some eco-friendly changes, here are a few options to consider!
- Recycling – If you have a recycling bin at home or in your office, think twice before tossing your trash in the garbage can and consider recycling what you can. Here is a list of things that can and cannot be recycled, print it and out and post it near your recycling bin as a great reminder!
- Opt for reusable options – Most people have a reusable water bottle, and they’re a great way to cut down on plastic bottles. Taken inventory on the single-use products you use regularly and see where you can make the switch to reusable! Here are some great examples:
- Keep a reusable coffee mug in your car for when you get your java on the go, don’t forget to ask if you can use your own cup when you’re ordering!
- Keeping reusable bags in your car for groceries or shopping are not only great at keeping plastic bags out of the environment, but they can also save you some change when you’re checking out.
- Plastic silverware is often not considered when making sustainable switches but opting to use your own reusable silverware over the single-use option will have the earth saying thank you!
- Alternative Commuting – Live close enough to work to walk or bike? Consider choosing that option over driving, even if it’s one or twice a week. It’ll save you some gas money, you’ll get some fresh air and reduce emissions. If you don’t live close enough to work to walk or bike, but you live near someone who you work with, see if carpooling is an option! It’s also a free ticket into the HOV lane for those busy mornings.
- Meatless Mondays – Did you know to produce ¼ lb. of beef it takes 425 gallons of water and the equivalent energy to charging your phone for six months. You may have heard of Meatless Mondays before, but if not it’s an initiative to encourage people to take 1 day a week to choose plant-based food options to conserve energy produced by agriculture. If you want to read more on the positive effects of Meatless Monday check out this information sheet!
There are plenty of steps we can take to live a more eco-friendly lifestyle, but if you take anything from this, I hope that it’s this – Don’t get discouraged if you want to make changes and they don’t stick immediately. These are practices that take time and just like any habit, the more you do it, the more natural it will become for you in your daily life. Taking these steps will only benefit you, the earth, and generations to come.
I hope you’ll join me in also getting excited for Earth Day this year!
Alison Erbes, Project Coordinator at Suna Solutions