The need to live an eco-friendlier lifestyle has been on the rise recently. Statistics have shown that only 11% of the waste produced annually is being returned for recycling.
Individuals, businesses, and organizations now have a need, more than ever, to be aware of their influence in sustaining a healthy environment and make conscious decisions in reducing their carbon footprint.
Now, living this eco-friendly life may seem very difficult to achieve, and here’s why we have decided to pen down tips for you to help the environment select a sustainable option, be more energy-efficient, and reduce carbon emission rates.
Most of them have to begin with you, including your families.
Is it easy to live a more eco-friendly lifestyle? Let’s take a look.
5 Easy things you can do to live an eco-friendly lifestyle
Let’s begin with the easy changes you can make. Here are 5 of them.
1. Switch off light bulbs when you leave a room.
Switching off the light bulbs when leaving a room is essential to living an eco-friendly and sustainable lifestyle. One of these reasons is because it helps to save energy and money.
Depending on the type of light bulbs you use, you can save money on them by switching these light bulbs off when they are not going to be in use for a long time, for instance, during the daytime or when the bulbs are in a less-frequently accessed area, like the basement, store, or wine cellar.
2. Use eco-cleaning products to clean the house.
Cleaning products nowadays contain harmful chemicals which are hazardous to the environment. Examples are the foaming agents we use, detergents, and preservatives.
One of the easy ways to live an eco-friendlier lifestyle is to opt-in for green cleaning products that do not cause damage to the environment.
Products that are naturally derived and free of synthetic ingredients are suitable for living an eco-friendly lifestyle and also come with a host of benefits.
3. Buy less paper and recycle more
As the planet dives deep into being digital, it is becoming harder to live a day without the use of paper.
Paper is mainly used everywhere we can; homes, offices, organizations, schools, restaurants, even use paper bags and paper towels.
While we make a reasonable effort to reduce the amount of paper we use, for example, by taking digital notes, recycling as much paper as possible is even an eco-friendlier tip.
According to the EPA, recycling about a ton of paper can help save more than 15 mature trees.
By taking this conscious effort, we are already beginning to live an eco-friendly lifestyle, and we are ultimately reducing our carbon footprint even through paper usage.
4. Use Canvas bags instead of plastic bags
Restaurants, stores, and cafes need to opt-in to use canvas bags for their customers who shop instead of conventional paper and plastic bags.
Although the canvas bags might be a little higher in price than paper and plastic bags, they are used significantly more than the plastic and paper bags as you can use them to repack items later, are light, and are considerably more robust.
They are also fit for recycling purposes.
5. Use a recyclable, eco-friendly bottled water
The effect of plastic waste cannot be overemphasized, and one of the great contributors to this waste is the plastic bottles we use, and in this case, water bottles.
While it is a challenge to live without plastic bottles, it is good to make sure they aren’t adding to the environment’s waste.
An excellent way to do this is to buy bottled water that isn’t for single use; reusable and recyclable.
Re-usable helps us save money on bottled water as we’ll only need to purchase fewer bottles, and being recyclable helps contribute significantly to sustainable living and producing zero waste.
5 things you can do that require a bit more time/thought/planning
Now we move on to some of the more challenging changes you can make. Some require planning and additional thought.
1. Change your family habits
If not correctly checked, family habits can become bad and can negatively contribute to our environment.
The importance of good habits like using environmentally friendly or plant-based hair and skin products, handling waste with care, choosing food and products carefully, building proper gardens, etc., should be taught appropriately to families.
This helps the planet to become safer and greener.
2. Think about the best way to travel
While we’d love to invest in quality time, spend picnics and holidays with members of our family and loved ones, we should also consider doing it in an eco-friendly.
This begins with setting up the proper mode of transportation for our travels and picnics.
Depending on the destination of our travels, we can select a transportation mode that won’t negatively agitate the environment, for instance, biking instead of driving, driving instead of taking airplanes, taking electric trains instead of driving or talking airplanes, and so on.
These practices are simple ways to sustain environmental needs.
3. Cut down on energy in your home
There are several ways to live a sustainable lifestyle, reduce energy consumption and live an eco-friendly in your home.
For instance, you can unplug appliances that aren’t in current use as they consume energy in a low state, raise your thermostat in the summer and lower it in the winter, turn off heaters when not in use, dry clothes by spreading them on a clothesline, and so on.
Practices like these not only help you cut down on energy bills you incur per month; they also help to reduce the amount of waste contributed to the environment.
4. Eat less meat
Cutting down on the consumption of meat help to reduce the number of greenhouse gases produced in the rearing, slaughtering, and processing of livestock.
One of the fun tips to eat less meat is to specifically choose a day, or probably, days of the week where you imbibe a no-meat policy.
For instance, Meatless Mondays signify that you do not eat meat on Mondays; instead, you can extend the number of days you eat less meat.
This practice reduces the energy spent on livestock rearing and gives us more room for environmentally greener activities.
5. Reduce water waste
Living an eco-friendlier lifestyle also involves a reduction in water usage. For example, you can invest in a low-flow showerhead to reduce water usage during your baths.
Other practices to optimize water usage includes; timing your baths, turning off the water while brushing your teeth, covering your pool when not in use, and so on.
5 Challenging things that will take time to implement
Lastly, here are 5 of the most challenging things you can do to live a more eco-friendly life. These require dedication and some investment too! It is worth it in the long run, both for you and our planet.
1. Use renewable energy
One of the good tips for living an eco-friendlier lifestyle is to invest in renewable energies. Households and organizations largely depend on non-sustainable sources of energy such as oil and gas.
An excellent eco-friendly method to implement is considering the use of solar panels. This is a renewable source of energy that is environmentally cleaner and free of waste.
2. Switch heating source
Homes on several occasions need to be heated, and this has to be done correctly.
In contrast to chimneys, homes can switch to using an eco-friendlier and more sustainable source such as heat pumps, boilers, and solar thermals.
These methods are eco-friendly, energy-efficient, and help save money, mainly depending on renewable energy sources.
3. Recycling your vehicle
One of the eco-friendly tips is to recycle your car. You can recycle your car or auction them off second-hand to a new buyer.
You can also donate your car for philanthropic causes and even receive some tax reductions.
4. Insulate your house
While it might not be enough to seek renewable energy sources alone, you can also insulate your home if you want to go greener. A properly-insulated home helps to create a steady temperature. This environmentally eco-friendly life behavior enables you to maintain internal temperature and save money on energy bills.
5. Create your compost
Apart from the good eco-friendly habit of plating gardens, you can switch to creating your compost, particularly from leftover food waste. This practice reduces the need for chemical fertilizers, helps the production of beneficial microorganisms in the soil, reduces carbon emissions, helps retain water moisture.
Conclusion
Although challenging, often time-consuming, all these practices are great ways to live a sustainable, eco-friendly lifestyle.
You can make some changes quickly and without additional cost. Some changes will require an investment to get them off the ground. For instance, implementing renewable energy (like solar) will have an initial outlay, but if you stay in your house long enough, you will save money in the long run.
We must do what we can to help the environment, and that starts now, with you.
Good luck!