What can we do to pitch in and help save the Earth? There are plenty of things you can do every day to help reduce greenhouse gases and your carbon footprint to make a less harmful impact on the environment. Taking care of the Earth is not just a responsibility, it's a necessity. I'm slowly trying to educate myself and change little things in my every day routine to help save the planet. Here are a few ways I've found to help:
1) Reusable make up remover pads
Reusable make up remover pads are an easy way to swap out your cotton pads or wipes and become more environmentally conscious. They're also less harmful on your skin.
2) Straws
I use steel straws and carry around a fold away straw on my key ring incase I need one out and about. More than 100 million single use straws, most of them plastic are used each day. They end up in waterways, harm sea animals, and break down into micro plastics that are becoming ubiquitous on Earth.
3) Milk
Milk has higher environmental impact than vegan substitutes.
A few alternatives include:
Almond Milk
Oat Milk
Rice Milk
Soy Milk
They use less land, less water and generate lower amount of greenhouse gases. I drink almond milk, it takes a few weeks to get used to the slight difference in taste however it's definitely worth it.
4) Meat
I'm not saying you have to become a vegetarian or vegan I'm simply saying by cutting down on meat and dairy it not only helps the environment but it also helps your health and makes you feel healthier and happier.
By reducing beef consumption by 19% from 2005 to 2014, Americans reduces carbon emissions equivalent to 39 million fewer cars.
A diet heavy in meat increases the risk of obesity, cancer and heart disease. Vegetarian and vegan foods are massively on the rise and becoming far more common in restaurants, cafes and supermarkets, so you’ll rarely struggle. Not only that, but cutting down on meat and dairy products can reduce your weekly food bills.
5) Reusable Bags
Every disposable plastic bag ends up in the ocean or countryside is a danger to fish, birds and mammals. Using reusable bags could saves the lives of more than a million seabirds and 100,000 marine animals each year.
6) Reusable Water Bottles (and Coffee Cups)
Using a reusable water bottle will help protect our oil reserves and slow down global warming. The production of single use plastic water bottles also releases 2.5 million tones of carbon dioxide in into the atmosphere per year. This further contributes to the warming of the planet. Not only that, they're so cute!
7) Food Shopping
The key here is not to buy food that you won't use, so plan out your meals before you go to the shop so you'll know exactly what to buy. Another choice here is to swing by the shop more often, so you'll buy less at a time and the stuff you get will have less chance of going bad. It’s estimated that a third of all food produced in the world is lost or wasted. Do your bit by eating up leftovers and use any ingredients you have spare to make interesting meals. Try to waste as little food as possible, and compost the organic waste you can’t eat.
8) Loose Tea
Each tea bag doesn't produce a huge amount of waste, but every little saved counts. This is one of those tiny little things that you hardly think about. If you're a tea drinker, get a tea infuser (some of which can be totally adorable) and some loose leaf the tea and ditch the tea bags.
9) Recycle
Recycling reduces the need for extracting (mining, quarrying and logging), refining and processing raw materials. All of these create substantial air and water pollution.
I make sure I recycle as much as I can. If you can, try to wash the food or other waste off before you recycle.
As recycling saves energy it also reduces greenhouse gas emissions, which helps to tackle climate change. Recycling what we can reduces the amount of new materials we are making, and upcycling is a creative way to make old items into something more valuable. This could be reusing a jam jar as a candle holder, or using old tins as plant pots – the possibilities are endless!
10) Composting
Give your garden a good breakfast; coffee grounds and eggshells are ideal for composting. Adding compost to your garden will not only fertilize, it actually feeds your soil with a diversity of nutrients and microorganisms that will improve plant growth. I currently live in a flat so I find this one difficult, however I'm going to try and introduce a compost bin in our bin area by speaking to the owners or council.
11) Clothing Donation
I either try to sell clothes I don't want anymore on eBay or Depop. You can also donate clothing to charities.
The average American throws away approximately 68 pounds of clothing and textiles each year.
Donating your old clothing to charity reduces the needs for landfill space. Textile and clothing thrown in the garbage accounts for about 4.5% of landfill space. A major component of recycling is re-using. By donating your unwanted clothing and household items to charity, you give your old stuff a second life. If your clothes end up in landfills it can do major harm to the environment. Most synthetic fibers do not decompose. Wool and cotton clothing that does decompose produces methane gas which contributes to global warming.
12) Drink Tap Water
I use a water filter which I store in the fridge for fresh/cold water.
By drinking bottled water it produces 50 billion bottles per year, from which 80% will end up dumped in landfills and in our oceans. Drinking filtered tap water instead of buying bottles means less plastic consumed, and less pollution in our oceans!
13) Market
14) I'm currently investigating the production and ethical testing of products before I buy them, especially my makeup to see if I can find more environmental and vegan friendly items.