We’ve all heard about sustainable options to save the planet. It sounds overwhelming and complicated at first glance, but believe me, it is not as intimidating as it may seem. It’s all about small choices that can lead to significant long-term impact, rather than big choices with instant results that can only be temporary. Although it may seem small these kinds of things can add up over time. Simple changes you make can bring a huge reduction in pollution. This is a recommended list of ideas that you can do to incorporate eco-friendly changes in your life. Just remember that this is not a competition, so even if it doesn’t seem to make a big difference as much as others seem to be doing, that doesn’t mean you should give up. Do what you can, and encourage others to do the same.
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Water Bottle/Coffee Mugs
Cliche, but, after all, cliche always works for a reason! It is still not commonly known that most disposable cups cannot be recycled due to the wax coating – yes, even your coffee cup that is made out of paper. There are countless designs you can choose from for your water bottle or coffee mugs- so don’t hesitate. Go crazy!
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Reusable Straws
Let’s be real- a significant amount of college students live off of coffee. How many straws does the average student use in a day? Multiple! This is a lot of waste that could easily be reused.. Purchasing reusable straws is very accessible. You can easily find them in various stores like Target or Walmart, and of course, you can get them online too. Add your straw to your shopping cart with your reusable tumbler.
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Wool Dryer Balls
It’s time to say goodbye to dryer sheets and say hello to dryer balls. By doing this, you can help out the environment incredibly, as a dryer ball is made out of wool, all-natural, and a chemical-free alternative. This also saves money because they are reusable!. Save money and save the planet!
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Shampoo Bars
Consider using bar shampoo in the shower instead of pump or liquid soaps that come with packaging. The common misconception is that the plastic container will be recycled, but in reality, this isn’t always the case.
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Switch your Clothing
Why don’t we all take one step away from fast-fashion, and one step closer to sustainable fashion? Sustainable fashion is clothing that is designed, manufactured, distributed, and used in environmentally friendly ways. For example, using organic materials, using biodegradable dyes, and engineering patterns that create minimal to zero waste. Compared to sustainable fashion, fast-fashion depletes the Earth’s natural resources at exponential rates, resulting in an overwhelming amount of waste. The difference between the two fashions doesn’t lie in the quality of the cloth, but in the amount of waste resulting from producing them.. So why don’t we be fashionable and save the environment?
Imagine if every single person reading this made 1-2 changes? The cumulative impact of these small changes would be in a year from now, five years from now, even more, 50 years from now. Nothing is ever useless- small things will add up over time!