Our Earth, our home, needs our help more than ever now. All the talk about how climate change is a huge threat is a very scary topic because of how real it is. It’s time now more than ever to come together and start doing our part to save our environment from deteriorating any more than it already has. The good news is that saving the environment isn’t difficult at all! There are so many simple things that you can change in your everyday life that will end up going a long way! Here are 20 things that you can do to help!
1. Stop using straws. Americans use about 500 million straws PER DAY.
- Straws are something that are not a necessity and they are something that you can go without. If you cannot absolutely live without using a straw, then invest in a reusable straw that you can use time again and again.
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2. Bring reusable bags to the store.
- Reusable bags are more sturdy and dependable than regular plastic grocery bags. Also, now you won’t have a thousand plastic bags stuffed into other bags all around your house. If you’re looking to get rid of your abundance of plastic bags, there are several stores that will take them and then recycle them.
3. Instead of taking multiple trips throughout the week, combine all your errands into one trip, and carpool if you can!
- Not only do you use less fuel, you save time by getting all of your errands for the week done at once. Plus, if you carpool and go with your friends then running errands won’t seem as bad!
4. Use a reusable water bottle, and invest in a water filter.
- You can save a lot of plastic by just using a reusable water bottle! You won’t have to keep buying new bottles every week. You also save money by doing this! If you have hard water, then investing in a water filter may be a good option for you as well.
5. Recycle! It’s so easy to just drop your recyclables into a bin next to the trash can.
- It takes no effort in dropping a plastic bottle or a newspaper into a separate bin that’s sitting next to the trash can already.
6. Buy only what you need to cut back on food waste.
- Don’t shop hungry, and check expiration dates on things that you may not use all to avoid it spoiling before you get to use it. If you aren’t sure that you’ll use it, then don’t get it!
7. Compost!
- Composting is a great way to make use of any food scraps and waste! Check out this link for some composting tips!
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8. When grocery shopping, look for the foods that have little to no packaging.
- Not only does it help you scale back on unnecessary trash, you’ll also end up eating healthier because foods with less packaging are more likely to be unprocessed foods.
9. Skip using plastic forks and spoons. Take your own with you!
- Did you know that 40 billion individual plastic utensils are produced each year? By bringing your own reusable utensils to restaurants that use plastic utensils, you can do your part to help reduce the number of plastic utensils.
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10. Plant a small planter – if you have limited space – filled with flowers that bees will like the most.
- This past year bees were officially put on the endangered species list. Bees are an extremely important part of our environment. Even if you live where you can’t plant flowers in your own personal yard, you can plant a window box full of flowers and plants that bees will like most! Check out this link that has a list of plants that bees like for tips on how to build one.
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11. During hot summer days, put out a bowl filled with marbles and water for a safe place for bees to rest and rehydrate without drowning.
- Bees get tired and thirsty too! You can help them out by placing a small bowl filled with marbles and water so they have a safe place to rest and hydrate without the threat of drowning.
12. When choosing your next household cleaning products, think green and try alternative all-natural products.
- You can usually make these on your own and they work great. You’ll save yourself from washing harmful chemicals down the drain and use less unnecessary packaging.
13. Try repairing the problem if one of your gadgets isn’t working instead of throwing it out right away.
- A lot of the time, it’s something easy to fix and you save money as well!
14. If the gadget isn’t able to be fixed and you end up needing a new one, then look for a replacement that is energy efficient.
- It’ll use less energy but also be just as efficient, so look for the EnergyGuide label that shows the annual operating costs and energy consumption.
15. Remember to turn off things that you aren’t using when you leave a room.
- Turn off the lights, TV, radio, and other things that you aren’t using to save on energy and money as well.
16. Try making more meals at home instead of getting carry-out all the time.
- This will help save you money as well as cutting back on take-out waste, plus you’ll also end up eating healthier as well!
17. Keep harmful things out of the landfill such as batteries and old ink cartridges by also recycling those.
- As the casing erodes and breaks down, harmful chemicals such as lead, mercury, cadmium, and many more can leak into the soil, which in turn is really harmful to the environment and human health. So take an extra 5 minutes out of your week every once in awhile and take your batteries to a recycling center or a place that collects them for you.
18. Cut back on water usage.
- There are lots of ways to cut back on water usage such as taking shorter showers, turning off the faucet while you brush your teeth, and checking for leaks around your house and taking care of them ASAP.
19. Advocate for the wildlife!
- Wildlife needs advocates to help them survive, especially when it comes to habitat destruction and illegal hunting and poaching. There are many ways to get involved such as not using/purchasing items that were a result of habitat destruction, items that are tested on animals, and researching what else you can do to get involved in projects that advocate for animals.
20. STOP littering.
- This is such an easy thing to do! Think twice before you throw out that piece of trash from your car or before you throw it on the ground. If you see something on the ground, take a second and pick it up and chuck it into the nearest trash or recycling can.