40 Steps to Greener Living Part 2

Hopefully you have made some small adjustments to your routine by incorporating some suggestions from 40 Steps to Greener Living - Part 1 ; here is the second installment of tips and suggestions to help you help the people and the planet.

ENERGY:

1. Use re-chargable batteries.
2. Recycle your computers and mobile phone, if phones go into landfills, they spill out toxic substances in the environment. There are many programs around when you can recycle your phone. (Find out where to recycle batteries, phones, chemicals etc at Recycling Near You
3. Depend of natural light, try not to use the lights during the day, and at night-time, only use as much as necessary.



4. Batch errands – write a list down of all the errands you need done for the week, and try get them all done in one day. You will be saving petrol, creating less pollution, and adding to your organization skills (a chalkboard can be very helpful).
5. Buy local, walk or ride to the shops as much as you can, and support local farmers at farmers markets.
6. Cut down on meat. And when you do eat it it, shop free-range and organic when possible (raising livestock produces a large amount of greenhouse gases) .
7. Recycle glass
8. Replace high-energy lightbulbs with low energy lightbulbs.
9. If you still use a computer, try investing in a laptop instead, which uses less energy.
8. Use himalayan salt lamps rather than common lamps, you can leave them on, they ionize the air, last longer, and use less energy.



WATER:

1. Shower together.
2. Put a bucket in your shower and water your plants with that water, and put a few buckets out when it rains to wash your car with/water plants etc.
3. Adjust thermostat according to weather.
4. Install a low-flow toilet.
5. Instead of drinking bottled water because you prefer the taste to tap water, install an under-the-sink or over-the-counter water filter.



OTHER:

1. Before you throw something or anything away, think about if someone else might need it, if you think they might, add it to your collection to give to a charity shop or bin, or check out The Freecycle Network .
2. Buy or make natural household cleaners rather than chemical based ones - from personal experience, they clean a lot better, smell better, and are safe for everyone – and re-use the bottle.




3. Start getting informed about the chemicals in cosmetic products and baby products , and the flame retardant chemicals in your clothes and linen - look at replacing them with natural materials like bamboo, wool and hemp.
4. And most IMPORTANTLY – share your knowledge with everyone you can!
5. Invest in time researching and reading books about sustainability.
6. Use healthier paints on your walls.
7. Begin learning how to make things and food rather than resulting to buying everything, you will save money and energy.
9. Start collecting plants and flowers to have inside your house – especially native plants.
10. Use beeswax or soy candles rather than chemical-based ones.

It is very encouraging lately to see that more homes, businesses and schools are becoming more aware of these issues, it’s never too late to change our ways. It takes some time to adjust to living this kind of lifestyle, but by taking baby steps and making one simple change per week or even per month, it can and does make a difference.

Categories
#green_living
#how_to

Related articles
Harmful Chemicals in Cosmetic and BodyCare Products
Live Healthy by Growing Your Own Food


SOURCES:
50 Ways to Help
[Link http://www.coaltransition.org/5-rooms-in-your-home-where-you-can-make-easy-eco-friendly-changes/ Eco-changes]
Sustainable Baby


Helpful Sources:
Why and how do cows produce methane that effect the environment?
Why recycle glass?
Plastic in gum

%healthyhints