How can I live a more "green" lifestyle?

Question

I want to know I can I be more environmentally friendly in all the little things I do throughout the day. I cannot afford to make big changes such as buying a hybrid car at this time, but what are some day to day things I can do to start off with.

Answer 1

Recently Ive switched from toilet paper to using my cat to wipe my bottom. I find its much softer and it SAVES TREES!
Its the little things that count.

Answer 2

As you point out, buying a hybrid car is a big, expensive step to take. But there's plenty you can do to improve the gas mileage on the car you have right now.

-Drive the speed limit or lower, especially on the highway! Your car gets the best mileage at 55 MPH. Your fuel efficiency gets dramatically worse above 65. Driving slower may take a little longer, but it's better for the environment - and cheaper!

-Don't drive aggressively. Speeding through lights and slamming on the brakes all the time wastes a lot of gas.

-If you have a bike rack or other heavy items in or on your car, remove them unless you need to transport those items specifically.

-Don't leave the car idling for too long. As a rule of thumb, if you'll be idling for less than a minute, it's okay to leave the engine running, as it uses gas to start up a stopped car. But any more than a minute, and you're better off turning the car off.

-It is actually more fuel-efficient to use the air conditioner, especially on the highway. Rolling down your windows creates drag, thus you need more gas to power your car.

These are just a few car-related tips that can really help your mileage. They're easy and don't require any big adjustments, just a little attention to detail while you're driving. Then you're helping to save the earth... and save yourself a few bucks!

Answer 3

There are many things you can do to more environmentally friendly and many of them would actually save you money.

Shut off the air conditioner and open the windows. Yes, it gets a little warm but it helps a lot.

Change light bulbs to energy efficient ones. But why waste the ones you have now, just change them as they burn out.

Recycle as much as possible. Paper, plastic, glass, aluminum cans can all be recycled.

Lower the temperature on your hot water heater. This will save a lot of energy and money.

Hand wash dishes instead of using a dishwasher. This uses less water and energy.

Only wash clothes when there is a full load and if possible dry them on a clothes line instead of in the dryer.

Should I go on. These are all things that I have done for many years and I don't believe the global warming hype.

Answer 4

Buy locally grown foods whenever you can. This saves a lot on trucking and also you get fresher produce. Farmers markets are popping up all over the place, and its a great way to get your veggies, meat, fish, honey, flowers, or even grains.

On your day off, don't drive unless its absolutely necessary. Ride a bike, grow a garden, read books from the library, walk the dog, just do as much as you can around home. You will feel better, and the earth will too.

Recycle anything and everything possible.

Use less water. Take shorter showers, wear your jeans a few times before washing them, use the water from your eavestroughs to water your plants, mulch heavily in your gardens.

Do your shopping when you are already out for something else, and pick it up along the way.

Plant trees around your house to provide shade in the summer, and windbreak in the winter, and oxygen all year round!

Check out www.freecycle.com to help yourself and others in your community to reuse things instead of dumping them in the trash. Its pretty cool.

If you can afford to do one thing in your home, insulate it well. You will use so much less energy. Also, when buying appliances, check for the energystar label. If your fridge is over 20 years old, get a new one, and that will save a lot. Give the old, working one away on either freecycle, or donate it to the local Salvation Army.

When you buy things, get the least packaging available, by choosing bulk produce, grains, pasta, etc over individually packaged ones. Use glass containers to store instead of disposable plastic.

Answer 5

1. Live within walking distance to a town/work/shopping.
2. Turn off unnessary lights or electrical appliances.
3. Try to eliminate things that use electrical power. Try doing more things with things that plug into the wall.
4. Don't use air conditioning, use fans instead.
5. Buy as much locally produced food as possible and try your hand at home canning.
6. Have a garden, use compost for fertilizer.
7. Use public transportation as much as possible to avoid a car.
8. Ride a bicycle
9. Save up laundry and do it only once a week.
10. Read and investigate how people did things a hundred years ago and learn how they got along without "modern conveniences".
11. Don't buy or use bottled water, and use tap water instead.

Answer 6

Here's 14-ish ways to do it, and you won't even notice it within a few weeks... my family's been doing this for years.... not only are you saving the environment, you're saving quite a bit of money.

1. Turn off unnecessary appliances & lights when not in use. (Even the stuff on stand-by mode). Buy Energy Star products.

2. Buy compact fluorescent lightbulbs.

3. Recycle.

4. If you have a yard, get a composter (here in Quebec you can get them for a few bucks from the recycling center). Use the soil in the garden and watch the plants flourish like crazy. Virtually everything can go in here... fruits (not citrus), vegetables (not onions, garlic), dead plants & cut flowers, eggshells, coffee grounds (with the filter), tea bags, stale bread, wet newspaper. Contrary to popular belief it leaves.. NO SMELL.(Between this and recycling, our family of SIX ADULTS puts out approx. 2 small plastic grocery bags of garbage, twice a week).

5. Bring your own bags to the store. Nevermind getting paper.

6. In the summer, turn your a/c down 2 degrees. In the winter, turn your heat down 2 degrees. Don't heat/cool rooms you don't use. Turn thermostats even further down when no one is home. Concurrently, make sure your doors and windows to the outdoors are properly sealed. Air dry clothes, especially if it's a hot, sunny day... it will actually take less time.

7. Don't litter.

8. Use biodegradable products for personal hygeine, and housecleaning (there's quite alot out there!)

9. Avoid unecessary water use (turn off the tap while brushing your teeth, don't take excessively long showers/baths, you don't need to flush for every little thing (I know people who wipe off makeup with tp and flush!)). Wear your clothes twice (ie- jeans).. if they smell fine and look fine, they are! Use cold water to wash.

10. Find ways to reuse things. (ie- a mayo jar is great for storing craft stuff.)

11. Buy locally-grown produce.

12. Whenever feasible; walk. take a bike. If not, it might actually be faster/better to take the BMW - Bus, Metro (Subway), Walk.

13. Write a letter/email to the federal government explaining your outrage that the US has not yet signed the Kyoto accord. (Probably the biggest thing you can do).

14. Whenever possible, avoid styrofoam products. Cups, plates etc... it's BBQ season now, and styrofoam takes over 100 years to decompose, get disposable paper plates etc... and plastic (recyclable) cups.

Answer 7

Well, I see you're a girl... I might as well be blunt. Don't use disposable tampons, pads, or those Instead things. Think of all the waste all of them must generate once you've hit menopause! There are other alternatives (See the Keeper, The Mooncup, The Diva Cup, and any cloth, washable pads.) They're more comfortable, too, and you can't get TSS with the Keeper, Diva Cup, or Moon Cup. Oh- and no leaks!

Answer 8

Start off small. You could probably kill yourself trying to do all the "little" things that are recommended for you to be "green."

It's easy if you start with what you consume, food or otherwise. When you're about to throw something away, ask yourself: could this be recycled? could I use it in another way? could someone else use it? If you said yes to any of those questions, don't throw it away and fill up a landfill with it. Recycle it, reuse it, or give it away to a person or group who could use it.

It's a nice first step and it won't cost you any money! Maybe just a little bit of time, but not much.

Good luck!

Answer 9

The clothes and shoes you wear. Look up green clothes on the net. Simple Shoes is a shoe place. Change your light bulbs to the energy ones. Recycle. Don't use plastic bags. Use a glass instead of a paper or plastic cup. Be more conscious of the little things

Answer 10

Easy things to do are to...
1. replace one or more incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs, that is if you are able to get them at the store
2. convince whoever washes your cloths to use cold water or volunteer to clean - cold water washes just as well as warm
3. dry your cloths outside if it's very hot and sunny
4. unplug any electronics that aren't in use
5. don't leave one light bulb on for more than 3 hours a day - trust me, 3 hours is a long time especially on a sunny day

Answer 11

There are millions of ways to live more "green"!! It's really cool because everyone can make a difference, no matter how big or small.

You can start using re-usable tuberware to store your food, instead of using plastic wrap or disposable tuberware.
Replace paper towels, napkins, and plates with cloth towels and napkins, and washable plates.
Get a water filter for your tap water instead of buying bottled water (unless the tap water in your area is un-safe).
Buy a car that runs on diesel, instead of petroleum. Diesil is derived from animal or vegetable fats, which produce a much lower level of carbon dioxide.
Plant a tree. Trees absorb carbon dioxide.
Try not to print so much. If you don't need to print something out, don't. If you need to print, use both sides.
Recycle your paper and plastics.
Don't join mailing lists that you won't read. Think of all the paper wasted each year on mail subscriptions that go straight into the trash.
Switch all your light bulbs to energy efficient compact flourescent bulbs. They use two-thirds less power than regular light bulbs to produce the same amount of light. (:
Buy energy star appliances. They use less energy which cuts down on your electricity bill.
Unplug your appliances when you're not using them. This may be a surprise, but about 75% of energy used in a home comes from appliances that are turned off, but still plugged in. So unplug to save energy and money.
Make sure your home is well-insulated. Install weather-stripping around your doors and windows to keep heat from escaping during the winter. It will help with the heating bill and save energy.
Keep houseplants. They will keep your air cleaner.
Try to use less of aerosols and more spray bottles, liquids, powders and roll-ons.
Air-dry clothes instead of using the dryer.
Compost left-overs. They are good for fertilizing, and it keeps them from ending up in a landfill.
Plant trees or shrubs in your yard, not only to clean the air, but to provide shade in the summer, and protect your home from cold winds in the winter.
Collect rain water for your plants. Rain water is actually better for your plants because tap water has chlorine which kills bacteria, but bacteria actually help plants grow.
Trade in your desktop computer for a laptop. They run more efficiently and take up less energy.
Pay your bills online, saves a lot of paper.
Use motion sensors and timers for lights.
Recycle your laptops, cell phones, and other appliances.
Use public transportation.
Can't afford a hybrid, get a car with great milage.
Properly inflat your tires- less gas needed.
Use your car air-conditioning wisely. When driving fast open windows slow down your car mileage, so use the AC instead, but at slow speeds roll down your windows.
Instead of the Drive-thru, park and go inside to order, so you don't waste gas running your car in the drive-thru line.
Bring your own bag to the store.

Sorry, I know this is really long. There are just so many ways.

Buy in bulk. Buying in larger quantities saves you money and saves on packaging.
Buy environment-friendly products.
Try to buy cat litter with natural ingredients. There are litters made of corn that can be flushed.
Buy water-effecient shower heads and faucets. Many modern shower heads and faucets are water-effecient. It yours is old, it may be time to update it.

Visit these websites for more ways to go green:
http://www.oprah.com/tows/pastshows/200704/tows_past_20070420_b.jhtml
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2007/06/how-to-go-green-back-to-basics.php
http://www.worldwatch.org/node/3915
http://www.wikihow.com/Reduce-Your-Greenhouse-Gas-Emissions