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Surprising Ways to Be More Environmentally Friendly
People all over the world are coming to recognize the value of living a sustainable life. Obviously there are myriad benefits to the environment. The more you can reduce waste in your life, the less plastic and trash there is to pollute our land and oceans.
Our planet needs us to learn to be mindful about what we’re leaving behind. Moreover, you’ll get to experience a ton of benefits in your day to day life as well. Eco-friendly lifestyles are often less expensive than their waste-filled counterparts. At WhosGreenOnline, we know that green living can save you money on food, utilities, transportation, and more, so to help you get started, we’re giving you a look at some surprisingly effective ways to make your life more eco-friendly.
Up Your Home’s IQ
It may surprise you to learn that smart home tech can go a long way to reduce your impact on the planet. Take, for example, smart thermostats. Blue & Green Tomorrow notes these allow you to adjust settings from your phone, so you can run your home’s heating and cooling on minimum settings while you’re out of the house, and turn them back on when you’re on the way home. Think about it; if your house is empty, who are you running the AC for? Keeping the HVAC down while you’re out but coming home to the perfect temperature is the best of both worlds.
You can also get a smart faucet, which can help you gauge and modify your water usage. It’s hard to get a sense for how much water you’re using, but these give you the ability to keep track. Challenge yourself to find lower-water ways to achieve chores and tasks in order to use your water as efficiently as possible.
Carpooling and Ride Share Services
One great way to minimize your carbon footprint is to carpool or rideshare whenever possible. Cars are notoriously damaging to the environment, and anything we can do to reduce our dependence on them will help keep our planet safe and stable. If you and a group of friends are all heading to the same place, consider carpooling or splitting a rideshare fare.
Of course, carpooling is a bit more complicated right now due to the pandemic. If you’re riding with a group of non-household members, keep the windows down and wear masks. This should reduce your risk of spreading or catching COVID-19 on your drive.
Grow a Garden
You have the power to boost your environment and make your outdoor space beautiful all at once by gardening. Do you love flowers? Focus on planting local pollinator-friendly blossoms. Your garden will attract plenty of bees and butterflies, giving you a show and supporting the local bug population all at once!
You can also look into growing a food garden. This is a great way to reduce your dependency on big grocery chains and make your food consumption as local as possible. Get your seeds or starts from local nurseries in order to support the nearby economy and reduce shipping done on your behalf. Just like with flowers, you should prioritize plants that grow well in your native climate in order to use as little water and resources as possible while growing them.
Better Business Practices
Living one way at home and another way at work might be reasonable in some ways, like how you dress or do your hair, but when it comes to environmental practices, you can encourage your employer to follow suit. Explain the financial perks that a business can enjoy by simply installing energy-efficient light bulbs and being more conscientious about heating and cooling. If you’re a business owner, of course it makes perfect sense to bring the same principals from home to your place of business.
As a bonus, green companies have an opportunity to lure in the ever-growing body of eco-conscious customers. In fact, one study showed that 62 percent of respondents said they’re attracted to businesses with environmentally-focused principles. You can incorporate your eco-friendly strategies into your brand by sharing the actions you’ve taken on your business’s social media accounts and blog and in your advertisements to reel in clients. If this isn’t your strong suit, you can hire a freelancer who specializes in branding services to get started.
Of course, these are just a few of the ways you can live a more eco-friendly life. Remember: Small choices add up when we all do them together. Work to lower your own carbon footprint while supporting legislation that protects our environment. Together, we can protect our planet and each other.
