Awareness about the effects of our living habits are becoming more and more widespread year by year, but what use is the awareness unless we actually act upon it and work towards living a more environmentally friendly lifestyle? There are many ways we can change our habits that may have a miniscule effect on the whole, but if everyone were to follow, then the effects could go a long way to reducing the effect of climate change.
Here are a few simple changes you can make today in order to live a more environmentally friendly life.
Walk or cycle more
Why use any other mode of transport to get the gym than your body? Not only will you be improving your health but you also won’t be polluting the environment. If you want to speed things up a bit, invest in a bicycle. You’ll no doubt have more fun riding one whilst getting fit simultaneously!
Reduce your meat intake
Cattle account for a huge percentage of greenhouse gases and the whole process of raising them for meat takes an enormous toll on the environment, considering all the resources such as water, land and food they consume during their lifetime. If the demand for meat was reduced, this could have a very positive effect on the environment. We’re not telling you to go full vegan (although that may not be such a bad idea for various reasons), but if everyone reduced their meat intake once a week it would have a profound effect.
Refuse and/or reuse plastic
Choose not to purchase food that are overly packaged in plastic. We have seen fruits peeled, which already acts as a natural barrier, and then repackaged in plastic that is extremely difficult to recycle; start by refusing to purchase such products. If you choose to reuse plastics, great, but if you choose to dispose of them, ensure that they go through the correct process of waste recycling. Throw them in the right bin to give them a better chance of being recycled correctly. Also, carry around a reusable bag for groceries and invest in a reusable water bottle – not only will you help the environment, but you’ll save a load not needing to buy single-use water bottles!
Use less water
The term global warming is too much of a pigeonhole term to describe what is happening to our planet. Climate change is certainly more accurate and we have been seeing more extreme weather and unusual patterns over the past few decades. Worldwide we have been experiencing more extreme heat and harsher colds, and long periods of drought in many areas that have led to water shortages and wildfires, to name a few effects. Learn to preserve water by only flushing the toilet when you need to, and not leaving the tap running or over-watering your garden.