This post will contain eco-friendly tips for beginners, as the title suggests. These are basic things that anyone can do. Please don’t feel like you have to do all these things doing just one is better than nothing.
- Recycling Properly
Recycling may seem like a simple thing to say, but depending where you live, recycling facilities may be very different. Most places will have different bins for different materials such as glass, tins, cardboard etc.
If your facilities are poor and do not provide you multiple bins for different things then I highly suggest to find your nearest recycling centre and make use of their better facilities.
2. Have a Reusable Bottle/Keep Cup
A reusable water bottle or keep cup is the most common tip given to people as an easy switch and highly impactful.
A strong message i have heard many times is “Bottled water companies don’t produce water they produce plastic bottles”. Therefore, using one sturdy bottle rather than buying multiple bottled drinks and wasting countless plastic bottles is an excellent way to reduce your plastic pollution.
I also recommend purchasing a metal thermal cup which can keep your hot drinks hot and cold drink cold. If you are a little shorter on money then reusable plastic ones work just as well and are much cheaper.
Bamboo keep cups are also a popular option for people who want to avoid plastic. HOWEVER, Bamboo cups are aren’t actually plastic free. The bamboo is mixed with a melamine resin which is a form of plastic and there are currently studies looking into whether they are healthy for us to use. So just keep this in mind when choosing your reusable bottle/cup.
3. Use Public Transport
Using public transport isn’t always an option, but where you can try to use buses and trains instead of driving your car. If 30 people used a bus instead of driving individually there would be less vehicles on the road and less emissions in the atmosphere. If public transport isn’t an option in your area try car sharing on your way to work.
4. Use Your Own Grocery Bags
This is one of the easiest things you can do. Stop taking single use plastic bags from the supermarkets and reuse the ones that you already have. Eventually these will become unusable so after that you can use canvas bags or bags for life. Both of these will last considerably longer and with cotton canvas bags you are cutting out the plastic.
If everyone refused single use plastic bags the demand would diminish and it would no longer make sense to make them.
5. Buy Second Hand
Buying second hand items creates a circular economy. This means ‘an economic system that aimed to eliminate waste and the continual use of resources’. You are repurposing things that would otherwise end up in landfill.
Buying second hand items such as clothing reduces the demand for fast fashion, which can be massively unsustainable and unethical. It can also save you a lot of money as second hand items are almost always cheaper.
Things like furniture can not only be cheaper but a lot of the older ‘antique’ furniture can be better quality than something bought from ikea. Most older furniture was built to last so is usually sold wood of which you can sand, paint and up cycle to look exactly what you want.
Until next time. Tia.
Green Slate. 