Contents:
But now, I find the idea of pads definitely grosser, and the DC right along the same lines as tampons. Definitely worth giving it a shot, I say. Like Liz, I am dragging my feet at this one, too, but you almost have me convinced, Tsh! Maybe that will be one of the three things I add to what I am already doing.
Give your computer a nap: Ask your IT department to set your computers to go to sleep when not in use. Creating short energy breaks can cut energy use by up to 70 percent. The only problem I have with the Diva Cup is that you should not use it if you have an IUD because it can cause it to come out.
Homemade baby food is another way moms can go green. Not only do you have the option to use local, organic ingredients, but all the food is prepared and stored in reusable containers.
I encourage everyone to check out NurtureBaby also a sponsor of this site …. I blogged abut NurtureBaby today! What a great resource that site is for mothers who want to start making their own baby food. I have to say that it is so much more comfortable and effective then any conventional menstrual care products. The fact that it is healthier, more cost efficient, and better for the environment are just bonuses.
I would recommend the testimonials page at the Diva Cup site if you still need convincing. No time like the present! Side note about cloth diapering: We have two gDiaper covers, and I used two packages of inserts. I love them — and almost loved them as much as cloth diapers — except for the cost. I can not ever imagine not using my cup! What an amazing compilation of super easy ways to make a difference!
Our family lives in the desert, so eating locally and gardening are a challenge. Thanks for the great tips. They are handmade by a company now called snack taxi used to be happy sacks and so far I love them! There are also lots of great patterns for free online — Craft Stylish has a good one.
I was surprised to find we actually do many of those already, what a wonderful thing to realize! I actually quite prefer it to the plastic water bottle as it keeps my water super cold! The suggestions are both easy and manageable. In our day, items are upgraded because we want the latest version. Less odor issues, and my flow ended up reducing a lot.
I do use a panty liner with it, and during my most recent pregnancy I got to thinking that I really should buy some cloth liners to use with it. I guess I should think about doing that before my cycle returns…. For me though, I draw the line at hanging out the laundry…sorry…with 5 kids, its just too much laundry, my time is valuable! I try to get the kids to wear clothes more than once before washing—I certainly do. School Registration, Sign Your Name…. Just re-started last week. In addition to conserving energy and reducing expeditures, hanging laundry is a great mental break from the day!
I feel like we do quite a few of these too, but realize there is always room for improvement. I look forward to your coverage of cloth diapers. I do hope you mention g diapers in your write up. I think they are a great middle of the road option. I went to the opt-out program page and they want my ss. SS in our state are not allowed to be used for any medical, school or other identification numbers. I never give out our numbers. I just purchased some mama cloth from our local cloth diaper store. They are absolutely fabulous! I highly encourage mamas to look into it.
Love this list, Tsh, and I am sending it around to all my peeps. I wash all my Zipock bags, hang them to dry and re-use them. Also almost never take a plastic bag when I purchase something. Going to start to bring my Tupperware containers to the butcher to replace the Styrofoam. Making our own compost bin this week, and I just switched to the Diva Cup.
I now have seven tabs open in Firefox that I have to go read! Thanks for such a great list. We already do many of these things, and are working on most of the others one at a time. One item I might add to the list is becoming aware of packaging at the grocery store. My first 4 kids we used disposables because I was working outside of the home, and hubby would not cooperate with cloth. I did buy some disposables for an out of town trip I took, and promptly put the unused ones on a high shelf in my closet when I got home.
Then one night about 2 weeks later S. The next morning she had a poopy blow out of epic proportions AND she had developed a diaper rash. Just from one silly disposable. A great list of green-tips and I feel proud that my family is already doing quite well. A problem area of ours is our long showers. Oh, and the opt-out option for credit card offers is not available in Canada.
Great list, and so many of these things are soooo simple and easy to do, but can make a huge impact on the environment. For those who are trying composting can try vermicomposting. I actually do almost all of the items listed here. One thing I would like to do is grow more of my own food I get most of it from a CSA within walking distance.
Also, I would like to find a way to get off central heating! A suggestion for mothers: Read the article here: I also do a ton of other things on your list. Some of these are really great tips! I try to limit packaging whenever possible. I shop in bulk when I can and bring my own containers. I love the fact that for a family of 4 we average only 1 or 2 bags of trash a week and that is including my home office.
If you have any tips on how to get your spouse to participate — would love to hear them! I cannot get my husband to do even the simplest of things, such as turning off the lights when he leaves the room. I also try to recycle all our junk mail, plastic bottles, cans, etc. I have a hard time getting him on board. I have almost always used cold water for all my laundry. Turn off after no activity for 10 minutes. I am also amazed with how much of our stuff was good quality stuff that was purchased off of ebay and craigslist.
I am including big ticket items too, like cars and furniture. Using vinegar to clean with was also a huge life change for the better! Thanks fot the additional tips! I made my list here before reading yours. Oh, I wa just doing some baking and thought about another one…buying spices etc.
This was a great list. Already doing a lot of these, but there are some things I just simply forget. I am gonna print this and put it on my fridge! I also have to check out the diva cup. I found great eco friendly, non- caustic cleaning products for my home. I actually still grab a few plastic grocery bags at the store and use these as our garbage bags. We fill one about every other day a small, normal-sized grocery bag. Even though I hate using plastic bags for groceries, I figure I still need something for the garbage — so we grab only what we need.
I too have been trying to figure out a solution for the same predicament. Rely less on the plastic bags from grocery shops for lining garbage bins. The closest I have come to a satisfactory solution is to line the plastic bags in the bins, with layers of old newspapers. For dry trash in bedrooms, the papers are good enough to collect the rubbish to be discarded. The wet garbage in the kitchen is collected in a small pot double lined with plastic bag and then newspapers and is changed frequently throughout the day.
Of course, rethinking about what we throw will greatly reduce waste easier said than done, methinks. I came across these biobags online: This is a fabulous list. What a thorough list! I am doing many of the items, but not all. Even adding just a few more to the household would lessen our impact. Wash the rags or napkins by hand and ang dry. Plus they are softer on the skin. I featured on my little seedling of a blog. Greener Living from Simple Mom. This is an excellent post.
There are other simple things that almost anyone can do to be more green and conserve energy, like installing a ceiling fan or a Programmable Thermostat that can adjust the temperature automatically for times when it is not needed, or cleaning or replacing their Furnace Filter or Humidifier Filters with something like Aprilaire Furnace Filters that are more energy efficient. Also, installing Refrigerator Water Filters instead of drinking store bought bottled water, cuts down on waste. Just some ideas that might help the cause.
This works for me, my friends, and relatives! Hang clear plastic bags filled with clear water ; place them inside and outside to be rid of house flies. Recycle metal, especially non ferrous metals like aluminum, brass, copper and nickel. You can actually receive money and go green! Tsh, just when I think I have learnt almost there is to learn from your site, you spring another pleasant lesson. I am proud to be familiar with most of the tips. Nevertheless, this will be printed and kept as a green to-do monthly tips.
And thank you for sharing those green blogs- just what I have been looking for! The blog suggestions are fantastic. I used to make my own household cleaners, but good green cleaning ingredients are becoming harder to find, oddly. One of the big problems with making good household cleaners is that you can no longer find washing soda essentially, a coarser and cheaper version of Baking Soda , which used to be available in every grocery and drug store, and now cannot be found for love or money.
I saw some at Whole Foods this weekend. Ace Hardware, if you have one, allows you to make an online purchase that ships to their store. Tsh and Kara— thanks! Still, this is a really good list, with lots of things I intend to do when feasible! One way that I really cut expenses this year, and went green, is by using reusable swiffer covers. The savings really is tremendous in my home, as we have a large, sheds-every-moment-of-day pup and I was swiffering the tile floor twice a day. A Tip Nut link to making your own via knitting, crocheting and sewing: So many good ideas!
Line drying clothes not only saves energy, but also makes your clothes last SO much longer! They make it so easy to recycle almost everything, we even have roadside pickup for biodegradable waste. I will miss all of this when we go back to the states. My husband and I just watched Food, Inc. There are some great ideas there but I do find it strange that as an environmentally astute person you are choosing to have at least 3 children.
I love children, I have worked with children all my adult life but each of those children that you have will a carbon footprint. The original earth day very pointedly encouraged ZPG as the only rational long term approach to humans creating less damage to the earth. What a great post! I do love your opening paragraph regarding good stewardship.
We make these choices because it is honoring to God to respect and care for His creation. I feel like the good outweighs the bad, though. Their short film about bottled water is much better, in my opinion.
I love the list, but have to disagree with 2. Poisonous bulbs that cost more and burn out quicker-how is that green? Once these hybrid halogen-CFL bulbs come out, you may be interested. They have a much lower mercury content than current CFLs. In fact I have a bag of them hanging on my closet door that need to be disposed of…. I would love to start replacing with LED, which are expensive but they use much less energy. Not sure what to try. Plus, my kids have accidently broken two, which is a danger to them and a huge clean up mess.
One of the most carbon dioxide emitting industries is that of the meat and dairy. Really nice ways to be people who want care with our crying world. Really i will bookmark for sure! Then we use the pitcher of water to help fill the toilet tank the next time we flush. It may sound like a bother, but its really no biggie! I already do most of what is on your list, but I do see 7 new ideas I need to work on.
This is definitely is one page I am bookmarking. One I like to do often is light a few candles and go completely off grid for a couple hours in the evening. Gives one time to chat with family, read a book, or just sit and think. Very powerful and I suggest everyone tries this simple green tip. Going green is actually easy you just have to make up your mind. Eat healthy foods, walk, bike instead of driving everywhere and choose non toxic cleaners. I am a cancer survivor so green lifestyle is everything for me.
Going Green is easy! If you eat healthy and live healthy so many things start to fall in place. I began my go green initiatives by eating healthier, doing yoga, and also trying to shop green. I found sites like this that help with great tips and have gone on go green search engines. My newest venture is replacing items in my home with Eco Friendly items. Changing bulbs to LED bulbs, recycling more fervently, and finally using eco friendly cleaners! I have been recently shopping on the EcoDirectStore. I bought a cleaning kit and two eco lunchboxes for my twins. There are some awesome tips both in the original post and in the comments.
They are a simple way to not only green your own home, but also share the green message with other families as well. If you are an organic gardener, note that the new compostable packages like the Frito-lay SunChip bag should not be put in the compost pile. It is not organic and is made of a polyester derived from corn and other plants. These plants are grown with synthetic fertilizers and pesticides and are not organic.
Composting is great for our garden. We spread out our beautiful black soil onto our garden in the spring and watch how lush and fruitful our yields are. We are able to grow our own organic veggies for the summer and… then we are able to keep all our hearty root vegetables in the garage for up to six months without the hefty price tag organic foods can command.
I loved this article! Thank you for sharing all this great information. I am all about going green but not just for one day. Thank you for sharing this awesome list! Any innovative ideas about recycling cotton products, or any clothes products. Also, are there facilities that are recycling carpet? I like this article its Very informative and useful for all of us. Really the kids most know this thing.
So check on this link http: To change this , you could try out something like this new digital water meter to monitor your water usage: The National Home and Gardening Club recommended the meter for saving both water and money! We just purchased both a compost bin available for sale at our local town public works dept , as well as a rain barrel. We also after much debate , got rid of our bedroom television. Now we are able to sleep better as well as save electricity.
We put it on freecycle. There are really so many little things you can do that make a HUGE difference to our environment and our health. There are tons of books at your local library that will list many other ways to go green. When going green at home, there is a lot you can do during the summer months. First, obviously start a compost pile.
My family always uses our compost for fertilizer to grow our own vegetables in a community garden. People often overlook the overhead expenses associated with starting a garden on their own property though but if you use a community garden it really takes just man-hours and very little captial!
Hello, They are all really good tips except for number Pay as many bills as possible online. So instead of converting paper mail to online mail, we should try to make a difference were it really counts without putting the postal service out of business. We try to do most of these tips! Very great list of tips. I try to spend more time away from the Internet and social networks with my family.
We often play job board games. I found a great way to clean out my closets go green and make money. I sold vintage items I already had on louisesattic. In the summer collect rain water in big bins whenever possible, let it sit in the sun and warm for the day. It will be warm enough to handwash your cloth diapers which you can then line dry and let the sun the next day sanitize. Thats what I did with my 4 and it helped alot. I have found a good way to go green is to recycle, restore and repurpose as much as you can. Clean out your basements, closet and storage units. Give away items that can be used again by others.
Another way is to sell your vintage and antique items on vintage classified ad like louisesattic. I prefer to use LED light bulbs. LED light bulbs run on 7 watts while emitting the equivalent of a normal 60 watt bulb while CFL light bulbs run on 11 watts while emitting the equivalent of a normal 60 watt bulb. I immediately went out again and bought bulbs for the rest of the house. I enjoyed reading it. Going green makes our life more interesting and fabulous.
Thanks for the share. Just saying that about myself. Used cloth diapers with my 2 girls, and some of the tiny ones are headed to the 3rd different family having a new baby..! I have been working towards green for years and have been making serious progress! And we use cloth trainers instead of pull-ups at night for my son.
We started composting 4 years ago which has cut down our stinky trash significantly. My newest goal is to be completely chemical free by We make our own laundry detergent we do use store bought crunchy clean for CDs though. We make out own cleansers, lotions, lip balms, wool dryer balls in place of dryer sheets, soaps, and even some natural insecticides. We love our herb garden and it has been a great learning tool for our son who eats cilantro by the handful! What an enormous difference in my cycles!
Cramps are almost gone! The toxins and chemicals in mainstream products are terrible and do horrendous things to our bodies! And my acne which I have had since I was 18 is almost gone as well as many wrinkles since I switched to coconut oil as a moisturizer!! Amazing what a little green can do to make us not so blue!! In fact, I find it a bit cleaner. A lot of them we already do. We also started using cloth napkins and dish cloths again. We have a dog and cleaning up pet mess with a towel is way better than thin paper towels.
Thanks for the reminders. Love love love this post! I am proud to say I have implemented all but 7 of them. Thats not too shabby right? The others I will start doing today turn off computer , and I am adding make my own compost bin and collect the rain water this weekend. My only hang up is 32…. There is a great app called PaperKarma that will contact companies on your behalf to stop unsolicited, junk mail addressed to you. I would also like to find a reusable water bottle that I enjoy using!
Does anyone have any suggestions? We still have a way to go on our journey and I think twice now when shopping — is it something I really need or will it just end up sitting on a shelf. We line dry, hooked up our washing machine to a hose that runs out the window so all wash water goes to the garden, rain barrels, turned my old pajama bottoms into hankeys, turned old curtains into napkins, old t-shirts into kitchen towels, old jeans into pot scrubbers.
I love going green! Great projects for the kids and keeps us on our toes. Really, going green brought me closer to my children, closer to my community and has given me another outlet for my creativity. Making your home green simply means making it more friendly for the environment. You can go crazy and implement all of the steps at once, or you can take them one step at a time. We also keep stuff like the toaster unplugged. Love this post, Tsh. It is always good to see reminders like these, and I always pick up some new tidbit I want to try.
Something I am going to this weekend is start some garden plants from heirloom seed, which is SO important to maintaining food diversity. Tsh, I have just torn out a page of my Natural Health mag to look up the DC, I had no idea what it was…then saw it on this post…. Thanks all of you for sharing your experience with them, they sound very useable.
I do have one question, what do you use to clean it? Love, love, love these. Let me say first that I chose to use cloth diapers and was very happy I did for several reasons. So, if you are contemplating using cloth diapers, you must consider which resource is more of an issue in your local area. Thank you for these ideas. These are very useful tips to make the house a eco friendly place. I just hope that everyone will implement most of what is written here to stop the global warming.
I enjoyed the tips you are providing on your blog can make life easier by providing long term living for doing something one time. Thanks for the the information……. The products them self are more affordable than national brands, and the company ships the products to you door steps. The product line is more affordable, safe for your family, and not to mention, good for the environment.
Going Green is the right thing to do, but wants you go green you can do anything you want to do…. Go green to make your life green. Not only it is your life which will be effected but also the life of every people on earth will be benefited. Save energy to keep the world habitable. Here are some tips: I always find your take on sustainability issues fascinating. I have recently found a great eco resource for green jobs http: As time goes on I find myself becoming more aware of how to recycle, repurpose and go green.
Also, any tips on conserving energy is always a big help. I loooooove going to thrift stores and repurposing things. Blame the artist in me and with supplies being rather expensive, I have learned to save, salvage or find whatever I can. I read a good book about where tomatoes come from in American grocery stores. Also a good documentary about the fishing Industry is end of the line. The DVD even came with a little card which tells what types of fish are most sustainable to keep in your wallet for a reminder in resturants. Making a switch to cloth diapers sounds like a bit much for me.
Nothing tough, Its very easy , we just need to take some simple initiative to make our surrounding to be green. Just wanted to mention the debate on CFL lightbulbs. They might save energy but there are some serious environmental impacts and health issues. More information can be found on wikipedia: I have just started my own Green Quest and am finding it a bit daunting!
I was happy to read that some of the items on your 40 tips list I have already been doing without even notice of how Green they are. Thanks for keeping me motivated! You had some simple ideas that I have not thought about. I am trying to go green little by little. The next step in my green journey is trying the home energy audit kit from JEA to get ideas how to decrease my energy consumption at home. Absolutely loved this article! If everyone would follow them, we would be on a good track to living greener here in the U. However, most of us are too busy to make too much change, at least at once.
Because of that, we provided five easy tips to be green, so that we can all make a difference easily: It is estimated that babies need upwards of 6, diapers before they are potty trained, and each disposable diaper takes between years to bio degrade. But if you can use cloth diapers — or at least environmentally friendly ones — that would make a tremendous difference.
Hello, my name is chuck. Welcome To The greenest place on Earth! Green earth free offers is on a mission to help our planet restore the millions of trees that are lost each year. Trees For The Future is a charity that has been responsible for planting millions of trees all over the world. With your help our goals will continue and grow. Green Earth Free Offers is on a mission to help our planet restore the millions of trees that are lost each year. Trees For the Future is a charity that has been responsible for planting million of trees all over the world.
With your help our goals will continue to grow well into the future. Please visit our free offers website at http: This certainly a great article to read in order for every mom or anyone to make their house an environment friendly one. Come to think of it, we usually do this things before until technology set in and make our lives easier, though it somehow has a bad effect in our environment.
What an awesome gathering of all the little things that really can add up to make a big difference. We always re-use scrap paper, and have probably saved a few trees over the last decade of so. Thanks for the inspirational post! Love the tips — I have to put as much of these as I can into action at home!
I have to figure out how to get it started! Really i feel proud that iam doing many of the things in my daily life. But Some are i yet to follow like collecting rain water and use it for gardens and plants. I really like it. I Immediately implement for this coming rainy season. Few points like 2, 5, 18 and 29 were damn good. I repinned this today from Pinterest.
I found a better solution on Pinterest, which is a plastic coffee can, holes drilled in lid, cat box filter glued inside the lid: These are such amazing tips on how to go green. Environmental awareness is paramount if we plan on enjoying this beautiful planet for many more years. There is something for everyone here, thank you.
Some brilliant tips there,the great thing is these tips will not only help the environment they will actually save you money as well,brilliant! Use Solar Pool Heater as your pool heating system. CFLs are not eco friendly, they contain toxic mercury! I thought about tips to save the environment too the other day.
I try not to use plastic bags as well, but I also try to lower the room temperature for example. Have a look at my website if you are interested about it…. Going green in an apartment can be of a more difficult task for some. Most of these can be done, but not all. If you live an apartment and are looking to go green there are definitely some good articles, including this one, on how to do so.
I did find this; http: Instead of wasting money on it they could cut the prices in their services. Not exposed The energy wasted are obvious. Make Re-cycle bin more available. Awesome stuff, especially like the emphasis on switching to more eco-friendly material. And walking is always a great answer! There is a great article I came across which really helped me be more eco-friendly at work, you should check it out! Number 27 is missing. I love these and we do most. I am switching to cloth diapers late in the game as i have 6 kids and the ones in diapers are almost done with diapers but feel even if its only 6 months of diapers notin the landfill i am helping some.
I am proud that my family of 8 only needs the smallest garbage can our garbage service prvides, which holds only 3 13 gallon bags. Most is diapers so i know it will get better with cloth diapers. Waste management also has recycle and compostservices so we use them.
I am really into going green and I agree these are really good tips!!! Liz on April 20, at 6: Stephanie Keeper of the Home on April 20, at 6: Audrey Mom Drop Box on April 20, at 1: The suggestions are both easy and manageable.
Our only problem with the compost is the flies and we even had a rat once but we got rid of it and the flies are controlled because we started using an old diaper pail to put compost in. Works great especially with biobags. Love all of these tips! Especially the one about planting your own herb garden. I made my own last month and I planted thyme, basil, and mint!
I also try to save on electricity by turning everything off when not in use. Group 11 Created with Sketch. Here are 30 simple steps you can take to be more green: Meal plan efficiently so you don't waste food. Participate in Meatless Monday. Carpool to the office.
Turn off water when brushing your teeth. Buy local and freeze leftovers, like herbs, in-season produce, etc. Plan your errands so you make fewer trips. Plant your own organic garden. Give old newspapers to animal shelters, or cancel your subscription and read news online. Unplug appliances and electronics when not in use. Use reusable shopping bags. Keep them handy so you don't forget! Use reusable water bottles and reusable coffee mugs. Buy used items and donate or sell your own. Have receipts emailed rather than printed when the choice is available. Buy organic produce when possible — fertilizers and pesticides are ruining our soil.
Spend more time outside and less time watching TV and on the computer. Recycle your electronics properly, such as batteries, computers and cellphones. Clean out your car. Buy used books or e-books. Opt in to paperless billing and pay your bills online. Wash laundry in cold water instead of hot.
Danielle Zeigler is an IIN certified holistic health coach with a background in internet marketing. By blending these passions she helps wellness-minded entrepreneurs grow their