19 Easy Steps Towards Sustainable Living
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Looking to be more sustainable in the way you live? There are some many small steps that you can take each day to reduce your carbon footprint and have a real difference in the world around you.
Use What You Have
Do you really need those new shoes or to replace that perfectly good set of cutlery? Those of us living in wealthy societies often have far more things that we will ever need in our lifetime. Pulling all of your clothes out of your wardrobe and finding clothes that you forgot you even had will help reduce purchasing more than you need.
Reduce Your Meat Intake
I am vegetarian, but not vegan. That doesn’t mean that eat dairy and eggs every day. You can do the same, no matter what your lifestyle. Reducing your meat consumption doesn’t have to be challenging. It could mean learning one easy switch of a favourite meal each week. Or ordering the vegetarian option when you’re out. Don’t feel overwhelmed by trying to change everything you eat all at once.
Eat Seasonally
Think those cauliflowers are overpriced? They probably are. Eating fruits and vegetables that have to shipped in from far off places, or kept in storage for months before they are laid out on the supermarket shelves are creating a much bigger carbon footprint (and most likely a much larger dent in your wallet).
Spend Time in Nature
Forest bathing is a real thing. Walking through the trees changes something inside me and how I see the world. For other people, it’s spending time near the ocean. Whether you have access to forests, oceans, rivers, deserts, a small patch of grass or just the houseplants in your apartment, embracing time with nature helps you slow down.
Buy Local
This one can be tricky if you start looking into full supply chains (check out this series from NPR about t-shirts). But you can make small steps in this direction. It could be clothing, food, art, furniture, jewellery… Supporting local businesses helps to keep people employed, make sure your goods are produced under fair conditions and you’re reducing the carbon spent transporting goods around the planet.
Dig Into Your Purchasing Habits
I know this sounds about as sexy as budgeting. But take a look back through your bank statements. Do you shop when you’re hungover? Bored? Sad? Did you realise that you were spending that much on takeaway coffees or noodles? Understanding your consumption habits is the first step to reducing them.
Holiday Locally
Well, with Covid-19 dramatically changing our lives, this might be forced upon you. If you’re lucky enough to earn enough to go on holiday, not burning up all that carbon flying halfway around the world will have a big impact on your carbon footprint. Are there local gems you’ve been meaning to check out? 2020 could be the year.
Walk
This is honestly my favourite way to get around. I live and work centrally so that I can walk to work, the yoga studio, the supermarket, my favourite coffee shop, great restaurants… The list goes on. It may take a little longer, but often this is balanced against not having to find parking and less money spent on petrol.
Use Public Transport
When I’m too lazy to walk (or my work outfit cannot travel wrinkle-free) public transport allows me to save money on petrol and parking, read (or scroll Instagram) or just chill out rather than getting road-ragey at all those other suckers in their cars.
Grow Your Own Herbs
I’m obsessed with fresh herbs at the moment. They add such incredible flavour to your food and most are pretty easy to grow in a small space. By growing your own you’ll reduce the packaging that comes with the supermarket options and save money by having them regenerate on your windowsill. My recommendation, start with mint. It’s almost impossible to kill.
Compost
Food scraps turn into compost, so the ones in our trash must do that in the landfill, right? Sadly, no. When food scraps start to decompose in a landfill, without the oxygen they need to turn into compost, they actually release methane (a powerful greenhouse gas). So either get yourself a way to compost at home or look at a collection service to reduce the amount you’re sending to landfill each week. Check out this post for more on composting.
Recycle
An oldie, but a goodie. This is a great first step to reducing your waste. First, check what you can and cannot recycle. Local authorities all collect slightly different products or need them packaged up in a certain way. Make sure everything is clean and sorted correctly. But please don’t feel like if you’re recycling then you’re off the hook. A lot of products get down-cycled each time, meaning that milk bottle isn’t able to become another milk bottle. Reduce and reuse also need to become part of your vocabulary. Check out this post for more on recycling.
Switch to Solid Soap and Shampoo
I’m not exactly sure when we all threw out the bars of soap in favour of plastic bottles of body wash. Take a moment to count the number of plastic bottles in your shower, times that by the number you go through each year, then times that by 50. Scary, right? Each one of those bottles you can switch back to a solid bar will have a huge effect when you multiply it for the rest of your lifetime. Find a brand that works with your hair, but my favourite is definitely Ethique. Start with the St Clements and you'll smell like a citrus garden!
Head to Your Local Bulk Bins
Or if you live in a posh neighbourhood, your refill station or zero waste store. It’s all the same. Large bins of goods and less packaging. Some have liquids like dishwashing liquid as well as your flour, spices, coffee and usually some great sweet treats.
Take Your Own Bags
Depending on where you live, you may not have a choice on this one. Thin plastic bags that you only use for the short journey home are a huge waste of energy. Grab yourself some reusables (more than you think, as you’ll most likely forget them), use a box or only buy what you can carry. There are so many alternatives to this one.
Join The Sharing Economy
This step can be so much fun. I went to two weddings earlier this year and hired dresses for both. Expensive dresses that I couldn’t justify purchasing and wearing just once or twice. Or look at tool libraries where you can hire that essential power tool that you’ll probably only ever use once.
Check Out Your Bank and Retirement Savings
Don’t plan on investing in a coal power plant or an offshore drilling operation anytime soon? You may already. A lot of the big companies that are involved in the extraction of fossil fuels need business loans from banks to finance their operations. These are often the same banks that your transactional, savings and retirement accounts are with.
Vote
This one is important. All these small, sustainable steps you can take are great. But the system that we live in, it’s rules and regulations and what the government prioritises is where the big changes can come from. We need a mix of bottom-up (you choosing to bring reusable bags) and top-down (government regulation banning plastic bags) changes to make a real difference.
Make Small Steps
(So you don't feel overwhelmed). This is probably my biggest sustainability tip. Don’t overwhelm yourself. Once I decided I wanted to rid my house of all plastic. Then I realised it was everywhere. Rather than being disheartened, I began to take the small steps I could. I swapped my shampoo and soap out. I stopped using supermarket plastic bags. I voted. And each step helps build momentum towards bigger and bigger changes in your life. We need a whole lot of people making as many steps, as fast as they can. So what step are you going to start with?