Aim for a Green 2018

There’s a lot of talk of going green, completely organic, vegan or being more earth conscious. A lot of it feels very general and often goes right over our heads because it seems irrelevant or a bit like a chore. When issues relating to global warming and climate change enter the scene, it is easy to feel quite overwhelmed. You might ask yourself how you can possibly make a difference to such a big issue. The answer is in collective change; change in community standards through small daily habit adjustments.

Living more intentionally shouldn’t be a guilt trip. Perhaps we shouldn’t even be striving for perfection. By making tiny changes here and there we could end up with a cumulative effect. Think about how many plastic toothbrushes you’ll leave behind decade after decade. It could be a lot, a few or maybe even none! By educating ourselves, we’re empowering ourselves to put a little more thought into our habits and change our lifestyles over time, to create awareness and challenge others. You might even find that you save a whole lot of extra money when you have more earth-friendly habits in place too! The three R’s are a great place to start. They stand for: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

Reduce

• When ordering coffee, resist the urge to have a take-away with a plastic lid, rather take your own travel mug around with you
• Use bamboo toothbrushes
• Plan your meals carefully to avoid wasting left-overs
• Get yourself a water bottle that’s so good that it will make you want to stop buying bottled water
• Use real cutlery and for convenience, keep a set in your car and at your desk
• Always choose paper plates over plastic plates
• When buying toys for kids, choose handmade wooden toys rather than plastic battery operated toys
• Be prepared with your own fabric bags when shopping so that it is easy to say no to plastic bags
• Avoid packaging by shopping at local markets
• Compost your waste so that you use less plastic bin bags
• Opt for glass containers over plastic packaging when shopping
• Look for toiletries that are package free (for example, soap from a local market or make your own make-up)
• Choose email over paper mail
• Avoid styrofoam
• Wear less synthetic fibres and more natural fibers
• Always say no to straws
• Skip exfoliating products that have microbeads in them

Recycle & Reuse

• Recycle everything you can to reduce your overall rubbish output
• Upcycle small items creatively to give as gifts
• Use leftover wrapping paper, cards and fabric to wrap gifts and make decorations
• Make your own DIY furniture
• Use eggshells and egg boxes as seed planters and trays
• Instead of throwing our left-overs, try to use them in your next meal creatively if the shelf-life allows for it
• Reuse glass jars rather than buying new plastic tubs
• Use rechargeable batteries whenever possible
• Instead of throwing out broken clothes, find a creative use for them or donate them to a charity
• Decorate your home with greens (like dried herbs) instead of plastic ornaments

Save water & electricity

Most of us are quite careful with electricity and water considering the Eskom and drought issues we’ve been facing over the last few years. However, when things are going well, it can be all to easy to forget that natural resources are not infinite. They’re also costly. Here are some ways to save that might also have a positive effect on your bank balance!

• Offer lifts to friends and co-workers to carpool more often
• Use your bike more often instead of your car
• Buy a water-saving shower-head and have shorter showers
• Reuse your grey water to flush the toilet
• Plug your appliances into a powerstrip that you can turn off when not in use
• Make draft stoppers for your doors and windows
• Vaccuum the coils on the back of your fridge
• Use LED lights instead of incandescents
• Get an insulator for your geyser
• Use candles rather than lights
• Turn off the lights when they're not needed
• Use alternative cooking methods, like using solar energy or the Wonderbag
• Use a pool cover
• Fix leaking taps quickly

Relax with the greens

The more time we spend in nature, the healthier we are and the better we feel. Connecting with the natural world also helps us to maintain a respect for the earth, natural resources and the different eco-systems that keep things running as they should. Here are a few ideas to help you to connect with Mother Earth in a meaningful way:

• Plant a tree
• Grow your own veggies
• Slowly convert your garden into a water-wise plant paradise
• Aim to connect with nature by camping or going on regular walks
• Teach the kids to grow their own food
• Make a 100% natural bird feeder using a citrus peel as the container
• Think of water systems and opt for non-toxic cleaning products
• Combat day-to-day stress and depression with outdoor gardening
• Attract pollinators with colourful flowers
• Don’t use any harmful pesticides
• Have an outdoor craft day and create a natural bug hotel

Be intentional

Instead of feeling overwhelmed and waiting to hear about the latest news from the experts, you can take charge about how you choose to live in relation to the earth, nature and community. Equip yourself with the knowledge you need to make small changes in ways that work for you. Do what you can with what you have; observe, experiment and find your own answers. Below are our last few ideas about how you can make small changes that could add up to a bigger long term communal impact.

• Join or organise a beach or nature clean up in your area
• Create awareness through your actions
• Save electricity collectively by sharing meals more often
• Celebrate Meatless Monday and aim to eat more plant-based proteins
• Buy second-hand whenever you can
• Borrow and share instead of buying
• Make your own toiletries
• Shop local: markets are strongly connected to a community health and local food
• Talk to market traders and farms to find out where your food comes from
• Connect with local land by visiting a local farm or volunteering for a day

Start changing your world!

If you have other great ideas that you’d like to share with us, or if you’ve started any of the small changes listed above, we’d love to hear more! Connect with us on Facebook or Twitter!