Holidays are a blast for many people around the world, no matter their religious affiliation or beliefs. Whether, it’s Easter, Hanukkah, New Years, or Beltane, holidays are a great way to spend quality time with your loved ones and eat plenty of delicious food. However, holidays can be some of the most wasteful days of the year. Between the food waste, the presents, and all of the plastic wrap, holidays can fill a trash can in a matter of minutes if you’re not careful. If you want some tips to reduce your waste during the next family party or holiday, check out this blog post by the Green Jax Project!
Meet Brianna Kilcullen, a sustainability consultant who has worked with major brands throughout the U.S. Hear her story about her journey in sustainable fashion and how she started her own company in the sustainable textile industry. Visit the Green Jax Project site to hear what she has to say about sustainable fashion!
Often, when people talk about being more environmentally friendly and buying better products, they inevitably bring up the common misconception that environmentally friendly products are expensive, and therefore an environmentally sustainable lifestyle must be as well. This is far from true, as most environmentally conscious changes are actually cheaper and an environmentally sustainable lifestyle involves purchasing less, not more. However, companies looking to make a profit often Greenwash their products and increase the price to make consumers purchase those items.
This is why people believe environmentally friendly products are more expensive. True environmentally friendly products may be more expensive, but they are usually meant to last several years to a lifetime as they are often made of metal, glass, wood, and other materials that to not degrade or break as much as plastic.
Oftentimes though, the best changes people can make are free. This page will list free resources and guides to becoming more sustainable without spending money.
Easy Changes –
Say no to to unnecessary single-use plastic like straws, cups, plastic bags, and to-go containers
Bring your own bags when shopping anywhere (grocery store, mall, farmers market, etc.)
Use the library
Turn old sheets, towels, and clothes into cleaning rags, produce/shopping bags, handkerchiefs, or napkins
Wash your clothes less (obviously excluding underwear and socks)
Wash your clothes on cold (tap cold) and dry on the lowest heat setting (hang dry if you can)
Avoid products with palm oil
Buy unpackaged when possible
Walk and ride a bike more if possible
Bundle up when it’s cold instead of turning the heat up
Use your leftovers
Regrow food scraps
Grow your own herbs (start a garden!)
Unplug electronics when not in use
Repair before replacing
If you have a yard, start composting food and yard scraps
Learn useful skills like sewing, soap making, gardening, or mechanical repair from places like YouTube
Reduce your meat and dairy intake. Try meatless Mondays or go vegan for one week out of each month
Whether by train, plane, or automobile, traveling is one of the things we do that can have the largest environmental impact. However, there are ways to lessen the impact of our trips. The biggest thing we can do is to avoid major travel via airplane …
Our hygiene is vital to a healthy life, however, the industries that provide us with hygiene “essentials” have tricked many of us into believing we need more and more chemically-laden products in order to keep ourselves smelling fresh and looking clean. Hygiene is a lot …
If you own or rent a home where you are able to control what goes into keeping up that home and you want to reduce your environmental burden, this is the article for you. However, if you have roommates or live in a dorm or apartment situation visit the article on dorms and shared living spaces.
One of the best things about having your own place is the freedom to control what and how things happen to and in your home. You can paint it any color you want or change the style completely, but more importantly, you can make your home an environmentally friendly safe haven for yourself. From household cleaners to gardens and lawns, a home can be a hotspot of thousands of chemicals that are harmful to us and the environment. But as a homeowner, you have the ability to change that.
Below are a few things you can do to reduce your home’s environmental and health burden.
Clean up your home by…
Phasing out chemical cleaners in favor of a diluted vinegar solution
Avoiding chemical pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, and insecticides and choosing pest deterring plants and natural solutions
Choosing more natural, additive free, dye free, synthetic fragrance free laundry detergent and dish soap
Line dry clothes
Opting out of fabric softener entirely (clothes still come out soft without it and they’ll last much longer)
Avoiding furniture made of plastic materials and opting for organic cotton, wood, or metal furniture and organic cotton linens
Switching out plastic Tupperware for glass and metal containers
Foregoing “lawn culture” and turning your front yard into a edible, pollinator, or native garden
Creating a compost system in your backyard
Replacing your plastic cleaning brushes and rags with natural compostable materials like wood and hemp
Install solar panels
Turn down your water heater (while still maintaining a safe temperature)
Bundling up when it’s cold and wearing less when it’s hot instead of using the A/C and heater
Sharing a living space is hard enough as is, and so it’s understandable that the prospect of having and the work needed to have an environmentally friendly dorm or shared home scares away most people. Although a daunting task, having an environmentally conscious living situation …
