Daily Life Hacks That Will Help Save the Environment
To take care of the environment, it’s not necessarily to go through great sacrifices. We made a list of useful habits that don't require a lot of effort, but do help to protect the environment.
Learn alternative shopping
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Stylish clothes of good quality can be found not only in showrooms and online shops, but also in second-hand shops and swap parties. Often you can find branded clothes there, that the previous owners could wear just a couple of times.
If you don’t like the idea to buy clothes from someone's hands, you can become a seller. So, a dress that you didn’t put on for several years, or jacket, you are tired of, will quickly find a new owner and will gain a second life. You can also help to minimize the damage, which the industry of the mass markets annually causes our planet, producing a large number of clothes of average quality.
Conscious attitude to holidays
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Eco-activists urge everyone to refuse a gift package or use any other available materials instead –books, newspapers or magazines’ pages, while flower bouquets can be wrapped not only in plastic, but kraft paper.
For example, in Japan, it is customary to give presents in fabric bags that can be reused – they are called furoshiki. By the way, now some companies produce eco-friendly boxes and bags which are decomposed faster than usual, and are easier processed.
Buy reusable bags
According to environmentalists, one person produces about one and a half kilos of waste per day, a general part of which is plastic. Large retailers are gradually beginning to abandon its usage and switch to more environmentally friendly alternatives such as paper. At home, packages can be replaced by reusable bags and fabric bags. Despite the fact that their production also takes a lot of energy, it pays off if a fabric bag is used over 130 times. Even if you don’t use them every day, they will bring a real value in a year.
Get a glass, a tube and a bottle
If you often carry water or like to buy coffee-to-go, buy a reusable bottle and a glass. Bottles that are sold in grocery stores are not meant to be reusable. The plastic from which they are made, is harmful substances that enter a body.
When choosing reusable utensils, look for the labeling HDPE or PE HD – this plastic is the most harmless. Many coffee shops have a positive attitude to requests to pour the drink in your own glass and can even offer a discount.
Plastic tubes cause great damage to nature, but they can be replaced by a reusable one. They are covered, folded and don’t occupy much space.
Arrange a vegetarian day
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One of the reasons for the massive deforestation is getting new areas for agricultural development, especially livestock. Scientists from Oxford University concluded that one the most effective way to help nature is an absolute giving up meat.
It’s impossible and not necessary to completely put the world on a vegan diet, but if you take the challenge and live without meat at least a day, you'll be able to save 3 thousand liters of water and to save 300 trees from cutting down. Once a month would be enough to make a difference and greatly help the nature.
Plant a tree
Supermodel Bella Hadid has been accused in polluting the environment, because she flies planes too often. In 2018, she started donating large sums to environmental organizations that are dedicated to planting trees in areas affected by fires and floods.
If you want to help the planet, act in this manner. It’s better to donate any, even the most minimal sums to specialized funds, instead of planting trees by yourself. First of all, they need special care, at least from the very beginning. Secondly, the tree is important to put in the right places.
Keep the water regime
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On average, about 8 gallons of water flow from the faucet during one minute. If you turn it off, brushing your teeth, you can save 24 liters every morning.
More than that, experts recommend not to waste water while you lather your hair with shampoo or rub the dishes with a sponge. But radical environmentalists offer to take shower with a stopwatch and give up bathing forever. Such sacrifices are not for everyone: sometimes, soaking in fragrant lather after a hard working week is what is needed. However, even such a ritual, like turning off water while brushing teeth, can make a major contribution to saving the planet.
Sort the waste
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Unfortunately, not all yards have separate containers for garbage collection. However, if you have the opportunity to throw out waste into different boxes, do it. Pre-sorted trash is much easier to recycle. More than that, during the garbage recycling, much less harmful substances are released into the atmosphere than when it is burned, which positively affects the air quality.
Save electricity
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To save electricity, it’s not necessary to sit by candlelight every night, but you can make such a romantic ritual and practice at least once a week.
A few years ago, the European Union proposed to gradually give up conventional incandescent lamps and replace them with energy-saving ones. They don’t differ in light at all and save energy well. By the way, pull out all appliances from sockets in time, don’t charge the equipment longer than it’s necessary, and try to turn off the lights in rooms where there is nobody.
