So you are probably at the stage where you already do the basics like recycling and carrying your own water bottle, right? If not don’t worry. This is not a problem that will be solved overnight and it certainly won’t be won by Bob in Birmingham and his Bamboo toothbrush.
Let us start slow and build, don’t stress about it or you won’t stick with it, treat your eco journey like a diet. It needs to be sustainable. Take these baby steps and start by changing the way you look at your world and the things in it, you will start to see easy solutions yourself in every day situations.
This is a war we all need to fight together one battle at a time. So I thought I would start with some Eco quick wins, things you may already know or may never have even thought about. They should be easy with no monetary cost. Sounds good right?
I am very likely to expand on these topics in future blogs. The list is not exhaustive, I am not an expert and I would very much welcome comments with other quick wins!
- Your phone– I am not going to get too technical but if you have a smart phone go into your settings and put on power saving mode. That is it. My phone helpfully tells me what this will be applied to, just in case it turns off something I actually need. It extends the battery life of your phone and means less charging. A small electricity saving but handy too. Also use your phone for notes. Don’t scrabble around looking for a pen and paper, save it on your phone, no paper waste and the information is on hand for when you need it. It is also very easy to send the information on to some one else. Mine is full of shopping lists I forget to delete!
- Litter picking– once a day, once a week or when ever you remember, just pick up a piece of litter. Earlier today I popped to the shop next door and on my way back I spotted a plastic bottle, picked it up and put it straight in my re-cycle bin. No effort required. Warning with this one though, be careful of what you pick up with your bare hands and always wash them or use hand sanitizer afterwards.
- Thermostat– turn it down by 1 degree. You will barely notice it and not only is it eco, it will save you money. Energy Saving Trust link
- Pass it on– finished with an item but it could be used by some one else? Then pass it on. Doesn’t matter to who or how but giving something a new life prevents it going to landfill longer and could really help some one else. You would be surprised by the value some one else sees in your rubbish. Freecycle link.
- Walk– now this is an easy one for me because I can’t drive but my husband does. Think about your journeys, again it doesn’t have to be all the time but every now then when you are not in a rush and it isn’t too far just walk there. It keeps you fit and reduces your carbon footprint.
- Water– switch off the tap. The main time I think this applies is whilst brushing your teeth, if you brush for the recommended 2 minutes you do not need the tap on for that full time. Another one is your re-usable water bottle. When you get in the house and you are thirsty, drink the water left in your bottle first rather than pouring what is left out and wasting it. Energy Saving Trust link
So those barely scratch the surface but they will hopefully get you thinking.
Eco Lass 