Sustainable living attempts to reduce an individual's use of natural resources and promotes wise use of personal resources made available to them. Contrary to the popular belief, sustainable living does not necessarily mean living without luxuries but it rather is being aware of resource consumption and looking for alternatives that align with environmental interest.
As a citizen of the world, we must adopt a lifestyle that ensures a sustainable future for the upcoming generations. Here are a few ways you can do it:
- Drive less, drive green
Living in the generation of technology and advancement, most of us have our own vehicles like cars, scooters or motorcycles. It’s not an unknown fact to any of us that a huge amount of carbon is emitted through these vehicles. If you want to make a shift to sustainable living and contribute to the society, reduce the use of your personal vehicles and travel via public transport instead.
Not denying the fact that there might be situations cars are the only available option to transport you from point A to point B. In this situation, one can easily use carpooling services like Zipcar, Uber, and Ola. It would not only reduce traffic on the roads and but also decrease air pollution caused by the carbon emission from the vehicles.
- Be #PlasticFree
The widespread use of plastics and improper disposal has been threatening society’s well-being for a long time now. Plastics never decompose – it is seen swirling around and covering about 40 percent of the ocean surface which affects a lot of seabirds, sea turtles, seals and other marine mammals who are affected after ingesting the plastic.
You can reduce the use of plastic with tiny little changes in your lifestyle – use jute bags instead of polythene bags, avoid packaged drinking water, opt for straw made of paper and likewise.
- Thinking twice before shopping
Going by the notion “Reduce, reuse, recycle”, it might sound retro but it is a very important aspect. Instead of using plastic bags for shopping one can use reusable totes. The advantage of using a tote over a plastic bag is that plastic takes up to 1000 years to break while a tote lasts for two years. Using totes prevents the groceries from falling out, is easier to carry and does not tear easily.
- Go #Paperless
Throughout the world, around 900 million trees are cut down annually to produce papers which means around 2.47 million trees are cut every day. Little initiatives to save paper by each individual can save our trees in large numbers.
Try to avoid the use of paper as much as possible. Bank statements and electricity bills can be sent via e-mail which is also secured and organized as compared to paper bills and statements. You can also cancel your subscription of shopping catalog as it also leads to wastage of paper and instead opt for e-catalogs
Companies can adopt the technique of giving some extra points to people who prefer emailed receipts rather than printed receipts.
- Dispose waste properly
Disposing of waste correctly is an important part of sustainability. Improper disposal is the root cause of environmental problems. Use eco-friendly products that generates less waste. For example instead of ground coffee beans, you can use Nespresso compatible biodegradable coffee pods for your daily living.
If waste is not disposed of properly, it leads to the pollution of soil, air, water, and oceans. Educate yourself with various recycling techniques to live a sustainable life. The process of composting is one of the best and easiest methods of recycling. Composting is the disposal of waste in which organic wastes are decomposed under oxygen-rich conditions. Many urban cities have adopted composting programs for people who do not have outdoor space.
- Using eco-friendly products for cleaning
Keeping the surroundings clean is a difficult job. But, what's more difficult is: maintaining self-hygiene. Although there are many ways to do it but they can all be a bit modified for sustainable living.
Plastic toothbrushes can be replaced by toothbrushes made out of bamboo – It is a plant-based toothbrush that does not gets destroyed easily. Next, instead of using paper towels for cleaning, cloth rags can be used. Using the method of line-drying can be a better option for the sustainability of the environment as it also preserves the quality of the cloth in use.
Remember, there is no Planet B!
It’s crazy how tiny changes in your lifestyle can alter the environment and its well-being in both positive and negative ways. Remember, we won’t have a society if we destroy the environment and as residents of this society, it is your responsibility to save and preserve our mother nature.
