April 21, 2020
Tips for Taking Care of Mother Earth: How to Go Green
With more of us cooking from home, working from home, and generally living from home more regularly the planet has responded in a truly positive way. Greenhouse gas emissions have dropped sharply all over the world due to significantly fewer people commuting to and from work. This reduction in pollution is an unexpected yet exciting change for our environment.
Earth Day is April 22nd this year, and there is no better time to start putting into practice more sustainable habits to keep this positive trend going.
How to Go Green on Earth Day: Sustainability Tips
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Reduce your amount of single-use items.
Go through your house and notice anything that you use just once and then throw away. How many things could you replace with multi-use items? Here are some items to consider replacing:
- Paper towels.
Paper towels are incredibly wasteful, especially when a rag or cloth towel can be used and washed. Find a separate container or bin to use exclusively for dirty rags, then wash and reuse.
- Straws.
Not only do single-use straws create waste, but they often slip through grates and filtration systems just to end up in rivers and oceans. Switch to stainless steel, bamboo, or other reusable straw options. Many reusable straws even come with their own cleaning brush.
- Plastic wrap or plastic baggies.
Plastic is very difficult to break down in nature, which means that plastic often ends up in our oceans. Fish confuse plastic pieces for food, so they eat the plastic - then we eat the fish. We are basically eating our own plastic garbage. Switch from plastic wrap to reusable beeswax wrap (just be sure to wash with cold water, not hot), and use storage containers or washable silicone bags for food instead of one-time use baggies.
- Grocery bags.
Plastic grocery bags are terribly wasteful, leading to many cities banning their use entirely. Bring a reusable bag to the store and stop bringing home more plastic waste with your groceries.
- Plastic bottles.
Plastic water bottles add to the problem, so if you prefer filtered water it is much more sustainable to get a filter for your tap and refill your own water bottle. If you normally buy bottled sports drinks or juice, consider switching to packets that you can add to water at home as they create much less waste (and also cost less). True Lemon Energy drink mixes are a wonderful alternative that you can add to your reusable water bottle without buying more plastic.
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Remember the order of these words: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle.
This phrase was put in this order very intentionally - we should first reduce then reuse as much as we can, then recycle items as a last resort. When you start applying the tactics above and reducing how much waste you create, consider how you can reuse things as well.
- Food containers.
Glass jars and other food containers are wonderful to reuse as storage. At certain stores you can even use them to take home bulk foods (ask your local grocer if they can weigh your container) to avoid using more plastic bags.
- Vegetable scraps.
Ends of vegetables can be saved in the freezer and used to make delicious homemade broth. After you’ve used food scraps, start a compost pile in your yard to reintroduce those healthy nutrients back into the earth!
- Water.
If you wash dishes in the sink, use a bowl or bucket to save the water rather than dumping it down the drain. Small amounts of natural dish soap should be fine for watering most outdoor plants, but be sure to read the label carefully first. Reuse that water!
- Clothing.
Old shirts with stains or holes make great kitchen rags (to wash and reuse instead of paper towels). Or if you have clothes you no longer wear that are in good shape, schedule a future clothing exchange with friends to reduce the amount of clothes that goes into the donation bin.
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Cook more vegetarian meals at home.
It takes more energy and resources to raise animals for meat, so choosing to eat vegetarian even just one or two days a week will make a huge impact. It is also a wonderful way to increase your intake of healthy and nutritious veggies! -
If you do eat meat, switch to pasture raised and/or grass-fed.
When animals can naturally move through pastures (rather than being held in pens), the environment is positively impacted. These animals consume what they naturally evolved to eat (plants and grass), rather than cheap feed containing corn or soy which have very little nutritional value that they have difficulty digesting. Nutrition travels from the animal to you when you eat it, so choose the best food you possibly can. If you can’t find grass-fed, organic is still a better option. -
Go paperless.
Many banks and insurance companies now offer paperless statements to reduce waste. Log in to their websites and opt-in for paperless statements to receive emails rather than wasteful paper. -
Walk or bike as transportation.
With fewer cars on the road, there is no better time to choose walking or biking as a mode of transportation. If you can, bring a backpack and walk to the store for your grocery run, or ride your bike to visit a family member or loved one from a safe distance. Not only will you make less of an impact on the environment, but you’ll get in more exercise too!
This is the perfect time to find new and creative ways to reduce the impact we make on our amazing planet. Even just making a few of these adjustments in your daily life will create a more positive and sustainable planet for the future.
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True Citrus products are proven to encourage you to drink more water, so try any of our delicious flavors in your glass or water bottle to stay hydrated all year long.
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