On 5 June, we celebrate World Environment Day and look at the issues threatening our environment. This year, the theme is “Only One Earth,” and it revolves around living sustainably and shifting to a greener way of life. We all have the ability to live more in harmony with nature, and it’s easier than you might think. Here are some incredibly easy ways that you can help the environment right now and protect our one Earth.
Around the house
- Turn to cold when washing your clothes. 90% of the energy used by your washing machine is used to heat the water.1 Switching to cold and using a cold-water detergent will save you money and use less energy.
- Skip out on buying bottled water. You’ve got plenty of options to choose from over buying packages of bottled water. You can use a reusable bottle, go with filtered water jugs, tap water filters, re-fillable water bottles and more.
- Make your home green. You can ensure your home’s environmental footprint is small by using energy-saving lightbulbs, upgrading your windows so they are properly insulated and installing a programmable thermostat.
- Compost if you can. Instead of throwing away food scraps or garden waste, you can start composting at home. Composting decomposes organic matter into organic material that can help plants grow. Composting will keep more waste out of landfills and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Here’s a useful resource about what to compost and how it all works.
On the go
- Break out the bike. Keep the car at home and bike to work if you can. If biking to work isn’t possible for you, you can still cut down on carbon emissions by choosing to bike or walk to places instead of driving on the weekend.
- Shop online. Instead of going to the store when you want to do a little shopping, choose to shop virtually. Avoid rush shipping and buy more things together to cut down on the number of shipments.
- Telecommute to work. If you don’t want to bike to work, you can telecommute instead. Check with your employer and see if it’s possible for you to telecommute more often to help the environment.
Food and packaging
- Forget about disposable cookware. Using ceramic and metal pots and pans can easily cut down on creating more waste. Invest in good cookware and bakeware to avoid cooking in disposable aluminum tins.
- Buy food with less packaging. When you’re doing your weekly food shop, opt to buy more loose fruits and vegetables. If you’re buying packaged foods, look for ones with minimal packaging or those that use recycled materials.
- Use your own utensils. If you’re planning on ordering a takeaway at home, skip the plastic cutlery and extra napkins offered by the restaurant. Using your own cutlery can help prevent more rubbish from being added to landfills.
- Grow your own food. Not everyone has the space to plant a large garden, but there are alternatives that can help you save trips to the grocery store. You can plant a windowsill garden and grow things like herbs and other greens right in your kitchen.
- Start freezing food and making jam. You can save your fruits and vegetables from going bad by freezing them or turning them into jams. This will help prevent food waste and give you more time to enjoy them.
Help the environment with Foresters
Members can use Community Volunteer grants and Foresters Care grants to organise fundraisers and other events that can help green initiatives. You can choose how you make a difference in our environment by using your grant in different ways, like building a community garden or organising a cleanup of a local park or green space.
Login to MyForesters.com now to get started!
SOURCES
1 https://www.cleaninginstitute.org/industry-priorities/outreach/cold-water-saves
