I contacted a number of green bloggers and asked them to weigh in with their best advice for living more sustainably. Thanks to their participation, we have a great list of ideas we can all implement. If you aren’t familiar with everyone in the group below, I highly recommend you visit their sites or connect with them on Twitter. Read on for the question that was posed to each of them, and their responses.
What do you think is the most important thing people can do to act in a more environmentally responsible way?
Adam Shake:
We’ve become inundated with information on “how” to become green. There is an encyclopedic amount of information out there on “The top 1000 ways to… Green your business, green your home, save the environment, save the Polar Bears, lower your carbon footprint….”
But what is missing is the “Why?” People need to understand the “Why” of Environmentalism before they will even be interested in the how.
So I think the most important thing that people can do, is to arm themselves with the knowledge of what is really happening to our biosphere and how we impact those changes.
I suggest going to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change website or reading books like Rachel Carson’s “Silent Spring.”
Environmentalism isn’t about saving the planet. What it’s really about, is saving ourselves.
[Adam Shake is the Editor-In-Chief of Simple Earth Media. You can also find him on twitter @adamshake.]
Lisa Frack at Environmental Working Group:
Get political – on & offline.
I base that on a few posts I have written on Enviroblog in the past year, and my sense that the groundswell is, in fact, getting political about toxic chemicals (among other issues!) – on and offline. Here are the 3 posts I’d highlight as part of my answer and thinking on the matter:
1. Buying our way to utopia? Not so much.
2. Products or politics? What’ll it be?
3. My New Year’s Resolution? Parent power.
And if I had to choose something more in-home/personal, for parents, I’d suggest modeling environmental responsibility. I am constantly amazed at the power parents have to shape the new generation – and its our choice (as Al Gore would say!) to shape it for the better.
[Lisa Frack is a member of EWG's staff and blogs regularly at their informative Enviroblog.]
Janelle Sorensen at Healthy Child, Healthy World:
Buy less stuff. In the US, 90% of purchases end up in the trash within 6 months (this includes an overabundance of packaging). By now, everyone should be familiar with the mantra “reduce, reuse, recycle.” But, most people focus on recycling when it’s really far more important to reduce and reuse. So, buy less – and when you do buy, try to find gently used options.
And, consider this – buying less and buying used means saving money. It also means reducing your exposure to the chemicals that off-gas from new things (that “new smell”), so it’s better for your health. AND, you’ll reduce your use of natural resources and decrease the amount of pollution generated by manufacturing and disposing of stuff – which means you are doing a world of wonders for our world. Next time you’re at the store (or before) ask yourself if you really need what you think you do. If the answer is yes, ask yourself if you could find it used. Use the money you save to invest in green necessities like organic food and sustainable clothing and furnishings – which typically cost more.
[Janelle blogs for Healthy Child, Healthy World. You can also find her on Twitter @greenandhealthy and on Facebook.]
Enviromom:
We want to encourage people to eat less meat in order to reduce the tremendous amount of greenhouse gases associated with industrial animal farming. Start by going vegetarian just one day a week, and then see if you can bump it up to two! Check out the EnviroMom Meatless Supper Club for family-friendly recipe ideas.
[Heather Hawkins and Renee Limon are the inspiring women behind Enviromom.]
David @ The Good Human:
Educate themselves and stay positive. Sure, I could say that people could change their light bulbs or bring their own grocery bags, but education about all the environmental issues we face as a people goes a lot further towards a beneficial outcome. The more one learns, the more one is capable of doing – so I would say that education is the #1 thing people can do to act in a more environmentally responsible way.
[You can find David on his blog, The Good Human and on Twitter @thegoodhuman. David also blogs about simple living at Simple.Organized.Life and writes for EcoTech Daily, a Simple Earth Media blog.]
Zoe Weil:
The most important thing anyone can do to act in a more environmentally responsible way is to practice what I call the 3 Is of Inquiry, Introspection and Integrity which I write about in my book, Most Good, Least Harm
[Zoe is the Co-Founder and President of the Institute for Humane Education. She is also the author of several books: Above All Be Kind [my review], Most Good, Least Harm
Diane MacEachern, author of Big Green Purse:
The most important thing you can do to be “environmentally friendly” is to simplify your life. I’m not talking about making a lot of sacrifices but rather, about finding ways you can reduce your needs and actually increase quality of life. Materialism drives consumption, which drives climate change, pollution, and waste — none of which protects the environment or makes us happier and healthier. Buy less, share more, and spend time with the people you love in places that renew you body and soul. What could be better?
[Big Green Purse was one of the first books I read in my quest to live a "greener" life. I was amazed, in reading it, by the power of our pocketbooks. You can find Diane on the Big Green Purse blog and on Twitter @dianemaceachern.]
Bethe at Grass Stain Guru:
I think at the cornerstone of acting more environmentally responsible is to get outside and reconnect with nature. Americans, and especially today’s children, are so far removed from nature, that acting responsibly takes on an abstract meaning. For example, a child may be concerned about polar bears or saving the rainforest because they have seen something on TV, done a well-meaning coloring sheet or heard a story, but not know anything about their own backyard or have little experience playing in everyday nature.
If we are to care about conservation and sustainability, we first must learn to know and love nature and our own little pieces of the world — this is especially important for children. Get outside. Play. Get dirty. Hunt for bugs, go bird watching, climb trees, and plant a garden. Don’t ask them to save it before they know it.
[You can find Bethe at her blog, Grass Stain Guru and on Twitter @balmeras.]
Heather at Earth Promise:
Educate yourself, your family and friends. Pass these learnings on to everyone because all these little actions (using reusable bags, turning off water when you brush your teeth) can be very meaningful. One of the first changes, or Earth Promises, we made as a family was to stop using paper napkins and paper towels. It was through a family friend that we learned this easy tip. No longer paper napkins when we sit down to eat or in the kids’ lunches; now we use cloth napkins. Mico-fiber rags to wipe up spills. This promise opened our eyes to our usual paper consumption. Just imagine the impact if you educate your neighbors and it turn, they too, no longer use paper napkins and paper towels.
If you want to promote a green behavior, make it simple. We need to educate by example. Practicing these small actions yourself will convey that this is not a trend or obstacle, but rather an environmental responsibility that is not difficult or complicated. Every Earth Promise you partake in educates….. Get inspired and inspire others. Care, commit and connect. Together we can make a world of difference.
[You can find Heather at Earth Promise and on Twitter @earthpromise and @gottarecycle.]
Beth at Fake Plastic Fish:
Cut the plastic — plastic products as well as plastic containers and packaging. Eliminating unnecessary plastic will go a long way toward reducing problems of waste, litter, harm to animals, and toxic chemicals that can leach from plastic into our food and poison our air and water during production. Additionally, since so many consumer goods are made from plastic and contain plastic packaging, cutting down on plastic will help us reduce our consumption in general. Saying goodbye to plastic bags and plastic bottles is just the beginning.
[You can find Beth on her blog, Fake Plastic Fish, and on Twitter @fakeplasticfish.]
Tyler at Frugally Green:
There are two answers to this question: one for left brain thinkers and one for right brain thinkers.
For the left brainers, the answer is to eat less meat and reduce energy consumption. Those are the two biggest things anyone can do to personally make a positive impact on the environment. Problem is, this doesn’t address the fact that not very many people get excited about eating less meat or using less energy.
For the right brained crowd, the answer is something more like, “Do whatever the heck you want to.” If you can find a way to do something you love and make it more sustainable, you’ll emit a positive energy that’s infectious and you’ll inspire other to do the same. This, of course, can have a net effect much greater than simply following the two rules laid out above.
[You can find Tyler on his blog, Frugally Green, and on Twitter @frugallygreen.]
Green Phone Booth:
Moving from a typical American lifestyle to one that is more sustainable can certainly seem like a daunting task. The question I’m asked most frequently is “Where do I even start???” Rather than trying to give folks one giant task that will make a huge difference like giving up all red meat or selling their car, I tell them to start looking at everything they do with a critical eye — an eye for sustainability.
As you walk through your day, look at each thing you do and each item that passes through your hands and ask yourself how sustainable it is and what you can do to improve upon it. Whether it’s your morning cup of coffee, the products you use to get ready in the morning, your drive to the office, a work meeting you’ve organized or the dinner you’re eating — how sustainable are these items and actions? And what can you do differently to make them more sustainable?
If you always look at life with this critical eye, you’ll continuously find ways to be more environmentally responsible.
[Green Phone Booth is where a community of women gather to write about saving ourselves and our planet. Do pay them a visit.]
Carrie at It’s Frugal Being Green:
The most important thing people can do is to use their resources as efficiently as possible. Those resources include natural resources, time, and money – I always aim to save in two or more of those categories at the same time.
[You can find Carrie on her blog, It's Frugal Being Green, and on Twitter @carrieactually.]
Doreen at Mom Goes Green:
Environmental responsibility isn’t about installing solar panels on our rooftops… the most realistic approach is to simply be aware and conscious of the daily decisions we make and how they affect both our family and our environment. Remember the r’s: reuse, reduce, recycle… and make the right choice. I have children that will have to live with the effects of my decisions. Why wouldn’t I want the very best for them in terms of their health and the condition of their world? I want them to learn a better way. I want to give them the tools to make the best decisions. And long after I’m gone, I believe they will continue that legacy and respect the world we live in and make good choices for themselves and the environment. Just start somewhere and take baby steps. If you make gradual changes, it doesn’t seem so daunting. Begin with recycling. Next, buy reusable bags. Then, try organic foods and biodegradable and recycled products. Avoid chemicals in personal care and cleaning products. Be conscious and aware not to overuse water and electricity. And, most of all, share what you know with others. It can have an amazing snowball effect. There are so many choices available to us, so take advantage of that. You don’t have to sacrifice anything and I think that’s a big misconception of going green. The best thing you can do is simply START… TODAY! You need not wait another second before you begin to make a difference.
[You can find Doreen at her blog, Mom Goes Green and on Twitter @momgoesgreen.]
Many thanks to those who took the time to participate. I do believe that every bit helps and every effort counts. Choosing even one thing from the list above will make a difference. Hopefully, you’ve found some inspiration here and some new blogs to visit.
