We live on this wonderful planet named Earth. She is a wonderful place that sustains all the life that exists here - it's truly incredible! Without her we would not know life as it currently exists. So, one would say that it is pretty vital to do what we can in order to keep her healthy and safe. Some of us take certain precautions in order to do our part, but some of us just don’t know what to do or where to start. Changing our habits in order to help our planet is a process, but once you get going you will find that doing your part isn’t as hard as you might expect. To help you out, I have gathered 10 ways that you can help our home, Earth:
- RECYCLE - This is the most common way that people do their part to help out the environment. You could ask almost any random stranger on the street and they would most likely say that they recycle. Recycling is a great way to do your part! Instead of throwing away all of your paper, plastic, and glass products recycle them so they relive as something else. If you already recycle and want to kick it up a notch try taking any scrap metal that you have to a scrap metal recycling facility. You can get rid of any scrap metal you have, make some money, and divert that from going into a landfill!
- PICK UP LITTER - This sounds like it is time consuming, but believe me it can be very easy. Even if you don’t have the time out of your day to devote multiple hours to picking up litter you can still do your part. A simple way to help is when you are out and about and see litter, pick it up. Instead of leaving it on the ground for someone else to deal with, or no one to deal with take it into your own hands and put it where it belongs – the trash, recycling, compost, etc. This is a simple way to help keep our earth clean!
- USE REUSABLE PRODUCTS - This is a HUGE way you can help keep the planet clean! By using reusable water bottles, straws, bags, and silverware you are doing so much to divert trash from going into a land fill or into our oceans. We throw away millions of these products every single year! If you can do your part to alleviate this from happening it would help out immensely.
- UP-CYCLE CLOTHING/BUY FROM SUSTAINABLE FASHION COMPANIES - We all wear clothing. The global fashion industry promotes a very toxic way of creating, distributing, and disposing of clothing. Buying from eco-friendly clothing designers we can support a system of fashion that DOES care about Mother Earth. Another thing we can do is go to our local goodwill or salvation army. Instead of buying new clothes that support our current fashion industry which supports the quick disposal of clothing we can upcycle. Also, buying in thrift stores is always a unique experience where you can find something wonderful that you might not expect!
- DRIVE LESS – As some of us are aware, global warming has caused a shift in our ecosystems. One of the contributors to global warming is the CO2 that is released into our atmosphere. This has caused the “greenhouse effect” trapping in heat that causes global warming. When we drive, CO2 is released and contributes to this. Instead of driving try biking or walking to work, the park, or even grocery stores if you live close enough!
- BUY LOCAL FOOD - when we purchase local food we are doing more than just helping our planet. We are supporting local farmers, and the local economy. Large scale monoculture crops are not a healthy or sustainable way to go about growing food. Pesticides run into our water sources and affect nearby critters habitats. When we buy local food there is less of a distance traveled so that helps eliminate some of the CO2 being released into the atmosphere. Check your local area for local food in stores and your nearest farmer’s markets.
- BE MORE ENERGY & WATER EFFICIENT - We’ve all heard it, “turn the lights off when you leave a room” or, “turn the water off when you aren’t using it,” but do we actually do it? By doing these small things we can help conserve water and energy.
- GET THINGS FIXED - We live in a society today that throws everything away. This has caused small repair businesses to lose business and has caused environmental damage. Instead of fixing it ourselves or taking it to someone who knows how, we just throw it away. So from now on if we could take a second and think about fixing something before just throwing it away we would really make an impact. Its small things like this that over time make a huge impact for the planet and for your local community.
- COMPOST - Composting is a great way to help out our planet! This word freaks some people out and makes people think that you can’t do it if you don’t have a backyard. Let’s break down some facts about compost. Compost is when you take scrap food, garden clippings, wood chips, and other decomposable materials and put them in a pile/bin/etc. in order for them to break down and become nutrient rich soil. So what happens is microorganisms break down these materials with the absence of oxygen in a process called anaerobic digestion. After the process of anaerobic digestion has broken down these products eventually become rich soil that you can use for your gardens, potted plants, landscaping, etc. This is a great way to help the planet because you are disposing of your food scraps and creating nutrient rich soil, and feeding the Earth. The biggest issue I see is that people don’t think that they can compost at home because they don’t have a yard. THIS IS NOT TRUE! You can buy compost bins for you use in your home (that don’t smell) and will turn your food into soil! Another thing that most people are not aware of is that in certain cities there are companies that will come pick up your compost scraps from you and take care of it for you!
- GO VEGAN - This is one of the most valuable things that you can do in order to help the environment. By consuming a vegan diet you are helping the planet tremendously. It takes less land and less water to grow plant-based food. By using less land, we are saving animal habitats, saving top soil, saving our oceans, and all around bettering our plant. Raising animals for food products releases more toxic gas into the atmosphere than the transportation industry combined. Let’s get into some facts from the documentary, “Cowspiracy” on Netflix:
- Growing feed crops for livestock consumes 56% of water in the united states.
- Animal agriculture is the leading cause of species extinction, ocean dead zones, water pollution, and habitat destruction.
- As many as 2.7 trillion animals are pulled from the ocean each year. Projections show fishless oceans by 2048.
- Each day, a person who eats a vegan diet saves 1,100 gallons of water, 45 pounds of grain, 30 sq. ft. of forested land, 20 lbs. of CO2 equivalent, and one animal’s life.
Would you buy a home and neglect it? Would you just leave your trash in your home? Or would you invest into the future of your home? On this Earth Day, do what you can to help our home Earth - every little bit counts!!!
Source - http://www.cowspiracy.com/facts/
