11 Ways to Live a More Sustainable Lifestyle
There has been a push towards living a more sustainable lifestyle over recent years. With the rise in global warming and the increasing concerns over air pollution, many people are searching for more environmentally-friendly practices to implement into their lives.
Everything you do in your daily life has an impact on the environment, some things more than others. However, there are a number of ways in which you can reduce your carbon footprint and do your bit for the environment. Here are eleven ways you can live a more sustainable lifestyle.
1. Switch to an Electric Car
Cars are one of the biggest contributors to people’s carbon footprint. Many people drive their cars daily to and from work, and to any social events outside of work. By being aware of the impact driving has on the environment, people are now much more informed of how they can change their driving habits to reduce global warming.
Since the advent of the electric car, many people have made the switch to this sustainable alternative from their petrol or diesel cars. Models like the Mercedes benz electric car offer a way to drive that uses renewable energy and damages the environment to a lesser extent than the use of crude oil from fossil fuels. Although electric cars can be expensive, they are a long-term investment that dramatically reduces your carbon footprint and helps you live a more sustainable lifestyle.
2. Drive Carefully
Avoid braking and accelerating aggressively. This can increase your fuel consumption over time, reducing your car’s efficiency. This can increase your consumption of petrol or diesel, which makes a larger contribution to global warming. Improving your car’s fuel economy can make a huge difference over time.
3. Travel Light
Removing unnecessary baggage from your car helps it to move more efficiently. More fuel is required to move a heavier car. By making your car lighter, you are reducing the amount of fuel it needs to make each journey.
4. Limit Air Conditioning Usage in Your Car
The air conditioning in your car can dramatically increase its fuel consumption. This can have a knock-on effect on the environment by enhancing the use of non-renewable energy sources from crude oil.
5. Recycle
Recycling is one of the best ways to live more sustainably. Many of the plastics and materials that we use take a large amount of energy to process and ship to your doors, but a great way to reduce the impact that this has on the environment is to recycle the materials when you no longer need them. This includes recycling your food packaging, such as plastic boxes, cardboard labels, and metal cans. It can also involve recycling your unwanted clothes or reusing the fabrics to make new items. Recycling your clothing not only reduces the pollution needed to transport new clothing into the local area, but also reduces the amount of waste that is placed in landfills.
6. Upcycle Your Clothing
Upcycling, also known as creative reuse, involves re-using the fabric and materials from your old clothing and turning it into new pieces of clothing. You can use unwanted items, by-products, or waste to create something brand new.
Upcycling your clothing is a great way to have fun and get creative. It also enables you to save yourself money by reducing your need to buy new clothing, as well as saving the environment. It reduces the pollution and waste that gets produced by the production and transportation of new clothing items across the country.
7. Turn Your Lights Off
Switching your lights off and turning off standby appliances in your home saves a bunch of energy. Reducing the amount that you turn your heating on also saves energy.
So many people across the world leave their lights on whilst they’re out of the house. This is wasting electricity and is awful for the environment. The processes by which electricity is provided to your home involves using unsustainable, non-renewable energy sources. Leaving your lights and appliances on unnecessarily can therefore add to the detrimental impacts that modern-day living has on the environment.
8. Donate Your Unused Items
If there is a piece of clothing or furniture that you no longer need or want, instead of throwing them away, consider donating it to a nearby charity shop. They can resell the items and give them a new home. This reduces the amount of waste that is produced and helps out your local charities.
9. Grow Your Own Produce
More and more people are opting to grow their own fruit and vegetables in their back gardens. Growing your own produce is a fun way to live more sustainability. You can get the whole family involved with planting and picking the fruits and vegetables when they are ready to eat.
Most vegetables can be grown in your back garden and they take just a few months to grow until they’re ready to eat. This saves the environment by reducing the transportation pollution produced when food items are shipped from abroad. It’s also much cheaper for you to grow your own produce than to buy food from your local store, so you’re saving money at the same time.
10. Avoid Using Plastic Bags
Most of you probably know by now that the manufacturing and use of plastics have harmful impacts on the environment. An easy way to reduce the amount of plastic that you use is by switching from plastic bags to reusable or canvas bags when you go food shopping. Simply take the same bag to the shops every time you go to save you using a brand-new plastic bag every time.
11. Save Water
Saving water is another amazing thing you can do as part of living a sustainable lifestyle. Try taking a short shower instead of a long bath. Make sure you turn the tap off when you’re brushing your teeth. When you do your washing, turn the washing machine on only once it is full. These are some of the small things you can do to reduce the amount of water you use. This, in turn, reduces the consumption of the planet’s natural resources.
