Wildflowers and tall grasses such as this promote healthy biodiversity. By planting more flowers we bring in more pollinators and remove carbon from the air. Photo taken by Herzel Sereci I The All State.
It is essential to understand that the choices we make in our lives can affect our environment. Thankfully we live in a new generation where using tote bags and drinking water from reusable water bottles is cool. However, even the most minor changes in our life can help reduce our environmental footprint and leave more room for our beautiful nature to grow and earn the abundance that it provides.
Here are five ways to live more sustainably and damage our environment.
No 1. Think twice before shopping
Before making a trip to the mall, consider whether that item you wanted to acquire is a need or a want. Fast fashion is very convenient for those who don’t have the time or money to buy clothes. However, fashion trends sometimes die or stay. Therefore, buying them second-hand, from ethical and environmentally friendly clothes, or upcycling or making your clothes is wiser.
No. 2 Grow your vegetables and fruits
Instead of throwing scraps from vegetables or fruits away, consider saving the stems or the seeds and growing your food. Here is a list of vegetables that regrow just by keeping scraps or seeds.
Here is a list of vegetables you can regrow from scraps.
- Potatoes/ Sweet Potatoes
- Onions, Garlic, Leeks, and Shallots
- Celery
- Cabbages
- Lettuce
- Bulb fennel
- Herbs such as Basic, Mint, Cilantro
- Tops from Carrots, Turnips, Parsnips, and Beets
How to regrow remaining scrap from the vegetables by submerging the stem, scraps, or roots in water and allowing them to propagate. For more information on the process of propagation, visit Scienceworld.ca.
No. 3 Use plastic-free items.
The next time you go grocery shopping, to help with plastic waste, start using reusable shopping and produce bags, or you can opt-in by using brown bags provided by certain grocery stores. Another way of reducing plastic waste is using water bottles that can be refilled from water fountains; it would also save you money from buying plastic water bottles.
No. 4 Eat less fast food and Cook more at home.
Why buy fast food when recipes you love can be replicated at home? In addition, it is cheaper and helps reduce garbage and plastic use from product packaging.
No. 5 Use eco-friendly personal hygiene or beauty products.
According to the Plastic Pollution Coalition, almost 7.9 billion plastic rigid units are used for beauty and hygiene products alone. Therefore, it is best to start supporting a small local business that makes organic and plastic-free products. According to Earth.org, brands such as Lush, Aveda, Burts Bees, REN, and Ilia are the best sustainable beauty brands for 2023. For those who enjoy having a spa day at home, Lush gives out a free mask after saving their containers and returning them at their store.
