- Ditch single-use plastics whenever possible. Did you know only about 9% of plastics are recycled? Crazy, right?! Even if they have the triangle logo, many products aren’t able to be recycled, so your best bet is to simply avoid using them. Try reusable sandwich bags or storage containers, use a refillable water bottle when you’re on the go, and carry a reusable straw in your purse so you don’t need a plastic one (sad but true, there are an estimated 8 billion plastic straws on the world’s coastlines!).
- Embrace your green thumb. Planting trees can help remove carbon dioxide from the air (a big part of what’s causing climate change). So add some more greenery to your yard, join a volunteer effort to plant trees in your community, or donate to organizations that are helping to add more trees around the world. One we love is The Nature Conservancy, which has a goal to plant a billion trees around the globe!
- Go paperless. In addition to planting trees, you can save them too by ditching paper towels for reusable cloths, using bamboo toilet paper instead of traditional rolls, and keeping documents on your screen instead of printing whenever possible.
- Get your thrift on. Textiles (clothes, shoes, and accessories) are the No. 2 largest polluting industry in the world, after oil and gas! So when it comes to clothes and other home goods, buying thrifted or used items is much better for the environment than buying new (bonus: you’ll save money too!). And when you’re done with an item, make sure to donate or recycle it so it doesn’t join the billions of pounds of clothing that end up in landfills every year.
