Green Living has been an interest of mine for quite some time and need more information. I have researched it and just can’t seem to find a sight or book that can explain in simple terms the purpose, how to begin, what it is and how to make it a part of life. I live in a large metropolitan area that to me seems not all "green" friendly. Please only serious replies, life is too short to waste reading junk from people who have nothing better to do with their life than think of stupid things to write.
Wow, such valuable info you have all given me. As I read through I felt I had to give myself a pat on the back, though, because I have already started doing some of the suggestions. It just made good sense to me to do them. Little did I know I was already starting to live Green. Yeah !!!
live life to the fullest.
don’t waste time on going green
Living Green! This is what we do:
1. Recycle!
2. Collect and use rainwater.
3. Eliminate chemicals, including fertilizers and pesticides, from your property. If you have a lawn, replace all or most of it with native plants, walkways, etc. that don’t require watering, fertilizing, and application of chemicals.
4. Grow your own vegetables! Even in an apartment, you can grow tomatoes in a container.
5. Use CFL’s (compact fluorescent light bulbs). They use a fraction of the energy of an incandescent bulb. This causes less carbon and mercury to be released into the atmosphere.
6. Energy-efficient appliances. Don’t run out and buy new ones, but consider "Energy-Star" appliances when replacing your old ones.
7. Compost! http://www.compostguide.com/
8. When shopping, select products that use less packaging. Fancy, pretty packaging often ends up in landfills. Buying in bulk is a good way to do this too.
9. Carpool, use public transportation, or live closer to your workplace/school.
10. Make friends with other "Green" people! You can share ideas and keep each other encouraged. See http://www.greendrinks.org/.
Thank you for caring about the environment!
Use eco-friendly cleaning products: Products made by Seventh Generation, Planet, or BioKleen, and vinegar. Many good suggestions from others. An answer to what to use for laundry: a product from the above manufacturers. I now use Planet laundry detergent and love it!
recycle and eat earthy (organic and all natural) friendly foods. read books on it and love your land
Start by REDUCING and REUSING!
-Think about the electricity that you are using every time you turn a light on. Start a competition in your house to save electricity — try to cut your energy usage by like 20% — you can see how many KW hours you use per month on your bill .. if you used 200kw hours this month, try to bring that down to 160kw ..
-Hang your clothes out to dry – the dryer uses 6% of household electricity
-Turn your heat down to 68 in the winter .. and the air conditioning up to 80 during the summer to minimize usage (or just quit using it! Come on — I live in sweltering Honduras, and I am just fine without A/C)
-Don’t leave appliances on, and unplug the ones you are not using
-Turn your water heater down to the lowest level you are comfortable with — think warm showers / not hot showers
-Either reuse your plastic shopping bags or bring a canvas bag or backpack when you go shopping
-Switch to energy saving light bulbs
-Don’t drive when you can walk or bike ..
-Don’t eat packaged foods .. cook fresh meat and vegetables (less packaging, less processing, less waste)
-Eat more vegetables (meat is much more resource intensive)
-Buy used instead of new merchandise (or get it for free by going to the "free" section of craigslist.com)
Jeremy R Brilliant Answer
AND plant lots and lots of fruit and nut trees
If you do not have the room even 3 ballerina apple trees in big planters will do.
One fifth of a couple’s food production can be grown on a small balcony of a high rise flat (See Permaculture Concept by Bill Mollison on Youtube) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7g2mmqqEn08&mode=related&search=
Plant deciduous trees!
Maple.
Oak.
Poplar(Tulip tree)
etc,
etc.
Here is an idea that I have used for 3 years and I haven’t seen it mentioned here. That is freecycle.org. I lived in the Metro area of Washington D.C. and moved to Florence, SC. I had MANY bags of clothes as well as furniture and many misc. items that I posted on Freecycle.org for Alexandria, VA and I never had anything that wasn’t picked up and taken away. The ultimate recycle. If you can’t use it, see if someone else can, no money exchanges hands. So, here I am in a MUCH smaller place, Florence, South Carolina and I went on Freecycle.org more for curiosity than anything else. I figured in such a smaller place it probably wasn’t even listed, wrong! There were things I had moved that I had no use for here, or I decided to buy a different item than what I had. I am glad to say Freecycle.net is alive and doing fine in Florence, SC. Try the link and see what you might want to give to someone else.
for starters, if nobody’s using it, turn it off! by this I mean, if you’re not going to leave a room in your house, turn off the light in that room. buy energy saving bulbs, they produce the same amount of light while using less electricity.
when buying a new electrical device, try to find one with energy star on it. these devices use less electricity than their regular counterparts.
when and if possible in your community, recycle. the more people recycle, the less need there will be for production of new materials.
when driving, if your forced to wait in line say at a drive through, turn off your car until your finally allowed to moved foward. a very large percentage of fuel consumption is while idling in traffic or waiting in a line. this is good way to conserve fuel a little hear and there. BUT use common sense lol DON’T do this at every stop light, best place is rush hour traffic, when you’re stuck in one spot without moving for many minutes.
when you buy some food ..lets say vegetables or fruit.. dont buy that much at the time… but do it more often.. (according to some statistics i’ve read about, we chuck about 1/3 of our "untouched" consuming)
Well there are things you can do to help reduce the amount of harm you are causing the enviroment, you can do this by offsetting your carbon on websites such as; http://www.co2debt.com . On these sites you are able to prevent climate change by funding ethical reforestation projects. I personally found that http://www.co2debt.com was the best site for this because of their strong relationships with other non-profit organizations
Properly dispose of your toxic chemicals for good. Use baking soda, vinegar, tea tree oil, liquid castil soap, borax for cleaning everything in your home, including the dishwasher(except laundry, still haven’t figured that one out yet).
Clean up your physical and mental health by eating less, eating healthy, and exercising daily so that you can eliminate your use of pharmaceuticals (which indirectly affect the environment through our bodily wastes).
Walk or use your bike more, drive less.
Noise pollution also indrectly affects our environment. Spend more time out doors instead of listening to the television that nobody is watching.
Try these websites. I hope they help.
start by recycling things like your milk jugs, cardboard boxes aluminum cans glass bottle and such. next if your going to get rid of your clothes or furniture bring them to a good will or donation center dont throw them. Next use washable plates not paper plates even if its nice to just throw them away and not wash them. Next take more showers not baths but take a fast one and when your brushing your teeth don’t keep the water running! Good luck being eco friendly!!!
Here is a list with something for everybody
Everybody is different with different lives here are a 101 Ways To Live More Ecologically,may be you find something that applies to you
1. Avoid disposable in favor of reusable
items.
2. Avoid drying rags in a clothes dryer.
3. Avoid power appliances when handpower works.
4. Avoid highly processed foods.
5. Avoid using styrofoam—it can’t be recycled.
6. Avoid watering driveways and sidewalks.
7. Be responsible and creative with leftover foods.
8. Buy in bulk goods to reduce wasted packaging.
9. Buy energy efficient electric appliances.
10. Buy foods without additives.
11. Buy foods without preservatives.
12. Buy food and goods from sources you trust
13. Buy large quantities to reduce shopping trips.
14. Buy living Christmas trees.
15. Buy locally grown food and produce.
16. Buy organic, pesticide-free foods.
17. Compost your food scraps.
18. Discover and protect watersheds in your area,
19. Don’t burn trash or other smoky materials.
20. Drain cooking grease onto paper bags, not paper towels.
21. Drive a fuel-efficient car.
22. Drive less: walk, bicycle, carpooland use public transportation.
23. Eat foods low on the food chain; avoid meat.
24. Eat more natural, nutritious foods.
25. Educate elected representatives on ecology.
26. Exercise regularly.
27. Explore and learn about your bioregion.
28. Grow your own food, even a small amount.
29. Hang dry some or all of your clothes.
30. Heat your home less and wear warmer clothes.
31. Heat your home more with renewable energies.
32. Hold a potluck dinner to discuss local ecology.
33. If you use a dishwasher, turn off the drying cycle.
34. Install a water-conserving device in your toilets.
35. Install a water-conserving showerhead.
36. Insulate your home to maximum efficiency.
37. Invest for social responsibility as well as profit.
38. Invest in solar power, where practical.
39. Invest in well-made, long-lived clothing.
40. Keep hazardous chemicals in safe containers.
41. Keep appliance motors well adjusted for efficiency.
42. Mend and repair rather than discard and replace.
43. Oppose meddling in ecological balance.
44. Oppose private development of special areas.
45. Oppose roadside use of defoliants.
46. Organize or join a neighborhood toy exchange.
47. Pick up litter along streets and highways.
48. Plant native trees and shrubs around your home.
49. Plant trees throughout your community.
50. Plant your living Christmas tree.
51. Practice preventive health care.
52. Practice responsible family planning.
53. Prepare only as much food as will be eaten.
54. Protect your favorite distinctive natural areas.
55. Purchase goods in reusable/recyclable containers.
56. Put a catalytic converter on your wood stove.
57. Put toxic substances out of reach of children.
58. Recycle aluminum.
59. Recycle glass.
60. Recycle newspaper.
61. Recycle old clothes.
62. Recycle plastic.
63. Recycle used motor oil.
64. Recycle your unneeded items.
65. Re-use paper bags.
66. Re-use plastic bags for storage and waste.
67. Save up for full loads in clothes washers.
68. Save up for full loads in dishwasher.
69. Shop by phone, then go pick up your purchases.
70. Speak out about your values in community groups.
71. Support efficient energy sources in your bioregion.
72. Support elected representatives on ecological issues.
73. Support energy conservation in your bioregion.
74. Support global ecological improvement efforts.
75. Support local credit unions.
76. Support local merchants before large chains.
77. Support neighborhood food cooperatives.
78. Support proper waste water and sewage treatment.
79. Support the cultural diversity in your bioregion.
80. Support the plants and animals in your community.
81. Take shorter showers.
82. Teach your children ecological wisdom.
83. Turn down the thermostat on your water heater.
84. Turn off the lights when not needed.
85. Turn off the water while you brush your teeth.
86. Use biodegradable soaps and detergents.
87. Use cloth diapers.
88. Use cloth table napkins.
89. Use less tapwater whenever possible.
90. Use non-toxic pest control.
91. Use only medications you trust/understand.
92. Use rags or towels instead of paper.
93. Use rechargeable batteries.
94. Use the second side of paper for scratch paper.
95. Use water from cooking vegetables to make soup.
96. Volunteer for work in a community garden.
97. Volunteer to maintain local parks and wilderness.
98. Wash clothes in cold water.
99. Wash dishes in still, not running water.
100. Weather-seal your home.
101. Work to unlearn poor ecological habits.
http://www.lib.niu.edu/ipo/1996/ip960321…