In today’s society, everyone is looking for ways to be more environmentally friendly. Unfortunately, it’s not easy. Nearly every company uses plastic in their products and those that don’t often sell for exorbitant prices. So what can we, the average consumer, do to help the Earth?
One easy way to help the Earth is to reduce your use of single-use plastics. Water bottles, Ziploc bags, and to-go cups are very convenient in our lives. We use them so often without even batting an eye. An easy place to start is looking for ways to cut these out. I carry around a reusable water bottle. There are tons of these out there, and they can fit almost any need. Some are filtered, some have places for fruit to be diffused into the water, and some have re-freezable ice sticks in the middle. They come in different sizes and at many different price points, so it should be easy to find one to fit your needs.
Another simple thing I do to help the Earth is put my lunch in Tupperware. Instead of putting my sandwich in Ziploc bags, I use sandwich sized containers. These are washable, reusable, and easily reduce plastic. A set of these containers can be cheaper than Ziploc bags, and they will last you infinitely longer.
These photos come from the public domain. Found on Pexels.
Furthermore, if you drink coffee, use a travel mug. You can make your coffee at home, or have them filled up at a coffee shop. At Starbucks, you get a 10 cent discount if you bring your own cup, and at my university, a refill (on any cup size) only costs 99 cents. These discounts will add up over time. Starbucks produces 6 billion plastic cups every year. By using travel mugs, a single person can help lower that number.
There are lots of other single-use products that can be replaced with a reusable counterpart. We can use wool dryer balls instead of dryer sheets (I use these). We can use reusable makeup pads instead of cotton pads (I use these). These pads work better for me than cotton pads and eye makeup remover did. Furthermore, companies make reusable food storage bags (like these) and reusable wax food wraps (like these).
Admittedly, products like these require an investment at the beginning, but long term they should save you money. Dryer balls claim to last for 1,000 loads, and they cost about the same as 200 dryer sheets. You don’t have to be a mathematician to see those savings.
Another important way to help the environment is to recycle. Unfortunately, recycling is not as easy as it seems. There are lots of rules, and not every person lives where it’s convenient to recycle. Luckily, there are many resources online that can help you out, such as EcoScraps. However, one thing that many do not realize is that putting a non-recyclable into a recycling bin can be devastating. Such products could contaminate the whole bin, forcing everything back into a landfill. Even if they don’t contaminate, they slow down the recycling process. If you don’t know if something can be recycled, look it up!
If you don’t have curbside recycling, research where you can drop off recycling. There may be a nearby, convenient place for you to drop it off.
You may not be an eco-friendly genius, but it’s good enough to try your best. Simple actions like the ones above help the environment. Don’t beat yourself up if you’re not perfect. Trying is exactly where you need to start.
madison brewer 