How much waste do you generate in a day? Think of every phase of your day. Your takeaway breakfast will probably be takeaway coffee/tea and some packed pastries in disposable containers. You will print a report, edit something out and print again. Lunch comes, you eat half a plate, and leave the rest in a hurry. You will probably take a drink home in a non-returnable bottle. All this generates waste and places more demands on the meager natural resources of the planet. How can you live generating less waste and practicing more sustainable habits? Here are a few ways:
- Less waste in the kitchen-Wasteful food and cleaning habits generate a lot of trash in this part of a home. How can you reduce wastage and go green in the kitchen?
- · Less food wastage – Reduce the amount of food going to the trash by planning meals better and buying as per your menu. Learn to repurpose leftovers as sauces and jams. Buy in bulk and portion at home, for example, one large tub of ice cream instead of individual cups.
- · Fewer disposables – Go shopping with your own reusable grocery bags. Use reusable cloth towels and earth rugs instead of paper towels.
- · Less water wastage – Take a shower instead of using the tub, and learn to shutoff taps when not using the water.
· Make your own products - There are numerous recipes for making friendly homemade cleaning products. Exampels are fabric cleaners, floor and wall cleaners and even domestic soaps.
- Less wasteful fashion and styling-The Carbon Trust reports that the clothing fashion industry contributes at least 3% of carbon emissions. Help keep the planet green by:
- · Wearing clothes for longer – Wear your clothes for at least 3 months instead of a few weeks
- · Buy second hand – Look for quality second hand clothing instead of buying new every time.
- · Eat cooked meals – You can cook meals from home, or eat at the nearest eatery instead of doing takeaway lunches and snacks in disposable packaging.
- · Print less - Save your emails in cloud storage like Google Drive instead of printing on paper. This will save on both money and storage space.
· Use recycled paper – Make it a policy to buy only recycled printing paper. This will help conserve trees on the planet.
- Learn the 3R’s
Reduce, Reuse and recycle. Do an audit of the 3R’s in every aspect of your home and office to find out how the 3Rs can fit in your day to day life. Now enjoy living a minimalist lifestyle.