Ah… New Years! The birth of a fresh start, a new year, an opportunity to repeatedly write the wrong date because you aren’t used to it yet…and the dreaded or highly anticipated or totally ignored New Years resolutions!
But listen. A resolution doesn’t have to be scary, or huge, or monumental. It can be just a small goal, you take baby steps toward the whole year. You might even take a few steps back, it happens! But really it is just bringing a goal or thought to the forefront of your mind, so that you can include it in your life. Not so scary!
Caring about the environment can be a goal, and it doesn’t have to be huge.
It can be as simple as picking a house in your room, and looking at it with fresh eyes.
The kitchen. How much trash do you throw away each day? How many plastic items do you have/use? Do you use disposable or single use items frequently? Try to compost your food scraps; try to buy items at the grocery store with less disposable packaging, and more recyclable packaging. Try to replace worn out plastic items with things like glass, metal or wood. Try to reduce or get rid of single use items completely (or reserve them for guests or special occasions only) Yes that means more dishes 😉 but really thats all the extra effort it will take to use ceramic plates, glasses and your silverware! Make it a family project, I can’t tell you how many awesome conversations I have had over the sink with my family members, with one of us washing, one of us drying, and one of us putting away. It can be fun!
The bathroom. How many items in a bathroom are plastic? How many are recyclable? Can you reduce the amount of plastic by using bar soap, wash clothes, solid shampoo/conditioner, bamboo toothbrushes, charcoal flossers? Can you reuse some of the plastic there?
Bedrooms. When you get the itch to spring clean (Anyone? No? Just me?) Try having a yardsale, or donate items to friends, family, churches, community centers, or donation bins and non profits. Don’t just throw stuff in the trash that will end up in a landfill! Try to extent the item’s life as long as you can, plus you can help other folks while you do it!
Not too bad right? It has taken me only 10 minutes of writing so far to share these ideas, so I bet you could think these thoughts about your own house in the same amount of time, and over the course of the next few months and this year, slowly make some changes in your household that will help the environment!
I also bet you could come up with even more or better ideas than these ones!
Give it a try?
Green without the scene 