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It's the little green things

By Ari | Dec 6, 09 04:25 PM

Here are some things we've done in the past year to lighten our impact on the planet:

• Began sharing our space with an awesome housemate, shrinking all of our footprints by sharing space and utilities
  
• Grew some of our own food and traded design work and artwork for local, organic produce
  
• Participated in local activism and volunteered in support of our environment
  
• Threw out even less trash, composted and recycled and reused even more, saved and reused food containers instead of recycling them
  
• Carried tote bags, water bottles, cutlery, and other things with us to avoid using disposable items and generating waste when eating out and shopping
  
• Continued to use washable cloths instead of paper towels, handkerchiefs instead of paper tissues, loose tea instead of disposable tea bags...
  
• Supported locally-owned and operated businesses and independent producers
  
• Gave handmade or second-hand, locally-bought items as gifts
  
• Made cat toys from recycled materials and grew our own cat grass
  
• Joined a winter CSA (Community Supported Agriculture - a subscription-based bi-weekly farm share)
  
• Made an effort to buy mostly locally-grown produce (bananas and avocados are rare in our kitchen now; coffee is still something I'm not ready to kick)
  
• Picked a lot of berries and froze them so we could have them in the winter
  
• Baked some of our own bread
  
• Began drying our clothes on a clothesline (but stopped when it got cold)
  
• Lowered the temperature settings on our washer and dryer
  
• Insulated our hot water tank
  
• Got better about turning off / unplugging unused appliances
  
• Switched from using Seventh Generation housecleaning supplies to using ultra-cheap, non-toxic concoctions of baking soda, white vinegar, tea tree oil, hydrogen peroxide, Castille soap, and hot water
  
• Bought even less and worked at being even more ethical, which for us means getting vegan things as locally and fairly as we can, including avoiding supporting capitalism when possible
  
• Made less use of planes and trains, walked or biked more often
  

And here are some things we want to work on in the coming year:

• We want to begin washing our clothes by hand or in a hand-cranked washer, spinning them, and then drying them on the line or on a rack (right now we're still using this building's electric washer and dryer)
  
• Drying, pickling, canning, or otherwise preserving produce when it's in season
  
• Reducing car and plane use
  
• Buying fewer items that come in packaging, reducing packaging waste
  
• Getting better about turning things off
  
• Selling, trading, or giving away things we're not using
  

What are some things you've done, or plan to do, to make your impact on the earth a positive one? Please leave a comment!

Previously:
Recycling...The Least You Can Do
13 changes we've made to help the earth
Loving mama earth, one day at a time

More: Activism | Environment | What we're up to

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