We live in a society where overconsumption is the norm, and despite our knowledge of climate change, dwindling resources and a steadily growing population we continue to waste and ask ourselves questions like ‘what difference can I make?’. Well, we’re here to tell you that the best place to start making a difference is right in your home. That’s why we reached out to experts from Sacramento to Saskatoon to teach you how to reduce, reuse, and recycle to decrease household waste. So sit back and find out how you can make a difference.
Cut down on single-use plastics
The Flipflopi project sails with the message that single-use plastic doesn’t make sense. We encourage everyone to do their bit to reduce their own single-use plastic usage. There are easy ways you can reduce your plastic use such as bringing your own reusable bag to the shops, carrying a refillable water bottle and avoiding purchasing products that are covered in plastic wrapping. The next best thing you can do is to ensure you’re recycling effectively. As you know each municipality has different rules for what can and can’t be recycled and when non-recyclable items are mixed up often the whole load is useless to recyclers. We suggest you research what is possible to be recycled in your area and in what state and ensure you follow those rules very closely to ensure as much plastic as possible is being recycled. – The Flipflopi Project
Make recycling as convenient as possible
The most helpful tip that I have found (for myself) has been to skip the recycling bag. I make sure to rinse out all of my recycling (as most municipalities recommend) and place it in my unlined recycling bin in my kitchen. When it’s full I directly dump it into my municipal curbside recycling bin. As I try to produce less waste, I find my recycling bin filling up faster, so this means that my recycling bin fills up quicker, which could mean more recycling bags! By skipping the recycling bin liners, it is 1. no longer not an expense I need to incur, and 2. a lot of plastic I avoid! – Greenvine Sustainable
Don’t neglect the environmental impact of clothing
Laundry accounts for 2/3 of the environmental impact of clothing and there are some easy ways to make your laundry greener: wash on cold, skip the dryer when possible, and use an eco-friendly laundry detergent such as Dropps. – Eco-Stylist
Encourage biodiversity at home
Your yard or garden plays an important role in maintaining (and increasing) biodiversity where you live. Du More™ for the environment by creating a habitat that can support local wildlife. Whether a large yard or patio garden, choose native, pollinator-friendly plants that don’t require much water to attract birds, butterflies, bees, and more! Dudek Habitat Restoration Project Manager John Minchin says “Go the extra mile by researching the local wildlife and adding features that provide a source of food and water, shelter, and a place to raise their young. – Dudek
Conserve water where you can
Whether you live in a dry state or not, water conservation is an eco-friendly practice that can be incorporated into everyday life. Keep a bucket in your shower to catch excess water, especially in those first couple minutes as the water heats up. If you have a garden, you can use that water to irrigate your garden (once it cools down). Similarly, rather than tossing pasta and broccoli water, let it cool down and use it to water the garden as well. – Junebugbayer
Composting is key
At Blue Earth Compost, we believe that food scraps are not waste, but a valuable resource that can be recycled into nutrient-rich soil for gardens and houseplants. You can compost in your own backyard by combining food scraps with grass clippings or leaves in the right ratio and turning over the pile every couple of weeks. If you live in an area with a composting service, like Blue Earth Compost, you can hire them to pick up your scraps and compost them for you. – Blue Earth Compost
Lettuce talk about composting! You can customize your composting system to fit your goals, how much space you have, and your current living conditions. It’s super important that you know what types of material can break down in your specific compost bin setup. Avoid composting any product that’s marketed as “plant-based plastic” or “biodegradable”. – Waste Free Earth
At Subpod, we believe the easiest way for people to incorporate sustainability and environmental awareness into their lives is by composting their food waste. The average person throws away 330lbs of food every year, which ends up contributing to methane emissions from landfills and fuelling the climate crisis. When you compost, your food waste becomes a rich fertilizer that can feed the soil and give you endless possibilities for your houseplants and garden. – Subpod
One way to help your local composter out is by removing any rubber bands, tags, bags and fruit stickers that come with purchasing produce, as they are not compostable and create problems. If composting isn’t available in your area, try saving your post-meal bones and vegetable scraps (potato peels, carrot ends, onion skins, celery tops, garlic shells, and more) for your own, homemade veggie stock! Simply store scraps in the freezer until you have about a gallon bag’s worth, then throw into a pot of boiling water for a few hours and strain. It’s delicious and gives food scraps a ‘second life’ before they make their way into the waste system. – Compost Manufacturing Alliance
Choose eco-friendly products
A great way that homeowners can incorporate sustainability is by slowly but surely shifting to a zero-waste home. We recommend starting in the bathroom, especially as a lot of plastic-free toiletry products are great to use while traveling, too. This can include eco-friendly options such as bamboo toothbrushes, toothpaste tablets stored in aluminum tins, solid shampoo and conditioner bars, charcoal floss in small glass jars, reusable makeup wipes, and more (don’t forget your recycled plastic toiletry bag and reef-safe sunscreen, too!). The benefit to having these stocked at home is that when you travel, you’re packing up less space, liquid, plastic, and waste – helping you be more sustainable both at home and on the go. – Yugen Earthside
Save energy by maximizing natural light
While Sustain.Life’s platform is primarily focused on helping businesses manage their environmental impact (you can sign up for a 30-day free trial to check it out), they offered some advice for homeowners looking to incorporate environmental sustainability, outside of the obvious. Especially with so many of us working from home, finding ways to cut our energy bills is extremely important. Flip the switch and open your blinds and curtains and move your workspace closer to windows and skylights. – Sustain.Life
Turn off non-essential lights in your home and office space at night. This will not only help you save energy but will also help migrating birds reach their destination! Many migrating birds navigate by relying on the stars in the night sky. Help them see more clearly by turning off your lights at night. – Wildlife Center
Get the whole community involved
Host a community compost hub. Don’t look at composting as merely a sustainable disposal of your scraps- look at it as an opportunity to connect with your neighborhood, your garden, and the billions of unseen organisms making our world a habitable place. By hosting community composting in my front yard I earn an income, teach environmental awareness, and build the health of my soil. – Food2Soil
Refer to your region’s specific recycling guidelines
Something many homeowners don’t realize is that recycling programs vary greatly from region to region, or even between different programs in the same city. Because of these differences, all of the recycling do’s and don’ts you read online may not apply to your home service. When in doubt, always refer back to the recycling guidelines communicated by your specific service provider. – Ecosystem Events
Vote!
If you care deeply about the environment, you need to vote in every local, state, and federal election. Who you vote for is always secret, but whether you cast a ballot or not is public record, so politicians always know which of their constituents vote and which do not vote. And, unsurprisingly, politicians don’t care about the priorities of non-voters. Simply put: be a voter – it’s one of the easiest things you can do for the environment. – Environmental Voter Project
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