How do I reduce my footprint on this earth? It's time I start living that way all the time rather than looking to others (though more and more I am finding that people are making the switch in part due to An Inconvenient Truth and other great Green organizations) Always seeking inspiration I decided maybe as parents, we need to be the inspiration.Here's what our family does:
-Buy local
-Buy organic
-compost
-converting to CF lightbulbs
-grow some of our own veggies
-use cloth diaper and cloth wipes
-breastfeed and advocate for clearing the chemicals out of breastmilk
-involved in local, state and fed. politics to cut carbon emissions 80% by 2050
-converting to cloth tissues, cloth paper towels
-buy sustainable wooden toys
-cutting out plastic use as much as possible
-use cloth grocery bags -buy grains, nuts, etc. in bulk and bring my own containers to reduce packaging waste
-shop at our local food co-op -get veggies from a CSA (community supported agriculture)
-avoid big box store when possible and shop at local small businesses (though this is hard because choices are less and less)
-shop at thrift stores, buy second-hand
-walk/bike to get places when possible
-saving for a Hybrid!!
-recycle
Still need to work on:
-reducing water usage by taking shorter showers (that aren't as hot! But I love hot showers!)
-not flushing every time (when i was in college, I visited a place that had a sign in the bathroom that said each flush uses 3-6 gallons of water so 'if it's yellow, let it mellow, if it's brown, flush it down!'
-using grey water (left over water from washing dishes) to water plants
-taking the bus more for local trips to the store
-car pooling
All around me, industries, businesses, hospitals, schools, etc. are producing so much waste, using so much water, eating non-local, non-organic foods, consuming more and more and more stuff, and WE think we are making a difference? Oh, it can be so overwhelming and disappointing, but that's not why I am here. I am here to show what CAN be done and to be hopeful about the future while also being realistic about our impact on this earth. Maybe someone, somewhere will get inspired.
If moms and dads, grandparents and other people who love kids and care about the generations to come began to work together to live more sustainably and to demand that our communities do to, I believe we can change the tides of consumerism and waste and leave a planet worth inheriting.
