7 Things You All Need to Do at Home to Save Our Environment

As the global climate crisis continues to rise, it’s time to think more seriously about ways to start living green and reduce your carbon footprint on the environment. Many of us are already becoming conscious of the impact we have on the environment, as climate change becomes more noticeable with each passing year. The future of the planet lies with you, so it’s essential to consider how you can change your lifestyle and become more eco-friendly in your daily living. This guide will give you tips that will guide you on how you can protect the environment while at home.

1. Use less energy

The impact you have on the environment while staying at home is primarily dependent on how much energy you use. The easiest way to become more energy-efficient is to limit your household’s consumption. A few things like using energy-efficient bulbs, turning off the lights when you’re not using them, and easing up on the air conditioning and water heater can make a huge difference in the amount of energy you use in your home.

Take advantage of your smart meter as well, which most energy suppliers from usave.co.uk/energy provide. You can use it to monitor your energy usage at home. Using a recent EPC certificate (Energy Performance Certificate) from your last inspection will also help you identify which appliances in your house are using more energy and where you can work to improve.

You can also consider using solar power for your home or switch to a green tariff, which ensures the renewable equivalent of your household consumption is given back to the national grid.

2. Re-use, recycle, and reduce

Recycling more and producing less waste will help you live more sustainably at home while helping the environment. By reducing waste and recycling as much as possible, you help reduce the formation of ash, which comes from when materials are incinerated at waste management plants, and therefore, save the world’s climate. When you recycle, it also reduces the need for the world to continue tapping into its natural resources to create new products.

Ensure that you use less plastic packaging and more recyclable materials, like aluminum and paper, to minimize the impact you and your household have on the growing plastic problem.

Choosing to use products that are made from compostable materials will reduce the waste you produce, and you can also dispose of such waste at home on your compost heap.

3. Support eco-friendly companies

More companies are changing priorities and creating environment-friendly initiatives. You can shop for sustainable and eco-friendly products, which is also another way of protecting the environment from home. Some companies make beautiful furniture, clothing, and household items from recyclable, sustainable materials, which enable you to save on waste when finished using them.

At the same time, you’ll also be supporting companies that ensure they limit their impact on the environment. Helping businesses create sustainable products and raising awareness ensures that their products become readily available to others.

4. Eat sustainably

The environmental cost of the food we eat is another crucial factor to consider on the road to living sustainably at home. The food we eat is responsible for about 30% of the greenhouse gas emissions globally, and if nothing is done, this number is likely to grow.

Growing your fruits and vegetables is an amazing way to reduce emissions produced from processing and transporting the food we eat, and provides a healthy organic alternative to store-bought convenience foods. You can create a small kitchen garden in your backyard, and use the waste from foods as manure for the fruits and vegetables. This will give you fresh and organic products straight from your kitchen garden.

Some people are also producing organically reared farm animals and food. You can source your food from such places if you can’t grow your own. Making small changes to your diet and including more fruits and vegetables, plus reducing dairy meat and salty foods is also a step in the right direction for living sustainably and protecting the environment.

5. Grow a wildlife-friendly garden

Making good use of your backyard for the benefit of wildlife will allow you to help the environment from your doorstep. Planting pollinator-friendly plants in your garden, letting some areas of your garden have longer grass, and using hedgerows instead of fencing for your borders around your home will create habitat and a safer passage for bugs, birds, and other small mammals.

Creating a compost pit where you can dispose of your organic waste also provides manure for your plants and flowers, plus a home for bugs.

6. Be travel-conscious

Your travel habits also have a huge impact on the environment, so finding a way to travel more efficiently is a plus. Limiting the times you use your car, like taking a walk when going shopping or traveling to short distances and using public transport or cycling, are ways to cut down on carbon emissions when traveling.

Manufacturers have also produced electric and hybrid cars to reduce the impact fuel-guzzling cars have on the environment. A range of eco-friendly schemes put in place by the government like cycle-to-work schemes also exists to support you financially in your decision to reduce emissions created when traveling.

7. Raise awareness

Raising awareness on environmental and climate issues, both locally and on a wider scale, will also inspire other people to live sustainable lives. You can also choose to volunteer at local groups on projects such as tree planting, collecting litter, or running a community garden, which are fun and inclusive ways to encourage green living among your neighbors.

Nationally, many charitable organizations support the conservation of the environment and wildlife. They solely rely on volunteers to carry out essential habitat work, such as the wildlife trust and the RSPB. Such organizations also run regional and national projects to encourage the public’s involvement.

If you take the initiative and follow the simple tips above, you’re already making a significant difference to the environment and your way of life.