Ideas for making green lifestyle decisions.

It’s hard not to think about the effect our lifestyle has on the environment. We hear the call to live a greener lifestyle every day. But where to start?

Going green isn’t as hard or expensive as you might think. Even small changes can have a big impact on improving our environmental footprint. Here are four tips to get you started:

Eating locally grown food will not only have a positive impact on your health but will help to reduce your carbon footprint. Pesticides and chemical fertilizers add contaminants to the earth but also require a lot of fossil fuel to produce and distribute. Look for farmers’ markets or food co-ops in your area.

Picking up a few groceries on your way home? Use a fabric shopping bag. Grabbing a coffee on your way to work? Fill up a travel mug. It will even keep your coffee warm for longer. Bringing your lunch to work? Ditch the sandwich bags and pull out the Tupperware. All these small changes will help to reduce the amount of waste that ends up in landfills.

Most household cleaners contain harsh and often toxic chemicals. They might make your house smell clean but inhaling them could potentially be harmful. They also end up in the water supply, once they are rinsed down the drain, and negatively impact the aquatic ecosystem. Look for products that are green certified by a reliable third party or that are non-toxic and biodegradable.

It takes a huge amount of fossil fuel to make and transport plastic water bottles and most of them are never recycled. This means that they end up in landfills and as litter in rivers and oceans. Invest in a reusable bottle and carry it with you. You will not only reduce the amount of waste but you’ll also save some money at the same time.

The green movement has given rise to a huge assortment of eco-friendly products and services to make a transition to a more environmentally friendly lifestyle even easier. With just a few small changes to your daily routine, you can have a positive impact on the world around you.