Tipps for a sustainable lifestyle
Even small steps can be effective! For some people these tipps might be obvious, for others they could mean a change.
- Switch the light off, when you leave a room. And try to get multiple sockets for your lamps, chargers, etc. This will not only save the environment, but also you budget.
- Turn the water off while brushing your teeth. Think about it, what sense does it make to keep it running?
- Close the windows during winters when the heaters are running. Periodic ventilation is more effective!
- Check if you can reach your next destination with public transportation. Or even better: use your bicycle, your bum will be happy about this, too. Next time you’re traveling, find out if you can reach your goal by train instead of flying. Confucius says „the way is the true destination“.
- Try to reduce animal-based nutrients. You don’t need to be vegan, for some this can mean to cut on animal-based nutrients twice a week. It’s small steps that count!
- Waste seperation makes totally sense! Especially in Europe it is really easy to sort your wastes. And if you’re out on a walk and see some rubbish where it doesn’t belong, don’t ignore it and put it away. You might earn some Karma points!
- Reduce plastic: Do you really need that plastic bag for your veggies or can you bring a reusable jute bag to do your grocery shopping next time? Instead of buying water in plastic bottles, get a fancy glass or steel bottle for when you’re on the go. You can find some stylish bottles nowadays!
- Banish unnecessary disposable products from your day-to-day life. If you’re afraid to break that fancy porcelain during the next BBQ, try enamelled tableware. And if you’re having a bigger party, ask the catering service, if they can bring the dinnerware – this way you won’t even have to bother doing the dishes afterwards. At home you can easily use cups and tins instead of wrapping everything in plastic.
- We all like a little beauty treatment! But now and then it makes sense to check your cosmetic’s ingredients. It’s also really easy to replace some of your creams by natural oils. And did you know that many sunscreens dissolve in the ocean during a bath and damage the eco system of our oceans? There are special sunscreens, which are environmentally friendly, and let’s be honest: that’s much nicer for your skin, too!
- Be reasonable while shopping your groceries: how much food do you buy and forget in your fridge? Don’t do grocery shopping with an empty stomach and plan beforehand, what you really need instead of filling the shopping cart to the top. The most sustainable way would be to go to your local market to buy grocery free from packaging from the local farmers.
- Save paper: use misprints for your notes in between and swap from normal toilet paper to recycled toilet paper. So many trees are cut everyday only for toilet paper, you wouldn’t believe!
- You can save energy while cooking: in most cases you don’t really need to preheat the oven and maybe you’ll come up with ideas to use the after heat of the oven. Use a pressure cooker more often, as it is using energy more efficiently as usual cooking pots and it will get you filled even quicker. And when you want to keep your coffee warm, use a thermos instead of using the heating function of the coffee machine.
- Go check out second hand and vintage shops instead of buying everything new. When you’re bored of your stuff, pass it on to someone else – you might make somebody really happy. Even books and children’s clothes can be traded easily.
- Avoid food waste and try to make a food plan once in a week. Leftovers are perfect for lunch the next day and you can easily pimp them with a few more ingredients.