Four ways to live a greener life

eco friendly gardening

Finding ways to live our lives in a more environmentally responsible fashion is a priority for many.With 77% of Brits agreeing that climate change is a serious global threat, urgent action is a necessity wherever it can be done.

While the biggest changes must come from the companies that are responsible for a huge proportion
of the world’s carbon dioxide emissions,
personal efforts are also necessary to address
the issue. Here are just a few ways to be a little bit greener in your day-to-day life.

Shop sustainably

Making changes to your purchasing habits is a good place to start. Fast fashion – that is, trendy
clothing mass-produced at low cost to be delivered to stores before it falls out of trend – is a notable
polluter, and reducing demand for it by abstaining from spending your money on it is more than
worthwhile.
You’ll reduce your carbon footprint by making choices that don’t require long-distance shipping, like
shopping for pre-loved items and opting to buy from businesses that source their products locally.

Change your travel habits

Cars are a major source of CO₂ emissions so finding ways to reduce your reliance on them is a great
idea. When a journey could feasibly be made on public transport or by bicycle, instead of driving, do
it. If you do find yourself needing to drive a lot, looking into electric cars rather than petrol-fuelled
ones would be the greenest approach.
If you need a car at certain times of the year but not others, consider renting a car for those periods
rather than having one permanently.

Renewable energy

If you own your own home, consider switching to renewable energy sources to keep everything
running. This could mean everything from installing solar panels or air source heat pumps that can
power the whole property in more sustainable ways to replacing traditional incandescent light bulbs
with more energy-efficient alternatives like LED bulbs.

Waste production

As well as making sure to recycle responsibly, finding ways to reduce the amount of waste that you
send to landfill is an important part of striving for a greener lifestyle. Separate food waste so that
you can turn it into compost, for example, while remembering to bring reusable bags to the
supermarket so that you don’t have to repeatedly put fruit and vegetables into harmful plastic bags.
This can also extend to exploring new uses for items that you otherwise no longer need. T-shirt
grown too small or raggedy? Keep it on hand for the next time you need a cleaning rag. Got an old
piece of furniture you’d like to replace? Think about whether you could upcycle it into something
new with a little bit of care and attention.

Living a greener life is possible and being able to tick off small changes to your lifestyle will make you
feel proud of yourself. Where will you start?