What can I do? I’m only one person!

In fact, there are any number of ways that you can personally help to have a more environmentally friendly home and community as a side effect you will likely also experience an increase in your personal health and well being and possibly save some money at the same time!

Start today and choose 1 or 2 ideas from the list below that you can fit into your daily routine.  As your new habits become routine, check back and try out a few more.

Encourage your friends, family, co-workers and neighbors to choose 1 or 2 items of their own!

We are continually adding to our list of helpful green tips, if you have a tip of your own that you would like to share we would love to hear from you!

In the Car

• Use a small car which is practical to get around and has higher fuel efficiency.
• Check the tire pressure the first of every month to ensure it is still sound to save on petrol needs.
• Live as close to your work as possible to reduce your commute and travel emissions.
• Carpool to office with friends and colleagues who live around you.

In your Personal Life:

Buy only what you really need:

• Next time you want to buy something you don’t need, wait thirty days and then make the decision to avoid impulse buys.
• Create the habit of taking only what you need in every situation.
• When choosing an item, think about the amount of energy used to make it before making the purchasing decision.

Be responsible when throwing items in the trash:

• When dealing with hazardous waste (chemicals, paints, batteries), make sure you find out the proper place to dispose of them instead of adding them to the regular trash.
• Pass old clothes, books, shoes, electronics, and other household items to schools, orphanages and shelters in need.
• Send extra hangers to your local dry cleaners.
• Keep and reuse all your rubber bands, paper clips, boxes and packaging material.

Be Mindful of your Water consumption:

• If your clothes are clean, do not get them washed after wearing them just once.

Use as little fossil fuel energy as possible:

• Dress warmly when it is cold instead of using a heating device.
• Garments such as socks and undergarments do not need to be ironed, so save the energy.

Try to avoid unnecessary waste:

• Always carry a cloth bag with you to bring home any purchases.
• Plan ahead and combine all your errands into one trip to save on emissions.
• Carry your own coffee mugs to office. Avoid using disposable cups.
• Try not to litter or waste water or food.  Encourage others to do the same.
• Buy products with less packaging. For example: Always buy ice cream in a cone so as not to add to the garbage created from the spoon and cup.
• Do not accept free promotional materials that are being handed out with lots of
  packaging.
• Walk wherever possible, and find stores near your home to get the things you need.
• If you have a choice, look for items sold in glass jars or easily reusable materials rather than plastic.

Enjoy your local surroundings:

• Take nature trips to natural parks nearby, but remember to leave no traces and respect the environment.
• Discover new parts of your region rather than take holidays far from home.

Invest in Change

• Invest in renewable energy consumption, their market is growing at a time when many markets are unstable, and you are also helping to develop their scale and efficiency.

Green Celebrations

• Never release balloons outside, and avoid using them for outdoor events.
• Create innovative décor and cards from recycled materials for weddings and special occasions instead of high-energy consuming materials.
• At the next family gathering, ask for ten minutes to give a presentation about global warming and what needs to be done to mitigate it. Use the statistics and tips you have learned in this diary to give them ways to get involved.
• Ask for birthday presents to be eco-friendly and wrapped in old newspaper.
• Use LED lighting with light paper decoration around your house instead of bright
  burning lights.
• For the next festival you celebrate, avoid adding emissions to the air with fireworks.

Stay Informed:

• Ask your office to subscribe to Down To Earth and Sanctuary Asia magazines to find out more climate issues in India.
• Research information about climate change and keep reading the newspapers for latest studies and facts.
• Ask your favorite magazine and newspaper to offer more coverage of the green space.
• Call your local TV station and ask them to start covering stories related to climate change and the environment.
• Sign up for The Climate Project – Canada monthly newsletter and visit our website for updated information on Climate Change.
• Organize a screening of The Inconvenient Truth movie with your friends.
• Check the internet for a Carbon Calculator website so you are conscious of your
  carbon footprint.

In your Home:

Save Energy:

• Keep the window shades open to allow natural light so you can turn off some of the lights.
• Keep plants in your home to help moderate the temperature, air quality, and keep you naturally feeling cool.
• Outdoor lightblulbs can change to LEDs, which require even less energy than CFLs.
• Regularly cleaning the condenser coils found in the back or bottom of the refrigerator will maximize its efficiency.
• Keep the refrigerator away from heating appliances (ovens), windows and heating ducts.
• Check to make sure your refrigerator door seals when closes so that you don’t
  consume extra energy to keep things cool.When purchasing a home, ask the developer what energy saving principles they have implemented
• Keep your water heater on for 5-7 minutes only (and only when you really need warm
  water) as heating water takes a significant amount of energy.
• On cool evenings leave your windows open instead of switching on the AC.
• Turn off lights and fans when you leave a room.
• Completely shut down your TV and computer from the power point when you are not using it.
• Read through your energy bill and find out the amount of electricity you are consuming.
  Then make a goal to reduce your consumption by 5% next month, 5% the following month, and see how much lower you can go.

  
  

  
  

  • The money you save on your energy bill, use it to donate for green initiatives, or investing in a more energy efficient appliance at home.

• Implement solar thermal heating in your building and you will actually start saving money very quickly.
• Ask your building society to change the building and hall lights to LEDs and CFLs. CFLs will save up to 66% in energy consumption. LEDs require even less energy!
• Use task lighting; instead of brightly lighting an entire room, focus the light where you need it.

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

• The plastic bags you already have at home should be washed and reused.
• If you use toilet paper, stick to the bleach free ones that are made from recycled
  sources.

Conserve Water & Keep it Clean

• Wash dishes in a tub instead of under a running tap.
• Replace chemical cleaners with good old fashioned baking soda and vinegar and go for biodegradable dishwashing soap.
• Take short showers!
• Continue to take a bucket shower if it is your habit.
• Study your water bill and set goals to reduce your water consumption by 5% more
  every month for the next 6 months. See how low you can go.
• If there is a garden near your building, ask that the groundkeeper only water during the
  early morning or evening to avoid extra water needed to compensate evaporation.
• Leave grass clippings on top of a garden to act as a natural fertilizer.
• Fix a water leak as soon as you see one.
• When painting your home, use natural Indian paints and stick to lighter colors so that they compliment natural light coming in.
• Look into rainwater harvesting for your buildings water resource needs.

At the Dinner Table:

• Try and buy foods and goods that were produced locally.
• Stick to a vegetarian diet as much as possible. The consumption of livestock leads up to 18% of the world’s greenhouse gases.
  • If going vegetarian is to hard of a move at least try to avoid beef as this is the biggest contributor to green house gases.
  • If you must eat meat or fish, buy it from local sources and flavor it with local
  ingredients.
• Eat unprocessed and unpackaged food whenever possible.
• When ordering food in, ask in advance for them not to include the napkins and plastic utensils.
• Steam rather than boil vegetables to save 25% of water needed.
• Do not ask for a plastic bag from a shopkeeper if the items are few enough to carry by hand.
• Eat more raw vegetables which are healthier for you as well as saves on cooking energy
• Pack lunches in reusable lunch bags and washable containers instead of plastic wrap and bags.
• Reuse the water used to wash veggies and fruits for watering your plants.
• Heat the water in a kettle not in open pot.
• Use smaller pots for cooking small portions.
• If you need two cups water for tea fill your kettle with only two cups. A lot of energy will be wasted heating up a full kettle full of water.
• Instead of boiling water for drinking, buy a filter on the market that uses little or no energy to purify your water.
• Soak lentils and rice for several hours before cooking to reduce the time and gas needed to cook it.
• Allow hot food to cool off before putting it in the refrigerator.
• Do not put uncovered liquids in the refrigerator. The liquids give off vapours that add to the compressor workload.

Replace paper napkins in your home with cloth napkins.

In the Community:

• Plant a tree that is indigenous to the area where you plant it.
• Donate old eyeglasses to a nearby optometrist clinic.
• Write to your favorite actor, restaurant owner, hotel owner, movie theatre, or band and ask them to go green with you.
• Write to your local MP, ministers in the government, and police station, about why the environment is a priority for you and your vote.
• Support environmental organizations with your actions and funding.