Rapid population growth worldwide has led to increased manufacturing and farming. We’re grappling with numerous issues caused by increased greenhouse gas emissions, deforestation, and unsustainable energy use. We cannot ignore the distress caused by humankind to the environment any longer. Whether it’s record-breaking wildfires or the enormous amounts of plastic disposed of in the ocean, it’s all quite disheartening. We must start thinking about what we do daily that creates waste and add to the problem.

If you’re all geared up to make a significant impact on environmental sustainability and revive the only currently known livable planet’s condition, here are some small changes you can make in your office, home, diet, and more. If we all chip in, these small habitual changes can really make a vast difference in environmental sustainability. But first, let’s learn a few things about sustainable living and its importance.

What’s Sustainable Living? Why is it Important?

 

Environmental sustainability is based on the concept that the rates of pollution assimilation and non-renewable plus renewable resource depletion can be maintained naturally indefinitely. The UN World Commission on Environment and Development defines sustainability as behaviors that ensure future generations will have enough natural resources to maintain the quality of life that’s at least equal to, if not better than, that of current generations.

Sustainable living implies the need to reduce excessive use of the earth’s scarce resources to help protect the environment, living things, wildlife, humans, and the planet in general. The concept revolves around the development of goods, services, and products without compromising the ability of future generations to fulfill their needs while simultaneously meeting the needs of present generations and replacing the resources being consumed.

If resource depletion goes unchecked, the world risks a global energy crisis, food crisis, and an increase in greenhouse gases leading to the global warming crisis. The goal is to balance the use of natural resources to ensure we don’t risk economic and technological advancement. Making small changes to our lifestyles can help tackle these issues and reduce our carbon footprint. Let’s dive in to learn how we can help our planet revive and thrive.

Habit #1- Shutting Off Water When Not Needed

Conserving water is important, especially when the ever-growing population’s demands are putting increased pressure on the nation’s water resources. While the recommended amount of time to wash hands is up to 20 seconds, it’s always best to turn the faucet off when you’re scrubbing your hands outside the water. Open it when you need to rinse rather than leaving it on when walking all the way to the paper towel holder, waiting for it to dispense, drying the hands, and then walking back to turn it off.

Research reveals that an average of 13.6 gallons of water are wasted daily by a single person who leaves the water running while brushing teeth, washing hands, and more. You can conserve water by fixing leaky toilets, taking shorter showers, and opting for low-water and low-flow appliance options. Consider getting drought-adapted plants for your landscaping. They require less maintenance and water and are excellent habitats and food for bees and birds.

Habit #2- Think Twice Before Shopping

While reduce, reuse, and recycle seems retro, it’s probably much more important today than when the phrase was coined. Each purchase we make has an environmental footprint, from the materials used for manufacturing to the pollution it emits during production and the packaging that eventually ends up in landfills. Always ask yourself twice whether you really need something before buying. If you do, consider buying sustainable, gently used items instead of new ones or look for eco-conscious products online with minimal or biodegradable packaging and shipping.

 

 

Habit #3- Recycle, Recycle, and Recycle

According to statistics, recycling even half of the total garbage produced can help reduce polluted gas and CO2 emissions in the atmosphere by over 240 kilograms per year. As ordinary as it may seem, recycling prevents pollution, saves energy, and reduces the need for harvesting new raw materials. It’s also a great way of saving money while simultaneously reducing the amount of waste that ends up in landfills. Buying and teaching new generations to invest in eco-friendly recycled products allows the products to be used to their fullest extent.

Habit #4- Switch Your Lightbulbs

This tip will not only help the environment but also save you money. Switch your lightbulbs from traditional incandescent bulbs to CFLs (Compact Fluorescent Lightbulbs) will help make your office or household more energy-efficient, leading to significant money being saved on monthly bills. The initial investment is higher, but you’ll not be required to change your bulbs as often, so they’re definitely worth the investment. Estimates indicate that if each household replaces one lightbulb, the pollution reduction could be equivalent to removing a million cars from the roads.

Additionally, beware of phantom load, i.e., energy leakage, when the appliances or electronics in your home or office aren’t in use. Tons of energy is wasted when they’re on standby or plugged in. Something as simple as turning the power strip off and unplugging chargers when not in use could help make a significant impact.

 

 

Habit #5- Don’t Waste food

Don’t throw leftover food waste away. Consider saving them for your tea or lunch the next day or freezing them for future use. You can also look into making donations to homeless people or charitable organizations that serve the needy. However, if food waste goes off, use it to create compost for your garden. You can get a food waste composting machine for your home from an environmentally conscious biodegradable products store like TP Green after browsing the variety of home food waste composters to find one that suits your budget and needs.

Habit #6- Go Plastic-Free

Thousands of tons of plastic can be found swirling in the world’s ocean surfaces today. Every year, countless innocent sea seals, turtles, seabirds, and other marine mammals are killed after getting tangled up or ingesting toxic plastic waste. Switch to sustainable coffee cups, reusable dinnerware and tableware, ditch single-use water bottles, straws, and bags. You can vow to shop at places offering unwrapped produce, use eco-friendly reusable bags, and generally avoid products made from or packaged in toxic plastic as much as possible.

 

 

Get Eco-Conscious Products Online at TP Green: The One-Stop Biodegradable Products Store

Individual efforts can contribute to the environment positively by reducing carbon footprint collectively. Anyone looking to play their part can check out the eco-friendly recycled products offered by TP Green. The biodegradable products store offers innovative, chic, sustainable, compostable, and eco-conscious products online under one roof.

You can buy non-toxic tableware and non-plastic disposable products like candle care kits,  eco-friendly grocery bags, disposable bin liners, and home food composting machines. It’s a reliable place if you’re looking to order bamboo cutlery, the best essential oil burners, sustainable porcelain dinnerware, palm leaf plates, and other items to bring a change to the world.

Choosing sustainable options not only has a great impact on the environment but also on your life. Brands like TP Green play their role in enabling people to make good choices. All of their products are perfect for reusing for a long time. All you have to do is take care of them a little.

Make sustainable choices today for a better tomorrow. Shop from their store or contact them for any queries.

About the Author

The author has decades’ worth of experience in the field and is dedicated to spreading awareness and encouraging people to make sustainable choices. They’re a firm supporter of reusable, compostable, and biodegradable products. The pro-environmentalist writes for TP Green regularly and researches different industries to introduce innovative ideas for sustainable living.