5 Inexpensive Ways to Go Green
Going green is about more than buzzwords, purchasing a reusable grocery sack and railing against big corporations as the cause of global warming. It's about each individual taking small steps to improve our cities, our homes and ourselves by helping the environment and minimizing wasteful lifestyle choices. With minimal cost, we can all make small changes from how we buy groceries to letting a neighbor borrow a hedge trimmer. If going green is a priority for you, take a look at the suggestions below for some ideas.
1. Buy Used
From garages which no longer have enough room to park cars to storage units which costs $50 or more per month, we as consumers own a lot of merchandise. For most of us, there will be little reason to pay full price buying new products especially when it comes to items like sports and yard equipment. The Internet has made it easier than ever for consumers to buy used items at reasonable prices on sites like Craigslist.org and Freecycle.org. Buying used means keeping items out of landfills while saving money in the process.
2. Learn a Skill
When transitioning from a manufacturing society to one based on services, everyone started working for everyone else. Consumers no longer needed to learn basic skills like working on a vehicle, preparing taxes, baking a cake or anything else that we used to do for ourselves. While this is great for keeping unemployment low it also means we count on others which costs money and makes us dependent. If you have any interest in a particular skill which may also have an environmentally friendly aspect, embrace it fully. If more consumers learn how to sew then that would mean fewer garments tossed in landfills and less product shipped in from overseas.
3. Sharing is Caring
Sharing is about embracing a communal philosophy where we help each other out for the mere satisfaction of assisting others. There is little reason for every home have its own lawnmower over every individual to drive themselves to work. Working with others and borrowing each other's personal possessions limit what you need to purchase, especially for one-time use items. Carpooling is a perfect example which results in less wear and tear on your vehicle and fewer gasoline purchases saving money.
4. Convenience Costs
As a society, many of us have hectic lifestyles which means some value convenience over cost. The cost unfortunately is often more than just dollars and cents. As a result of convenience, many products contain wasteful and excessive packaging which immediately gets disposed of in landfills. Take a few minutes each day to re-evaluate your priorities and slow down. You may find that being a little less convenient makes for a more fulfilling existence.
5. Repurpose Items
Repurposing items can include everything from turning a bowling pin into a lamp or refinishing and modifying a bookcase to store shoes. Our individual creativity is the only limiting factor when taking what we already have and turning into something new. Watch as many TV shows and read as many books as you can to get new ideas for all the items you have stored in your garage or attic. Not only is it possible to satisfy needs you didn't know you had but it may lead to more uses for other items which means saving money and being creative at the same time.
