I know, I know. You already recycle and avoid straws, and still, saving the world sounds like a whole lotta pressure! I mean, we’ve all got a lot of other stuff to worry about — like building our careers and figuring out which restaurant to book tonight. But still, as caring people we def want to help. We just don’t want it to use up too much of our already tight schedule. Is that really too much to ask??
For those of us who are (currently) too busy to carve out volunteer-time, here are 5 effective ways to help save the planet, and give the next generation a better future:
GET CLEAN
US electrical power is largely generated by fossil fuels (coal, oil and natural gas — all terrible polluters and big contributors to climate change). Thankfully, most people have the option of switching from dirty energy to clean, renewable sources. It’s easy! Just check out Arcadia Power. We used them to switch from dirty to clean energy and with 5 minutes of effort it dramatically reduced our carbon footprint while keeping our bills roughly the same.
FREE MONEY!
Ok, I thought that’d get your attention. I’ll tell you how to get free coin, but it’s not for you to spend on another pair of pumps. It’s for you to donate. Here’s how it works: Sign up for a free hybrid checking/savings account at Radius Bank, and start earning interest on the money in your bank account. Unlike most other banks, which slowly drain your accounts via this-and-that fees, Radius puts money into your account by paying you 17x the national interest rate on checking accounts. At the end of the year, you can see how much interest you’ve earned and donate that amount to a charity aimed at helping save the planet.
MAKE A QUICK PHONE CALL (OR THREE)
One of the most effective ways to create change is to call politicians. They assume that for every phone call they receive, there are hundreds of their constituents who feel the same way but didn’t take the time to call. They know that getting re-elected means that they need to listen to what people like you want. Call and tell them!
Bringing change to environmental policies may require regulation combined with proper enforcement, or economic incentives like rewarding companies that focus on sustainability and organic products, instead of giving taxpayer subsidies to high-polluting corporations in oil and factory-farmed agriculture. Either way, widespread support is essential to get these politicians to act.
THINK BEFORE YOU BUY
Do you really need that extra pair of black boots? Probably not. Would the veggie burger be a better option than the beef burger? Definitely. After all, eating one less burger a week is the same as taking your car off of the road for 320 miles, and skipping steak for a week is the equivalent of not driving for almost 3 months! Forgoing meat also saves all of the resources that go into maintaining livestock. The world’s cows eat enough to feed 9 billion people. Approximately, 70% of deforestation of the Amazon is to provide land for cattle ranches and producing an 8 oz steak requires 900 gallons of water.
The biggest intervention people could make towards reducing their carbon footprints would not be to abandon cars, but to eat significantly less meat and dairy.
Every purchase you make has a cost to the planet, animals, and other people (including your future children!) Making the responsible choice gets easier the more you do it. Here are 5 ways to make ethical fashion choices, and this is why what you eat matters to the future of this planet. And since the oceans will have no fish left in them by 2050 if we don’t start making more sustainable choices, bust out the Seafood Watch app before you order to get a handle on which are the most responsible choices.
SELL OR DONATE, DON’T TOSS
Way too much furniture, clothing and appliances are tossed out in favor of something new. That’s all stuff that could be repaired or could prevent someone else from buying something new. Not to mention, well, the landfills (ie. the ocean!)
When my husband and I decided to try life in Europe, we donated all our furniture to charity. It saved us a lot of time and gave us a nice tax write-off. When I clean out my closet, I give the stuff I don’t want to charity. It takes a little more effort, but not much, and it makes me feel good to know that it’ll have another life with someone else.
This is by no means an exhaustive list, but the most important thing to remember is that every choice you make has a direct impact on the planet and its inhabitants.
This isn’t even about helping the environment. You just want to promote. We all know how this works.
My wife and I have been loving Radius for a year now. We really like the fact that it helps us be transparent with the outgoing and incoming money. Mint.com helps a lot too.
We shouldn’t be selfish when it comes to our environment. If there was anyone who destroyed it, it was all of us. You probably think that it’s not directly you who is at fault, but you’re wrong. Just like what the article said, our choices are the ones that lead to this destruction. We use things that lead to manufacturers produce more of it for the sake of sales and providing the public for what we demand. There’s no point in pointing fingers, but I just wanted all of you to know that our decisions really have weight on the planet.
I agree that disregarding the fact that we need to help the environment NOW is an act of selfishness.
When Urbanette said this way easy, it really is. There should be no excuses for any of us now, even the busy bees!
People, you should all just download all these apps on your phone or at least save the website. These are the least that you can do to save the environment even with your busy schedules. Just in case most of you are forgetting, this is the only planet that we have and it’s destruction will lead to our extinction. It’s not a house that you can just easily renovate by purchasing materials at your nearest home depot. This planet will take ages for it to heal itself and it won’t do it on its own without our help. Be responsible!!!
There! Nobody could have said it better. I don’t get why people say they’re too busy to help the environment. Well, all that sh*t you earned will go extinct if you don’t start doing something for the planet as early as now.
Actually, this list isn’t even exhaustive. Personally, I would love to do all of this just for the environment. I didn’t even think that I can help like this and it never crossed my mind. I know that it’s not a good thing that we don’t take responsibility of our actions, but I’m willing to do all of this.
I don’t even like meat and dairy anymore. I’ve actually influenced my friends to go vegan because they said it’s easier for them to do it if they have their friends to do it with. I think that’s very true because we can all eat vegan options in a restaurant and not feel bad about it.
Wow, I can’t believe that 8oz of steak requires 900 gallons of water. That is seriously too much. I can’t imagine how much energy and water it could take to raise an entire farm. No wonder a lot of people are switching lifestyles. I also read an article before about how much carbon dioxide is also released to the air because of these animals that farms usualyl overpopulate so they can produce more meat and other goods. Not only is it not sustainable, it’s also not good for the environment.
Yeah, it blew my mind when I first found out too. I wish there was a way to let everyone know, and make it uncool to eat animal products. It’s destroying the planet (not to mention, really cruel).
Been using Radius as Urbanette’s suggestion and it’s great so far. It’s very hassle free and it’s like an all around app for budgets, savings and investment. It’s really cool actually because my other banks don’t even offer something like this.?
I love eating seafood and that seafood app is very helpful. I don’t want to end up making the planet worse just because I eat seafood that isn’t harvested in a sustainable way.