Top 10: Smart & Easy Ways to Green Living

When put into context, the concept of conservation and living green becomes personal. It’s hard to not think about what we can do to save ourselves. In the interest of saving life on Earth and ourselves, we’ve compiled 10 ways to live greener that are low impact on your and potentially high impact of the “global crisis”.

10. Stop Painting Your Home

Paint is toxic to its core, think of it as liquid Satan. We’re not just talking about just lead paint either; try ALL paint. Even paint that is “properly disposed of” really has nowhere to go and has an impact on the environment. How about vinyl siding on the exterior and recycled wallpaper inside? Why not? These options also have the added plus of saving you some money as well as add to the value of your home.

Print ad by WWF to increase awareness of paint pollution

9. Get House Plants

They’re nice to have and make great pets. Houseplants help clean the air in your home just a little bit, but if everyone owned about a half dozen or so? This won’t solve the world’s cO2 issues, but it wouldn’t hurt and anything that produces oxygen and reduces carbon is a help. Besides, no one has ever had to walk a fern at 3 am, think about that.

An innovative example of a house plant: the wall plant. Purchase here.

8. Make Your Toilet Flush Less

Cutting down on water consumption is another way to help live a greener life. Not bathing is a bad option as it forces people around you to live green in ways they didn’t want to, especially in enclosed spaces. Showers are better than baths and use less water. Use as much water as you need for the task at hand and consider toilets with less gallons per flush (gpf) or liters per flush (lpf). Read more on how to convert you toilet to a low flush toilet.

The eco-friendly low-flush crapper.

7. Cook Organic Food

Sometimes it’s better and sometimes it’s not. Organic food is a little more expensive that “treated” food because not as many people buy it. The fact of the matter is the more organic food that is bought, the higher the demand and the bigger the market. Once the market increases, competition takes place and prices go down. More organic food being grown means less pesticides being used.

Our favorite online marketplace of natural and organic products: WholeFoodsMarket.com.

6. Buy an e-Bike

While for a lot of us it’s not practical to ride a bike to work every day, how about to the local market or to a friend’s house? Riding a bike is good for you and reduces carbon monoxide. It also saves you money in the long run since you do not have to buy fuel. For those who have electric cars this will also lower your electric bill somewhat.

Discard the old lady in the picture. Schwinn’s electric bikes fit any age.

5. Throw a Party

To heighten awareness, prepare an all organic dinner party and invite your local friends to come over and enjoy the fun! Themed parties like these will help your friends to better understand green living and might just start a trend. Just make sure you’re a good cook!

Without perhaps the chicken. Check out these recipes that will surely entertain your guests.

4. Do Some Backyard Gardening

Use what space you have in your backyard or apartment balcony to make a nice garden. Not only is this pleasant to look at but will provide useful birds and insects a good haven. Birds are responsible for a majority of plant transposition while insects provide pollination. See how this helps some?

Follow the example of Beth and Jim Paluch at Leroy Township in Cleveland, Ohio, and make your own little paradise.

3. Set Free the Farmer Within

Along the same lines as a flower garden but with the benefits of fresh fruits and vegetables, try growing your own food as well. Nothing tastes better than tomatoes fresh off the vine or freshly cropped corn. The added benefits are a delicious plus. Just remember to think organic when you are trying to keep away unwanted guests – meaning insects and animals, not the people showing up to get free peppers.

Inherit the old farmer tradition, but stay clear of the inbreeding and banjo playing.

2. Wood? Wood Schmood! Get A Natural Gas Fireplace

Wood burning fireplaces add to the ambiance of any home. But the carbon monoxide of wood burning is a bad thing. Installing a natural gas system in place of burning wood or fossil fuels will reduce carbon emissions and take that woody smell out of your home as well. That’s two birds with one stone. Not literally, we’re about living green, remember? Natural Gas Fireplace FAQ’s

Do your chimney sweeper a favor.

For those of you who think recycling means riding a bike twice,  get a clue. Recycling saves us all a lot of trouble and is a huge thing we can all do with very low impact. It’s as simple as having more than one trash bin and using them as you go. How anyone could possible feel this is obtrusive is ludicrous. Locate your nearest recycling center and set off an hour every Sunday afternoon to drop off paper, plastic, metal, electronics and glas. If everyone recycled, a large chunk of our eco-problems would be solved on the spot.

Find a recycling center near you and learn how to recycle at Earth911.com.

Any other suggestions? You know what to do.