G is for Green and we’re going green today. It is week two of the #AtoZChallenge and I must say I am loving it! What seemed rather exhausting initially feels like fun now. May I express my love and Gratitude to all you wonderful readers who’ve visited, commented and encouraged? Thank you!
April 22 is Earth Day and what better time than to talk about going green now!
Going Green
Going Green is the need of the hour to make sure we leave a planet for the future generations to live in. It is a long and winding road fraught with hitches before we get there. I was recently doing some research for a client to write about environmental sustainability and was shocked to find some facts. I know we’re going downhill with our collective lifestyles when it comes to saving the planet, but this was too much.
The solution to this problem is going green. Here are seven easy ways to start right now: (G is the seventh letter of the alphabet – I just realized!)
Go local
Buy from the local market which sells locally grown produce. This is more eco-friendly and involves less transportation. I was horrified to read that coffee often has a big carbon footprint considering the distance it has to travel by the time we pour it into our coffee cup. I felt just a bit relieved to think we live near the plantations from where we get our coffee. Phew! And I also cut down to two cups a day.
Watch that packaging
These days, most of the supermarkets that were way too generous with their plastic bags have stopped issuing them for free. Instead they charge a nominal amount for a bag. But this is not a solution. A better way of going green is to carry your own reusable bag. Remember how we used to, a couple of decades ago? Those days, our local grocery shops always packed in newspaper or brown paper bags. Why not get back to that? Get a smart tote bag – you’ll be going green even as you add to your style!
Cut down on bottled water
All those plastic bottles. Enough said. Even if plastic bottles are recycled, not all are. It is so sad. to see them lying around every where.
Saving energy around the house
Some easy ways to save energy around the house:
- Change your light bulbs to CFL or compact florescent light bulbs which save 75% energy.
- To save on cooking fuel, I plan and use my pressure cooker to cook, so that what remains to be done only takes ten minutes.
- Like your food hot? Use a hot pack rather than reheat.
- Switch off lights, fans and other gadgets when not in use.
- Make it a point to switch everything off when you leave the room.
- Unplug after you switch off. Leaving that plug in your plug point consumes energy.
- When you go out, ensure all lights and other fixtures are off and water taps are closed
- Fix leaky taps and faulty electrical points
- Use appliances only when necessary
- Cut down on disposables and go for reusables or recyclable.
- Don’t print it if you don’t need it
There are so many more ways for going green.
Try window shopping when you want to shop
One of the best ways you can practice going green is to only buy what you need. If it is a want, try window shopping. Think hard: do you really need it? Impulse buying has a way of adding to your carbon footprint. So be conscious about your spending and save money in the process. Why feel guilty later? And hey, carpool when you go out!
Enjoy time with family and friends
This is a great going green method and a personal favorite. Cooking for larger groups saves time and energy, while letting you enjoy priceless moments with those you love. Walk, don’t ride! Enjoy nature.
Finally, the three Rs – Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
Buy less. Reuse what you have. Fix that which is fixable and usable. There are so many ways to make wealth out of waste. Follow the rules when it comes to segregation in garbage disposal. Rather than throw away something in good condition, donate. It is also a good way to stay clutter free. Check out the Freecycle network in your area to give away stuff you don’t need.
“Going Green”
Vidur’s painting featured in IISc Calendar 2011 for November
Here is a quick round up of last week’s posts from A to F for the #AtoZChallenge
C for Coffee Quotes, Notes and Memories
E for Eleven Easy Ways to Elevate Energy Levels
F for Folktales From Around The World
And Today, I recommend
Shilpa Garg’s G is for….Go Green
Rhonda Albom’s Greek Gods Get Respect
Question for you:
What are your tips for going green?
******
35 comments
Our second ponder on “Going green” for the day!- Reinstates the fact that we really need to go the green way for our own good! 🙂 Loved the illustration by Vidur – looks like a family of talents. Cheers – Laxmi
Great post Vidya. We take so much for granted and forget about poor Mother Earth who nourishes us every moment of every day. Love Vidur’s paining.
Suzy recently posted…UBC 8 – AtoZ – Gratitude
Between your post and Shilpa’s we have a wealth of ideas to go truly green!
Corinne Rodrigues recently posted…Goa Rediscovered: Ferry Crossing
Love it that you and Shilpa picked up the same theme! Great tips; thank you, Vidya!
Roshni recently posted…Blogging from A to Z April Challenge: G is for….
Wonderful ideas Vidya. Par coffee? Ab relocate kaise karoon? Electricity consumption we are very careful about. Window shopping I love. Need to work more on reuse and recycle, as much as I am trying.
Love the bit of sharing posts too!
Vidya , even as I write this , I have switched off the light and drawn the curtain to let the the sunshine in . I have to confess I was not so idealistic as you when it came to conserving power. I had to take a reality check when once my electricity bill crossed 3000 bucks . Thanks to my elder one who is “the switch monitor”, now the bills have come down to 800. That aprt loved this post for its simplicity statement. Excesses of any sort lead to waste and I will surely follow all these tips from now on 🙂
sridevi recently posted…G is for Gratitude
first time here and what a wonderful and thought provoking post… I just read Shilpa’s post on the same ! 😀 and now we have another set of ideas to refer 1 😀
hitchy recently posted…A for Almonds
Some fabulous tips here, Vidya! True, taking the smallest of steps like changing the way we clean our homes, switching off all lights when not in use or conserving water or reusing things can make a big difference. Going green is a way to change the future! Thanks a lot, Vidya for sharing my post here. Have done the same on my blog!! 🙂
Shilpa Garg recently posted…G is for… Go Green
Dropped here directly after shilpas post
I follow many tips u mentioned .
I didn’t know that u gotta unplug the wire too !!
Ya in malls they offer bags for a price
Should carry a cloth bag to even those places to avoid the plastic clutter 🙁
Was thinking about this just yest when u bought some thing in forum value mall 🙂
Great post vidya
I meant when I bought some thing 😉
Good day
There is certainly no dearth of ideas on going green. Love the post a lot. Noting them down in head 😀 [No prints any more]
Pallavi Purani recently posted…G is for Gratitude
oh vidur’s illustration is outstanding- totally wonderful post; coffee leaves more carbon footprints- duh; more reasons to switch to moew heaallthy drinks .loved this vidya 🙂
Priya Sreeram recently posted…Good God !
So much agree with you. Good that a lot of us are thinking and believing in go green.
I have been a follower and replaced all bulbs at my home with CFL and still I ensure that I use one light at a time unless required.
Ekta Khetan recently posted…The Grasshopper experiment!
Switching over to renewable energy systems for generating power, using electric cars that run on renewable power, LED lights that can be powered by solar panels/micro-wind turbines are all additional ways to go green. Thanks for mentioning about the freecycle network. I will have a look at their site.
So many fabulous tips in your gentle manner! And how amazing when I read Shilpa’s post earlier today.
Rachna recently posted…The tantrumy brat!
Brilliant post once again Vidya. Here is so much to take home and it doesn’t take much to apply them in life.
Preetilata recently posted…Giving up?
Fantastic tips !
We reuse the non drinkable water from Aquaguard to water our plants or n washing machines. I always carry a cloth bag with me and we dont use Post its .. we use the blank sides or used envelopes or paper as memo pads:P
Ruchira recently posted…G is for Ganges !
Another super and timely article, Vidya.
Regarding the problem with plastics, tons of it end up in the seas – where they are broken down by wave action, the sun and the wind – into their toxic components which get ingested by all manner of sea creatures (not just fish) thereby adversely affecting the food chain. There are colossal collections (gyres) of plastics, one the size of Texas, that float permanently on the oceans – a sad reflection of the debasement of the planet wrought by homo sapiens. With world population set to reach at least 9 billion by 2050, we will need to produce as much food in the next 40 years (to satisfy all these extra people) as we have managed in the previous 8000 – and this on its own will negate almost all of the green measures that we rather belatedly have realised we need to adopt. This, I’m afraid is the stark reality that many would rather not acknowledge.
Chandra Senan
We always carry the jute bags whenever we go out shopping groceries and perishables. More than anyone in the house, my dad is very particular about switching off the lights and fans that are not in use that moment.
I think slowly we all are getting aware of the small steps that we can take at our levels to help the environment. A lot of ground to cover up for sure.
Very doable steps Vidya!
Hi Vidya,
Great reminders here about going green! We are already doing some of these things. Thanks for the nudge back to the Farmer’s Market – good people to support growing great local produce.
What would I add? I can’t think of a thing! You’ve covered it so well!
Lori
Lori Gosselin recently posted…What Are Your Favourite Things?
Great post. I follow many of them and will now remember to follow the rest too. Hmm,the plug has to come off too?Noted.
I love how you share posts from others. Good going.
Great painting from Vidur.
Shail recently posted…G for Ginger Cats
I do try within my limits to do whatever I can towards the 3 R’s…but, the mentality of the people in general should change.
Very informative post Vidya.
Vidur’s painting was great. Appreciations to him.
The one concept that STUCK with me (and I do try to adhere to it) is to not buy more than you need, and need is the operative word here, not want! Also re-cycling has caught on in a big way at least in Chennai. That’s nice.
Great post V!
Wonderful topic Vidya! We follow those same philosophies in our home – especially buying local (most of our food is from our wonderful area farmers) It’s funny, my post today was about Gaia, mother earth:) *great minds think alike*
Cheers!
Sam
WriterlySam
Sam recently posted…Gaia (The Essence of Memory Part 6)
These are great tips for going green or saving our planet. When it came to the brown paper bages, we use to use them for garbage bages also. As for the plastic water bottles. This is a total waste of money had space. To me this is just plan lazy. There is nothing better than a cool glass of tap water with a little ice in it.
Lets all use these tips and save the planet. Thank Vidya for waking up everyone.
Debbie
Debbie recently posted…How To Ask For Help (Even If It Scares The Crap Out Of You!)
Yes, wonderful tips. And I enjoyed the last post on the Batu caves. Always love your cultural/faith/photo posts!!
Galen Pearl recently posted…Being a Blessing
So many wonderful suggestions and tips. We do many of the things here. This is a great reminder we should do more. Thanks for the feature and I am glad you enjoyed my post.
Rhonda @Laugh-Quotes.com
AtoZ #41
Rhonda @Laugh Quotes recently posted…How To Be A Good House Guest (AtoZ Travel Tips)
I hardly carry any plastic bags for shopping. I use a newspaper on the kitchen slab whenever I am cooking. This saves time in cleaning. I use this newspaper for a week and then I use the same newspaper in my dustbin instead of a plastic cover. I also reuse all the plastic covers that I get when I buy rice and other dals to put in waste (liquid types).
I follow almost all these. I brought my Mum a nice jute bag for her veggies shopping and she carries it around. Also, I like the look on supermarket clerks’ faces when I buy a bunch of goods and brandish my own bag 😛
India should take up waste segregation seriously, there could be a lot of employment generated, not to mention the recycling that can be done.
Nandana recently posted…God! I’m out of topics.
Hi VIdya,
Great reminders here. We’re at the beach right now and took a walk this morning where my husband filled up a bag with trash left on the beach. Hopefully one day everyone will leave a place cleaner than they found it. When we all do our part, our planet will thank us!
The problem with people is – they only care about their own personal space! Anything outside that doesn’t count, Cathy. You are right – hopefully the responsibility will spread and make the world a better place! I can see our planet groaning!
Vidya-
You’ve got my attention when you’re discussing going green. You offer some great ideas here. The 3Rs are one of my favorites – Reduce, Re-use, Recycle. If each of us followed that slogan, can you imagine how different the world would be?? xxoo-Fran
I love the three R’s too, Fran – I grew up with those!. I wish more people believed in it!
Go Green and Save Green with a Hand Held Bidet Sprayer. The easiest and best thing you can do. Ideal for apartments also because it requires no additional plumbing or electrical work so you can take it with you when you move and still get your security deposit back! The Bidet Sprayer will pay for itself many times over in toilet paper savings which makes this a very smart and green thing to do. Oh and did I mention the best part; superior, refreshing hygiene! Available at http://www.bathroomsprayers.com .
Thank you, David!