Caring for the planet in 2022 doesn’t need to be hard or expensive. Making small but conscious decisions can add up to a larger impact than you think. We’ve made it even easier by compiling a list of our favourite eco-friendly lifestyle changes for you to kickstart or refine your sustainable life.
1. Reduce Food Waste
Around a third of the world’s food goes to waste every year, with the average Canadian wasting over 170kg annually. Think about the wilted greens in your fridge or the extra serving at dinner that you just couldn’t finish, all this wastage adds up over time. Food waste causes losses in production energy, but it also contributes to greenhouse gases as it rots in landfills. Scientists predict we could prevent 11% of greenhouse emissions if we reduce our food waste.
Tips
- Buy only what you need or know you’ll eat. This might mean making more trips to the shop or learning how to optimize freezing your food.
- Try to incorporate zero-waste cooking recipes and use every piece of your ingredients.
- Compost your food scraps. If you have a garden you can keep and reuse the compost and some food scraps to fertilize your plants.
2. Walk More
The average car emits 4.6 metric tons of CO2 into the atmosphere every year, with transportation accounting for 25% of Canada’s Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions. Switching to walking just once a week as part of an eco-friendly lifestyle could reduce your personal carbon dioxide emissions by a quarter. On top of helping the environment, studies show walking can help improve your overall mood and creative thinking. Walking more is easily one of our favourite eco-friendly lifestyle changes to add to your routine.
Tips
- Try shopping locally and maybe more frequently, within walking distance instead of driving.
- Make walking sociable and meet a friend for a coffee and a walk instead of driving to and sitting in a cafe.
- Walk to the gym instead of driving. Use your walk as your pre-workout warm up.
3. Upcycle Used Items
Upcycling isn’t all about living the ideal eco-friendly lifestyle and turning all your plastic bottles into self watering flower pots – although that is a great upcycling idea. Some upcycles can be as simple as repurposing a tattered t-shirt into a cleaning rag or keeping a nice glass container to reuse for homemade sauces. The goal is to reduce the amount of items you normally throw in the landfill and try to give them an extra life. Start with small changes and upcycles that make sense for your lifestyle and you’ll soon find up-cycling opportunities everywhere.
Tips
- Worn cotton t-shirts make great reusable cotton face rounds
- Fuzzy socks are perfect for cleaning glass, mirrors and wood and one of our easiest eco-friendly lifestyle changes
- If you’re buying pasta sauce, Classico® Pasta Sauce comes in a mason jar perfect for reusing
4. Avoid Disposable Products
It takes 1000 years for a plastic bag to break down and Canadians use almost 15 billion plastic bags every year and close to 57 million plastic straws every day. Some simple maths tells us we’re going to become overrun with non decomposed plastics pretty soon if we don’t change our plastic usage and adapt a more eco-friendly lifestyle. It’s unlikely we’ll eliminate plastic completely in the future but we do need to change to a more sustainable use of this material.
Tips
- Switch to reusable grocery bags, food containers and cutlery
- Try to avoid products with excessive plastic packaging and single-use plastics
- Support businesses that offer compostable or reusable packaging
5. Reduce Electricity Use at Home
Electricity accounts for 41% of the energy use of a Canadian household and accounts for a large portion of indirect greenhouse gas production. 25% of Canada’s energy comes from fossil fuels making it one of the top contributors to greenhouse cases in the country. Research shows that at least 60 percent the amount of CO2 is saved when households reduce their energy consumption (turning off lights when leaving a room, unplugging electronics etc).
Tips
- Turn your air conditioning on during the hottest parts of the day only (12pm-4pm). Your HVAC system uses the most energy in your home from a single appliance at 46% of your home’s energy consumption.
- Upgrade less energy efficient light bulbs (especially incandescent and halogen light bulbs) to LED lightbulbs to save on energy costs long-term
- Wash your clothes on cold and reduce the amount of energy your washing machine uses by up to 90%
Whether you’re just starting to think sustainably or you’re looking for some new tips, we hope our list of easy and free eco-friendly lifestyle changes to make in 2022 helps you on your journey!
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