When the weather heats up, the urge to travel naturally increases. Traveling can be both fun and exciting, but unfortunately it also has a largely negative impact on the environment. Before you rush out the door to parts unknown, make sure you are traveling in an eco-friendly manner. Whether you’re headed to another city, country, or continent, keeping the environment in mind can still be a priority. Even though the changes you make may seem small, we can do what we can to help reduce our ecological impact.

Research your Companies

Eco-friendly travel may be somewhat of a challenge, but it used to be much more difficult. Fortunately, there are more companies dedicated to sustainable travel.

Hyatt for example, currently holds a 64% Corporate Social Responsibility rating, which is very impressive for a hotel conglomerate of their size. They’ve also announced an Environmental Sustainability Strategy to reduce their energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions by 2020. I loved the Hyatt Place I stayed at in Charlottesville, North Carolina. My friends rave about cruises though I’ve never been on one. Virgin Voyages is an all-inclusive luxury cruise line which has the practices of eliminating ocean waste, and converting geothermal heat into clean electricity.

Whatever kind of trip you’re planning, doing some research before you book will ensure you’re patronizing like-minded companies.

Do Not Disturb

If you’re planning an extensive stay in a hotel, consider cleaning your own room. The maintenance staff at a hotel will use copious amounts of water per day washing their patrons’ sheets and towels, and waste additional energy and electricity on continually vacuuming rooms. You can do your part to reduce this by simply utilizing your “Do Not Disturb” sign when you leave your room during the day. Cleaning up after yourself is not only a good habit to be in, but it will help guarantee no additional water or energy will be unnecessarily used on your behalf.

Some hotels give you the option when you check in to do housekeeping only after 2 or 3 days.

Go Local

Once you’ve arrived at your destination, the best thing you can do to support sustainability is to shop, eat, and drink locally. Giving your money to the community helps local culture flourish. Eating locally also encourages you to try new foods that you wouldn’t normally find at home. One of my favorite parts of traveling is trying the local cuisine.

Be sure to gently enjoy the natural areas around as well. Each new place gives you new wildlife to observe and views to take in.

Before You Leave

Sustainability starts at home! Even though you may be headed elsewhere, you may still be wasting energy at home. Most appliances and devices will continue to draw energy even when they are turned off. For some, the difference in energy consumption while they’re on versus when they’re off is negligible. Items like a washing machine, Apple TV, or your cable box will continue to use almost as much power while they’re off, while things like your television, routers, and modems, are never technically “off” to begin with. If you want to keep your energy usage to a minimum, make sure that all non-essential appliances and devices are fully off and unplugged before you leave for your trip.

These are just some of the things you can do to make your next expedition eco-friendly. What are some of your favorite tips and tricks for travel?

When we shop, our purchases affect the planet, something we rarely think about. We would all love to see changes in the manufacture of goods, but we can make a difference as consumers as well. Thankfully there are more eco-friendly shopping options available today than ever before. Follow these helpful tips to help bring about a change in mindset and energize your own ethical practices.

Reference the ‘Buyerarchy of Needs’

If you’ve ever taken a psychology class, you may have heard of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. If you’re not familiar, it takes a look at the structure of needs that influence our choices and behaviors. A few years ago, Sarah Lazarovic, a Canadian illustrator, created a newly imagined hierarchy of buying behavior. The ‘Buyerarchy of Needs’ looks at buying as the last level after all other areas have been tried. It’s a great way to look at the choices we make when it comes to buying and focus on going up the pyramid in how items are obtained that we need or want.

Here are a few of the main ideas gathered from the ‘Buyerarchy of Needs’

• Shop your own wardrobe. You might be pleasantly surprised to re-discover some much loved pieces hiding in the back of your closet.
• Stop treating your clothing as disposable. Learn to take care of what you have so you can love your pieces for years to come.
• Only buy something new when you have to replace something that can no longer be worn or to fill a gap in your wardrobe. (Check out my article on Do You Need to Buy New and how to shop secondhand)
• Invest in quality pieces and items that you’ll wear frequently or for a long time.
  

Shop and sell to secondhand stores

As consumers, we often don’t think about the impact that the clothes we wear has on our planet. Did you know that it takes 1,800 gallons of water to make one pair of blue jeans? Rather than throwing out clothing after a few uses, donate or sell them to a secondhand store. This will ensure that your clothes go to a new home for many years to come. While it may not seem like you’re making a big impact, take a minute to think about where your clothes actually go when you throw them out; landfills. When things get thrown out by hundreds of people, at around the same time, it creates an exponential amount of waste. However, when people use clothes to their full extent, it can take up to a decade before they touch a landfill.

On top of donating or selling your used clothing to secondhand stores, consider shopping secondhand as well. This is one of the best ways to deal with textile waste as it creates a recycling community. Not to mention, you can save a ton of money on brand name items and even score one-of-a-kind pieces! Many thrift stores are now offering their clothing selections online, making it easier to shop your favorite styles. Online thrift stores, like thredUP, offer clothing from your favorite brands at a fraction of the price you’d spend at department stores. They even have a wide selection of hard-to-find items, including their collection of affordable Lularoe items.

Look for ethical fashion certifications

When shopping for clothes, check the labels for ethical fashion certifications. These certifications ensure that the clothing has been made under fair and safe working conditions. While there are hundreds of ethical fashion certifications, here are a few of the basics to be on the lookout for during your next shopping trip. You can read more about other ethical fashion certifications here.

• Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) – This certification is known worldwide as a textile processing standard. In order to gain this certification, a brand is assessed for the fair harvesting of their raw materials as well as their social responsibility, environmental impact, and water and energy use. Additionally, GOTS identifies that a product is at least 75% organic.
• Worldwide Responsible Accredited Production (WRAP) – This is a non-profit organization that accredits facilities when they practice safe, responsible, humane, lawful and ethical manufacturing processes. On top of their accreditation, they also focus on training and education.
• Fairtrade – This certification is the promise of fair trading terms, sustainable production practices, and the promotion of economic security. Additionally, Fairtrade advocates for fair pay and working conditions and the just management of people in farming and factory environments. Not only will you see this mark on many food items, it’s also used to certify and regulate the cotton industry.

Celebrate small changes

You may experience a sort of consumer paralysis as you begin to learn more about the changes that you should make in your lifestyle and shopping choices. You may even start to think that there’s too much that needs to be done and that you’ll never be able to manage it all. This is why it’s important to reinforce and encourage the small ethical changes that you do make. Be delighted in wearing your secondhand clothing, you thrifty eco-conscious person, you. Smile as you buy local. Celebrate when you drop off your gently used clothing to a local thrift store. Pat your self on the back every time you participate in eco-friendly shopping. Big or small, the changes you make can have a significant impact on our planet.

What are you doing to be more eco-conscious in your buying?

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Buyerarchy of Needs graphic found here

This Earth Day, go beyond recycling to show your love and appreciation for this planet! For those who are unfamiliar with the annual holiday, Earth Day is held every year to raise awareness of environmental issues and show collective support for actively working towards a healthier world for all.

Going green can seem overwhelming, especially with the misconception that you can’t really make an impact by living more sustainably looming over you. There are plenty of ways- both big and small- to start being more eco-friendly. What better time than on Earth Day, this April 22! Still feeling a little lost? Lean on these tips for celebrating Earth Day right from the comfort of your home.

Plant a Garden

Adding a garden to your yard not only provides a unique opportunity to bond with your family, but also serves as a great opportunity to help the environment. Firstly, the addition of a home garden can improve your home’s general soil quality as well as increase the quality of oxygen due to the addition of life- suddenly those heads of broccoli and beet greens you avoided as a kid don’t seem so bad.

Although it will take some time to get your garden producing goods to harvest, opting for easy growing options like leafy greens, summer squash, cucumbers or tomatoes will have you chowing down on fresh produce in no time! Once your garden is bountiful, relying on it as a source of food will minimize food miles- the miles spent sourcing food from farm to store (and then to your plate!), which adds a lot to your carbon footprint.

Be more conservative with water usage

Being more conscious of your utilities can save money while saving the environment. This Earth Day, consider making some long-term changes in the home. With spring right around the corner, you may be itching to make some home upgrades. If major renovations aren’t in your budget- such as calling in a local plumbing professional to replace PVC piping with eco-friendly and recyclable materials like iron- start small with smart-gadgets to help conserve water. Flush monitoring gadgets for your toilet can create a dual flushing system, allowing you to use small flushes (and less water) unless disposing of solid waste. Installing a water tracker while you shower will keep you mindful of how much water you’re wasting rather than using to maintain hygiene! Utilizing eco-friendly gadgets like touchless faucets can cut up to 50 percent of water usage.

Eliminate Plastic

If you’re one to rely on plastic food storage containers, baggies, or water bottles, now is the perfect time to consider switching over to more sustainable materials. If you love to meal prep lunches for your busy week, consider buying glass containers with spill-proof lids in addition to one or two larger glass containers. Prep your food ahead of time, and portion them in each container. Put the leftovers into the larger dishes and re-portion new meals as you clean each container.

To eliminate plastic water bottles, switch over to an eco-friendly bottle in a sustainable material like BPA free steel or glass. If you’re not looking to spend a ton on a trendy water bottle, consider reusing a glass bottle from a small milk jug or Snapple bottle, or opt for a mason jar. If you buy plastic bottles for the filtered water, consider purchasing a filter for your water spout or a filter pitcher for your fridge.

Support local

Similar to the argument for growing your own garden, supporting local farmers or eating at restaurants that source their ingredients locally is a great way to minimize carbon footprint. Educating yourself on how the food you eat gets to your plate will help you be more conscious of the next time you grocery shop or go out. Food miles contribute to air pollution and increases the CO2 emitted, contributing to global warming.

Go for a hike

Probably the easiest on this list- get out and start enjoying all that the Earth gives you! Whether it be going for a walk around your neighborhood, tackling a true nature hike, or simply going to the local park for a picnic (with locally sourced ingredients and fresh veggies from your garden, of course!), you’ll give you and your family the opportunity to appreciate everything around you this Earth Day.

I rarely send cards that I buy. I like making my own and I’ve been doing more online cards as a way to have less environmental impact.

Paperless Post set me up with some coins to try out their card system. I saw I had some Christmas cards yet to send and thought this would be a perfect opportunity.

The whole thing was simple and I love the designs.

How to send cards

1. Pick a card from a variety of categories. They also do invites and flyers. (You can upload your own design, too.)
2. Customize the background, saying and font. Some have spaces to put pictures in.
3. Update the stamp, envelope and typeface.
4. Write in your name and subject line.
5. Enter the names and emails (Mine was 5 coins per recipient. They also have some free invitations and free cards.)
6. Schedule or send now.

It’s really easy and the cards are so professional looking. Here are some Christmas cards if you are interested (especially those of you who know you won’t have time to write out regular cards this year.)

This infographic I found very interesting. The 9.5 hours a day living for stuff is more than I would expect. Something to think about.

Graphic from Masters in Human Resources

I am reading the book Zero Waste Home [aff link]  by Bea Johnson that I got from the library. The book is all about simplifying life by reducing what you throw out. Some ideas from Bea:

• Watch what you bring in the house like disposable stuff, freebies and junk mail.
• Reduce what you need: shop less, declutter, reduce packaging, drive less, print less, watch less media that makes us want to consume
• Re-use: bags, use a re-chargeable, re-usuable or refillable alternative for disposables, borrow, barter, buy used, repair, re-think an object
• Recycle – and think about what will happen at the end of a product life before you buy it. Earth911.com can tell you where to recycle hard to recycle items
• Compost
• Rags instead of paper towels, stainless steel water bottle instead of disposable water bottles, reusable jars and containers instead of plastic bags, cloth napkins
• Empty leftover drinking water to plants
• Use smart power trips for your electronics so they reduce energy consumption
• Create notebooks out of old school papers
• Read magazines online or on an e-reader instead of bringing them home
• Use online billing
• Clean your fridge filters twice a year for better efficiency
• Drip irrigation uses 50% less water than sprinklers
• Turn the shower on to get wet, turn it off when washing and shampooing, then back on the rinse

I just finished with the book 7: An Experimental Mutiny Against Excess by Jen Hatmaker. It is a convincing book. She began an experiment when she realized how much she had and began fasting from things to help bring her closer to God. And to listen what He wanted from her. She did 30 day fasts from things like media and spending. Lived with 7 pieces of clothing for a month. And spent a month praying the hours and taking a weekly Sabbaath.

By the end I was convicted. Do I really need to spend so much money when that money could be used to help more people? And my recycling has been pretty haphazard lately, so I am rinsing out my cans again. It will probably be a long time before I buy new clothes again.

This books is not a how to simplify type book. This is a "this is what I did" book that may inspire you to take action as well.

It is always the simple that produces the marvelous.

– Amelia Barr, novelist

The other day I threw out a can instead of recycling.

I believe in taking care of the earth. We have the right kind of bulbs. We recycle everything that can be recycled. I use cloth bags. We buy mainly locally and organic if we can. We use natural cosmetics, grooming products and cleaners.

Yet I could not bring myself to wash out the potato soup can. I was tired of washing out the cans. I didn’t want to ever have to do it again.

But, the next day I saw a can. I rinsed it out. I kept going.

We have enough guilt in our lives, without adding eco-guilt. Do what you can. Feel good when you lighten your ecological footprint. But, don’t kick yourself in the rear with it when you can’t be pure eco-friendly.

ARSO is an acronym used by people working with the environment. It stands for…

Avoid

Reduce

Substitute

Offset

So what are things to Avoid?

• Certain plastics
• Pesticides
• Household chemical cleaners
• Non organic makeup
• Styrofoam
• Plastic with a #7 recycling code
• Things that are overpackaged
• Plastic utensils

What about Reducing?

• Car travel
• Temperature in house during winter
• Light use
• Printing paper
• Water use

What can you Substitute?

• Paper towels and napkins – use fabric instead
• Disposable batteries – switch to rechargeables
• Compact fluorescent bulbs instead of Incandescent bulbs
• Energy efficient appliances instead of energy hoggers
• Use a tote bag instead of a plastic or paper grocery bag
• Low flow showerhead instead of a regular one

How can you Offset your carbon footprint?

• Recycle what you can
• Give to green organizations
• Compost
• Socially responsible portfolios

Now since I am all for living simply, I would never suggest you start doing all of these at once. Choose one to work on this week and let us know how it went.