How to Be More Eco-Friendly

Happy New Year, everyone! Or shall I say, Happy 2020!

Are we feeling the New Year, New You vibe OR a New Year, Same You – but better vibe? Personally, I’m feeling the New Year, Same You – but better vibes.

Whether you believe in starting fresh or not come January, now’s the perfect time to motivate yourself to start doing a little better not only for yourself but also for our beloved Mother Earth. As we all try and upkeep our resolutions and goals, hopefully, we’re all actively trying to reduce our carbon footprint as well.

Now, going 100% green can be very daunting and quite unrealistic for most people (myself included) especially if you haven’t incorporated smaller steps to try and live a “greener life” just yet. Hopefully, no one is judging you as we’re all in this together, but I thought I’d highlight some easy ways to be a little kinder to our surroundings. So, in efforts to be more eco-conscious, I put together a few highlights of easy ways you and I can be more green in our day to day life.

I truly believe that it’s better for a lot of people to be more environmentally conscious over a select few people being environmentally “perfect.” We are a community and all citizens of planet earth. Everyone’s contribution adds ups. Instead of shaming someone for using a plastic straw once in a while, let’s try and educate each other on how we can all do better and lift each other up as a whole.

Perhaps that person that used their straw forgot their metal one at home but eats less meat in their diet – thus reducing the amount of carbon dioxide in the air. Maybe someone is vegan but they drive a hummer. Maybe someone forgot to bring the reuseable water bottle but they’re composting at home and grow their own vegetables. Maybe someone wears vintage clothes instead of contributing to fast fashion but they order Postmates every day. My point is – we never know how people truly live unless we live with them. Keep your minds open and lead by example. Hopefully, we’re all trying to do our very best.

♻️Here are some easy ways you can be more eco-conscious: ♻️

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Cut Down On Plastic Bottles and get a Reusable One

Even better, invest in a smart water bottle like this Larq one that utilizes environmentally-friendly UV-C technology to purify up to 99.99% of bacteria and 99.99% of viruses when it’s set to its highest mode.

Bring Your Own Metal Straw

Invest in Reusable Silicone Bags

For example, replace your single-use plastic bags at home with these Stasher bags! You can use them for just about anything, they are great in your fridge, bringing your lunch to work, and they come in many different sizes. Carry one in your purse if you know you like to take doggy bags home from restaurants! They’re non-toxic, dishwasher safe, oven friendly, and fridge strong. They’re also waterproof so you can put your phone in them if you need to be in the water but also get that content.

Compost When You Can

Since I live in a large city like Los Angeles, composting can actually be quite hard to do and the city doesn’t accommodate for it quite yet. I have my eyes on this little compost bin by Alasaw I saw on Goop in efforts to reduce my food waste.

Bring Your Own Reusable Cotton Tote

Instead of using paper or plastic bags, I like to keep many reusable totes in the car so I always have one on me. My favorite bags are these heavy-duty market bags from my friends at Apolis. I’ve had some for over 8 years and they’re still super durable and sturdy. I also love their philanthropic mission and what they stand for as each bag is made by women in Bangladesh providing jobs and better living conditions for them.

Blueland

Use clean non-toxic home cleaning goods like Blueland that makes eco friendly and innovative house products in reusable packaging where you buy the bottle and pay $2 for refills so you don’t have to throw out plastic bottles anymore. I also love clean brands like Honest and Meyer.

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Become a Coffee Snob and Make Coffee with a French Press

It doesn’t require the waste of single-use plastic pods or throwing out a daily coffee filter. Once you’re done with the grinds, you can put them into your compost bin. I love using my Le Cruset French Press as it keeps my coffee super hot or super cold (I like to add my leftover hot coffee into the fridge so I can have iced coffee whenever I want). It actually makes me look forward to making my own coffee at home.

Breville Barista Pro Espresso Machine

Bring your own mug to your favorite coffee shop. Or, even better, invest in an espresso machine and make your own lattes in the comfort of your own home. Additional perks of investing in your own espresso machine? There’s an an outlet waiting for you to charge all of your tech devices and you most likely have strong wifi that everyone’s not trying to steal and get on. I guess I was nice this year as I found Santa had left me this under the tree because he must know how much of a coffee snob/connoissseur I am. Thanks, Santa!

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Become a Plant Parent

Buy and keep your house plants alive. They help clean the air inside your home, help reduce your stress, and reduce irritation as told here.

Organic Tampons

Switch to organic tampons and pads (click here to check out some of our favorites) or try using a menstrual cup. Most importantly – spend the extra $2 and avoid tampons that have a plastic shell around them when you can. Remember your purchasing power.

Cut Down on Shopping

Invest in clothing you’ll wear more often so you’re not buying as much and contributing to the fast-fashion toxicity. Think of new ways to style outfits vs. always buying what’s trendy right now.

Buy in Bulk

Buying in bulk helps to reduce single-use plastics. Head to a Sprouts to buy items you want in bulk and try even bringing your own glass jars (you can tell the person at the counter the weight of your jar so they don’t charge you for it)!

Detox Your Beauty

Kjaer Weis Cream Foundation

Think about all the chemicals that are on your lips, face and skin ALL DAY! I’ve been really into this foundation cream by Kjaer Weis. My skin has truly never looked better, I don’t feel bad that I’m wearing this all day and and I can buy the foundation refill separately to reduce packaging and waste. Check out more clean beauty picks below!

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So, are we all ready to become reduce our carbon footprint this decade? I’ve definitely evolved since I wrote about becoming more eco-conscious last year and plan to keep on evolving.

And unless you’ve been living under a rock, you know what’s happening in Australia right now. I like to practice what I preach and have personally donated to the NSW Rural Fire Service. All donations go directly to the volunteer firefighters and encourage you all to do the same if you’re in the financial privilege to do so. 🙏🏼

Until next time! Please remember to be kind to each other. We’re not perfect; we’re human.

Cheers, Jane

Photography by Karla Ticas