There are a lot of things that may fall onto your list of priorities at the moment, but changing the world might be way down on the list. If you and the rest of us are honest, while we would love to think it’s quite high up on our lists, it’s, in fact, a lot lower down than we would care to admit. Why is this? Well, it’s absolutely nothing to do with not caring; the truth is that some of us just aren’t aware of how to make changes. When it comes to making changes that can make a positive impact on the environment, there seem to be so many things, but a lack of official information makes it hard for us to truly know how we can do our bit. In this post, we are going to be looking at just how simple it can be to make a change to our planet. The important thing to remember is this; while these may only be small things, if everybody did a few small things, then the world would benefit so much for many years to come.
Why We Need To Change Now
One of the most important things that we all have to realize is that if you want to make a change, then now is the time we need to start. It’s apparent that no matter where we look today, the world is suffering in ways we could never have imagined, and we are slowly reaching the point where the damage that has been done could become irreversible. A crucial thing to remember is this when it comes to doing our part; it’s all about the small things that we are able to do that will make the biggest difference.
How Did We Get Here?
One of the most prominent questions that get asked nowadays when it comes to the environment is “how did we get to this point?” and the truth is that there is no one place to point the finger, it’s a matter of everybody ignoring responsibility for many years. It may be tough to digest for some, but it may simply be the case that the damage that has been caused so far was somewhat unavoidable. We have to process the facts, and they are that we have only really had alternatives to some of the biggest problems causing things for the past 25-30 years. While there will be a lot of people quick to point the finger at certain generations, the truth may be that the previous generations just didn’t have the means to put a stop to the things that we can. We have now reached a point where everybody should recognize that pointing fingers and passing blame isn’t going to make any difference at all. The only thing that can make a difference is if we all come together and make a few changes ourselves so we can give our children and grandchildren the best possible futures.
Recycle, E-Cycle and Upcycle
One of the most important things we can do to save our planet is to recognize the three cycles. While many people take the three things and believe that they are synonymous with each other, they all involve very different processes, and each has different impacts on the environment when not done properly. The first one we will look at is recycling. If there is one thing that every household should be doing, no matter where you live, it’s recycling. By taking an extra 5 minutes per day to recycle your plastics and cans, you will be doing great things for the environment. When recycling, you should be mindful and do a little research on what you can and cannot recycle nowadays. There are a lot of things that people often think can be recycled by they often turn out not to be recyclable.
The second thing we will look at is E-cycling. If you are not familiar with this, it is simply the recycling of anything that can be deemed an appliance. The process of recycling electrical goods used to be incredibly complicated, and at one time, it could have been quite costly. Luckily, in today’s world, there is a lot more importance placed on proper recycling, and now electronic recycling could not be easier. In fact, there are now many companies out there that will collect, take away, and properly dispose of your electrical items. These companies are great, and they eliminate any stress of having to dispose of larger electrical items from home. If you find yourself confused as to what falls under E-cycling requirements, then it’s as simple as this; if it requires a plug or batteries, then it will require E-cycling.
The final thing we are going to look at, of the three cycles is upcycling. Upcycling is by far the most fun of the three and can also add a little something special to your home. For example, a common recycling question that often occurs is “is polystyrene recyclable?” And while the answer is no, it doesn’t mean you cannot upcycle with it. If you have surplus polystyrene and you like to turn your hands to crafts, you can create your own cushions or even bean bags. Upcycling is one of the best things you can do with unwanted junk from around the house. Not only does it save money, but it also saves the planet a little bit.
We’re BIG on upcycling things here as seen in the post idea below.
Check out our HUGE list of UPCYCLE ideas!
Food Waste
Another thing that puts a lot of pressure on the planet when it comes to waste is food. Unbelievably, the average American throws away 40% of the food they buy. When we look at this in monetary terms, it’s bad enough, but when we look at it environmentally, it’s catastrophic. Throwing away this much food and sending it to landfills places enormous amounts of pressure on the environment. For some people. They don’t realize the overall impact something like this can have on the planet. The more food we waste, the more machinery, manpower, and land we need to manage it all. All of these places a considerable strain on the planet, and year on year, it’s just getting worse.
If you want to be a part of a change that means you can save a fortune as well as saving the planet, then stick with us, and we will tell you how. The first thing you should be doing is going through your cupboards, refrigerator, and freezer to see what food items you have at the moment. Once you have a list of all of these, it’s time to start a meal plan. Meal planning is one of the best ways to ensure that you do not shop with too much enthusiasm and end up buying a ton of stuff that you don’t need, and you will end up throwing away. Something as simple as a meal plan should allow you to get to grips with exactly how much you need to buy, plus a little extra, and you will find that this quickly chops your monthly shopping spend exponentially and also reduces your waste by a hell of a lot.
The final way to dramatically reduce waste is to look towards pre portioning your meals. While this may seem like a rather arduous task, it can actually be quite the opposite in the long run. By pre portioning whatever meals you can at the beginning of the week according to your meal plan, you will soon see exactly what food you are likely not to use before it spoils. Now, with any excess food you have, you can make some further dishes, place them in containers and freeze them. By taking these simple steps with your food, you will find that you will go from wasting 40% of your food to less than 5% of your food. If 70% of the world made a change of this level, we would start to see massive benefits within five years, and what’s more, we would also start to see the cost of food hit an all-time low. So when it comes to food, the more we all do, the more we all benefit.
Conclusion
As you can see, it really doesn’t take a lot to change the world we live in. While we may be in a position of danger at the moment, providing we take action now, it’s not too late. This post may only contain a few examples of how you can make a change, and that’s ok. What we want is for everybody to start off small and then move on to doing more things as time goes by. Our planet is a wonderful place, and we all know that it’s capable of so much more beauty. Hopefully, this post has managed to inspire you to start doing a few small things that can start a domino effect across the world and maybe get a few more people moving towards creating a better planet for future generations.
