72 Tiny Ways to Save The Earth With Small Life Changes

It’s time to save the Earth — the only home we have — from the destructive systems and habits we have been living with for the past 2 centuries. And sadly, a bunch of scientists and NGOs cannot do it.

If we really want to save the Earth from global warming, then, all of us need to make small life changes. Changes that cost you very little and a lot of time will leave more money in your pocket.

No, I won’t ask you to plant trees and do something that you already know but can’t do for one reason or the other. I will list tiny life changes which all of us can do while going about our everyday business.

Think of my ’76 ways to save Earth’ as baby steps that will collectively make a sea change to our environment. We need to do this because…well, the folks at Time explained it best:

“Don’t blow it — good planets are hard to find”.

In this realization, let’s take a look at 76 tips and ideas to save Earth from climate change and environmental damage.

Note: If you are one of those people who think it climate change is a conspiracy theory, well, check out these facts.

1) Stop using body washes. They come in plastic bottles that end up in landfills. Replace them with a bar of soap. It’s cheap and cleans like magic.

2) Use paper to wrap your birthday presents. Shiny sheets of plastic wrap are not good for the environment. They end as trash that takes a lot of time to disappear from the face of this Earth. Use reusable wrapping or use newspapers to save money.

3) Rinse your plates after eating rather than leaving them to dry. Dry stains are harder to take off and consume more water. Really small zero-effort change you can make to save the Earth!

4) Buy bigger packs of everything. Sanitizers, liquid handwash, detergent powders, and other products essential to our everyday life. It will minimize packaging waste and also save you money.

5) Stop using single-use plastic bags. Buy a decent sized tote bag for your groceries, dairy products, and everyday essentials. In case you don’t know, here’s how plastic bags impact on the environment:

6) Switch off your phone at night. It will last longer and fewer phones will end up as e-waste. There is an auto-switch-off-and-on feature in most smartphones. Use it to extend the lifespan of your phone and save electricity as well.

7) Prefer walking or cycling over driving cars. This will directly reduce emissions to the environment we live and breathe in. Walking and cycling are not just great alternatives to driving but also improve your overall health and fitness.

8) Reduce your consumption of processed foods. It will reduce plastic waste greatly and keep you healthy too. Fun fact: Processed foods are going harder to digest, introduce our body to preservatives, and has very low nourishment.

9) Reduce the amount of meat you eat. Good old cattle generate almost 15% of the global greenhouse gas emission. While East eats their meat the right way, Americans especially are on a meat overdrive. I know becoming vegetarian is too much for meat lovers and hence recommend cutting back on your consumption. Here’s a blog on how livestock damages the environment.

10) Use fewer TVs, smartphones, and gadgets. They run on power and servers that heat up a lot (and require ACs to cool down). If all of us will cut back our consumption, there will no need to keep expanding our power output.

11) Use public transport sometimes. Besides saving fuel, it will show you how people with fewer resources exist. Maybe, twice a week, let your car rest and take the bus or subway?

12) Pool whenever possible. Carpooling is a smart way to reduce the consumption of non-renewable resources while saving money. Speak with your colleagues about carpooling and see how easy it is to get started with it!

how to save earth with small changes

13) Buy vegetables directly from farmers if possible. Foods that are transported long distances are carried on trucks that are air-conditioned. So, if you buy from local farmers, you do a big favor to the environment.

14) Look around and identify what’s plastic around you. Toothbrush for example. They come in wood now and can do almost everything your standard brush can do. Make the switch and take a small step to save the Earth.

15) Buy wooden furniture or metal furniture rather than plastic in the future. If you can buy reused furniture, that’s better. Plastic furniture has a smaller lifespan and ends up in landfills.

16) Don’t buy anything plastic that will end up in your kitchen. Plates, lunch boxes, spoons, jars, nothing. Plastic is bad for your health and will damage in the long run. Plus plastic utensils turn pale and look tacky. Here is a nice documentary on zero waste living embraced at a city level.

17) Keep potted plants at home. They won’t make much difference in air quality but they will teach your kids to admire plants. Hence, they will be more aware of their buying, consumption, and spending habits when they become mature adults.

18) Switch off lights when not in use. Unplug devices when charged. This is by far the easiest way to save the Earth and make a difference in environmental protection. Learn about Energy Vampires: How to Find & Tame Them.

19) Go slow on that AC as they are heating up the earth pretty fast. You won’t melt without them. While air conditioners make the indoors cool, they make the outers warmer. So, stop that switch-on-the-ac-and-get-a-blanket life.

20) Don’t use silver foil to wrap up lunch you’re gonna microwave it anyway. I think silver foils are just a waste of money and resources since they hardly work in winters. Instead, buy a lunch box heater.

21) Don’t use disposable plates, spoons, and cups. They end up in a ditch and those chemicals seep into underground water bodies. Single-use plastics are the worst thing that has happened to Earth.

22) Show the middle finger to fast fashion. T he factories that make fast fashion clothing pollute the environment while delivering products that won’t be used for a decent amount of time. Invest in quality clothing that will last for a couple of years at least.

23) Teach your kids the importance of water conservation, forest preservation, and ecosystems. They are smart enough to figure out the rest on their own.

small steps to save environment

24) Turn off the vehicle at a red light, we aren’t racing.

25) Don’t litter on the road. Whatever you throw on the road will help to clog the sewers and drainage systems. Plus, you are not a child.

26) Go light on the tissue papers. Don’t use more than you need to. I have seen people go ape-crazy on tissues while dining out. Don’t do that.

27) If you have money, buy organic versions of everything. From foods to detergents, everything comes in less-harsh-on-nature options. While organic foods don’t damage soil with fertilizers, organic detergents don’t pollute water bodies.

28) Charge your device (like a laptop) only when it runs out of charge. If you keep it on forever-charging made, you will end up damaging the battery life and buying a replacement.

29) Live a frugal life. Don’t replace your phone as soon as the next upgrade comes. Don’t buy a new car every other year. Buy when you really need it. Remember, with less comes more peace of mind.

30) Don’t indulge your kids with processed foods, toys, and gadgets. Introduce them to books & art. Teach them about the environment, nature, global warming, and every else that matters right now. Else, they will make the mistakes we made.

31) Fix that water leakage asap.

32) Don’t keep the tap running while brushing and washing hands. Close it and continue with your business. Do this especially if you live somewhere that’s struggling with a water crisis.

33) Buy water-saving fixtures and tap extensions to save water while washing utensils.

34) Start rainwater harvesting if you have space and resources. It will do world of good if rains are frequent in your location.

35) Buy a composter to put your organic waste to better use. Buy it from Daily Compost since they have pretty affordable products and DIY content to guide you with it. Or you can start composting on your own.

36) Switch to solar for your home or office. It is the most underrated source of power generation

37) Don’t buy plastic slippers. Instead, go for rubber ones to avoid adding more plastic waste to the environment.

38) Don’t ask for a poly-bag if your hands can hold your purchase. Literally the easiest way to save the Earth and the environment.

39) Don’t shower since it wastes more water. Instead of using a shower, bath with a bucket. This way, you will make big water savings!

40) Building a house or renovation? Get a low-flush toilet.

41) Stick to seasonal eating. Non-season fruits and veggies travel thousands of miles to reach us while burning fossil fuels along the way. Shop local and stick to organic.

42) Reduce food waste. They are grown using a lot of water, resources, and hard work. Take only what you can eat and avoid overeating as well.

43) Still building your house? Install a rainwater harvesting system. It will supply the water for your garden, bathing, and various other tasks. Check out this video to do it on your own!

44) Get your pipes and fittings repaired on time. If a pipe burst or leakage started, a lot of water will go down the drain.

45) Print as little as possible. Paper still costs a lot of trees since recycling is still not as cool as it should be.

46) Live by the 3 Rs — Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle. They are still as relevant and important as ever. An extravagant lifestyle does a lot of damage to the environment.

47) Use alternative sources of energy. Solar is the future and getting a unit installed at your home or business will do a world of good. If you sit on the board of a school or college, then, you can do a world of good by shifting to solar. Right, Mahindra Susten? The wind is as cool (no pun intended) as solar if your location has scope.

48) Talk about conservation and environment with peers and your followers online. Your voice matters. If it makes even one person concerned, it is a win.

49) Say no to greeting cards. Use digital cards and messages instead. Getting married? Go for a digital card that can be forwarded on Whatsapp and social media. You will save money too!

50) Use energy-efficient cars, home appliances, and other equipment. Say no to gas-guzzling vehicles and low-performance ACs.

51) Use a microwave rather than depending entirely on natural gas for heating your food.

52) Got money? Buy a water purifier that wastes less water. Almost all the companies that manufacture water purification systems have come out with water-saving purifiers.

53) Don’t have much money? Use the water drained by the water purifier to water plants, wash car, and do other stuff. Here are 6 ideas to reuse that water.

54) Got a lot of money? Buy a Tesla or any other electric vehicle.

55) Got some money left? Buy ceramic cups. They are completely biodegradable and look cool as well.

56) Start believing in the science of climate change. You can’t enjoy everything it has given you and reject what it says on climate change.

57) Support organizations committed to protecting the environment, financially (if you can) and socially. Here are 10 charities that are doing good work in the field of environmental protection.

Not sure how to lead a zero-waste life and minimize eco damage? Watch this TED talk about Lauren Singer.

58) Speak up when your government cuts down forests and damages ecosystems in the name of growth. This is happening a lot in developing countries like India and Africa.

59) Collect and wash clothes every week rather than doing laundry every other day. You will save tons of water (learn why Saving Water Makes Sense).

60) Skip bathing multiple times in summer. It wastes water & may make you sick. Don’t indulge yourself very often in the bathtub. Keep the baths quick.

61) Never ever burn plastic! It emits a lot of ozone and lung-damaging gases. Just don’t do that.

62) Get into vintage/used clothing. New clothes have a huge cost to the environment since factories run to manufacture them and trucks powered by fossil fuels transport them.

63) Don’t buy products unless you need them. Capitalism sucks.

64) Wash your jeans fewer times. They will last longer. Right, Levi’s?

65) Use washable face masks rather than single-use face masks.

66) Buy wooden toys instead of throwaway plastic toys for your kids. Since children put toys in their mouths all the time, it makes sense to go for wood rather than plastic. Check more on plastic pollution here.

Here’s how can you keep plastic out of the ocean to save the environment.

67) Sign up for E-Billing as it can save you time and save lots of trees as well.

68) Skip the bottled water and go for a reusable water bottle to save money and be an environment warrior. Besides, tap water is already stringently monitored by the governments of developed countries. So, bottled water isn’t necessarily required.

69) Having your own garden is a great way to eat organically, avoid genetically modified foods, and reduce the dependence on mass-produced and pesticide rich agriculture products.

70) Not-in-use electronics suck up energy as well. Unplug rarely-used items to reduce energy consumption and your electric bill.

71) Buy wooden cloth drying pegs/clips. Ditch the plastic ones for obvious reasons.

72) Stop remodeling your home unless it is in need of repairs. Construction is a massive polluter for air and soil.

73) Ask your local grocer to shift to Eco-friendly bags rather than using plastic ones. Modern Eco-friendly bags look very similar to plastic bags but are humble on the environment.

74) Get your vehicle serviced on time. A car that hasn’t gone to the garage for a long time emits more pollutants in the environment.

75) Segregate your waste. The plastic waste should be separated from organic waste so that people in charge of trash can segregate easily. Buy a compost to cut down your organic waste and create manure for FREE!

76) Buy from brands that have go-green and reuse policies. Check out these companies that are known for their sustainable initiatives. Since a lot of global behemoths have sustainable initiatives to keep their face, I highly recommend supporting small businesses that have a strong commitment to saving the environment.

The responsibility to heal the earth is on our shoulders now. And if all of us try to accomplish small goals to save the Earth, we will totally manage to do that.

A lot of us think that ‘how can our tiny efforts make a difference to such a big world?’ I personally think they totally do.

Remember the butterfly effect.

Remember the ripple effect.

And do your share of work.

Tell me in the comments about what all you have been doing to save Mother Nature. There are certainly more than 76 ways to save the Earth!

Research and creative credit: While I curated these tips on my Twitter, folks at Upreports Infotech helped in publishing my musings in a blog format. Hire the folks for digital marketing, content creation, and social media marketing!

My team at Upreports also created the below infographic by using my ideas!

Originally published at https://medium.com on August 9, 2020.