In recent years, many people are beginning to recognize the importance and value of Mother Nature. Without the natural world we simply wouldn’t be able to survive, and it’s everyone’s responsibility to protect and preserve the earth for as long as possible. With this in mind, it’s unsurprising that environmentally conscious actions are becoming a top priority!
Setting the best example for your children by actively pursuing an eco-friendly lifestyle with your family is a brilliant step to take to promote sustainability, as this way you can influence the next generation to care more about the world around them.
Thankfully, figuring out how you and your family become more sustainable doesn’t have to be as difficult as you might imagine. This handy guide contains some of the best steps that you can follow to reduce your impact on the planet in no time at all, so what are you waiting for? Read on to discover more now!
Step 1: Start Utilizing Renewable Energy
One of the biggest contributing factors that can worsen your carbon footprint and therefore increase your negative impact on the natural world is the power or energy that you use to keep your family home up and running. Most houses utilize gas, as well as some form of electricity (such as nuclear energy or other unsustainable sources). Gas is a finite resource, which means it’s going to run out. It’s also very damaging to the environment to source, because in order to get gas, you either have to frack on land which can cause earthquakes, or gas rigs in the ocean which disrupt local sea life and cause pollution. Nuclear power creates an enormous volume of nuclear waste, which often has a half life of several million years - this makes it near impossible to dispose of safely, and due to the cost of safe disposal it’s generally left to fester in unsuitable conditions.
Fortunately, renewable, clean energy is more than accessible when you can take the right steps to change the way you access power. One of the best options that you can pursue is solar power, as the sun is a fully renewable source in the sense that it’s highly unlikely to burn out within the next several hundred years. Adding solar panels to your family home can be an excellent way to get the energy you need to power all of your electricals, and it provides you with the chance to teach your children an important lesson about the realities of modern power. Solar power has seen masses of investment in recent years, as you can now access handy tools like a 100W portable solar panel which is ideal for eco-friendly road trips and camping adventures! Such an investment would allow you to remain sustainable even when you’re on the go, away from the creature comforts of your family home.
Step 2: Change The Way You Eat
The food that you eat can either help to heal the world or inadvertently harm it, so there’s no time like the present to assess your diet and make a few necessary changes. Since the dawn of a new millennium, globalization has been a main focus for large corporations around the world. This has led to an increase in ‘food availability’, with products from countless countries being found thousands miles away from home. You can now buy exotic fruits in the UK, where there often isn't enough sunshine to grow something as basic as an apple tree. You can buy authentic Parmigiano cheese in the US, despite it having to travel over 5,000 miles to reach your local grocery store. So, many food items have traveled further than you ever will in your lifetime, riding in the back of trucks, boats, planes and more before they reach your dinner plate.
Rather than racking up thousands of food miles a day, you can minimize your family's impact on the environment by feeding your children a seasonal, local diet. There’s truly no need to consume foodstuffs from other continents, as it’s highly likely that there are local farmers and producers who you can buy from that will allow you to cut your carbon footprint dramatically. Take some time to read up on what produce thrives in your local area, as this way you can adapt your diet to include more native fruits and vegetables. Find a nearby butcher who sells meat grown nearby, and opt to make your own meat products (like meatballs or burgers) using the aforementioned butcher's meat rather than buying pre-made - most pre-made meat products use cheap cuts which are shipped in from around the world. The closer to home you can source your family’s food from, the more sustainable your diets will be!
Step 3: Try Out Natural Hygiene Products
Unfortunately, many modern hygiene products contain harmful ingredients that can damage aquatic life in local waterways. It’s all too common to see unpronounceable chemicals on the back of your shampoo bottle, and it’s these nasties that are causing real issues for both the environment and peoples general health and well-being. It’s unclear what the many sulfates and ‘forever’ chemicals (that don’t break down) actually do when released into the natural world, and it’s fair to say that the manufacturers who create these products aren’t exactly conscious in their operations, including proper waste disposal.
Trying out natural hygiene products is an excellent solution, as there are lots of sustainable brands that are stepping up to offer eco-friendly alternatives. For example, you can purchase some shampoo bars that are made out of natural ingredients, or even buy some pure organic aloe vera gel to use as a replacement for perfumes moisturizers. You can also have real fun making some natural hygiene products at home with your children using kitchen cupboard ingredients, as there are so many different options that you can get stuck into. Perhaps you’d all enjoy whipping up some homemade soap, or some facemasks from bananas and oats, or even make a body scrub from old coffee grounds and coconut oil!
Learning how to lead a more sustainable lifestyle with your family has never been so fun.
