There are a million ways for you to help reduced your impact on your local environments. Here are some of the easiest ways to help from your home, school or office. We can all do a little something everyday!
Reduce energy consumptionSwitch Off - Turn appliances off at the wall when you're not using them
- Buddy Up - Opt for public transport or car pool to work or school with friend
- You're Hot then You're Cold - Set the temperature for a heated room in winter between 18-21°C and for a cooled room in summer between 24-26°C
- Think Global, Eat Local! - Buy fruit and veggies that are in season and locally produced to reduce food-related carbon emissions
- Don't Have a Cow Man! - Once a week, eat a vegetarian meal.
- Chill Out - Set the temperature of your fridge at 3-4°C and your freezer at -18°C
- Renew It - Choose renewables for your power choices
- Turn appliances off at the wall when you're not using them
- Once a week/month have a candlelit dinner with someone special.
- Boil the kettle using only the required amount of water.
- Wash dark clothing in cold water to help keep the colour in your clothes whilst saving energy.
- Dry your clothing on a washing line rather than using a clothes dryer. Your clothes will look better and wear longer!
Reduce water consumption
- Shower with a friend!
- Wash your face and/or brush your teeth in the shower and save time and water!
- Shave your legs before taking a shower and use running shower water to rinse off.
- Collect running water whilst waiting for it to 'warm up' and use it to water plants, rinse dishes or wash fruit and vegetables.
- When you're not swimming, place a cover over your pool to minimise water evaporation.
- Wash your pet(s) outdoors. Not only will you have a clean pet but you'll have watered your garden without even trying!
- Wash your car on the lawn and you'll water your lawn at the same time! Or wash your car using water-free cleaning products.
- Use a mop and bucket or broom to clean hard surface areas instead of a hose.
- Avoid flushing tissues, insects, cigarette butts, etc down the toilet. Discard these items in the bin instead.
Minimise wastage
- Minimise your food wastage by writing a shopping list and sticking to it. Make sure you take into account what you already have in the fridge, freezer and pantry.
- Buy fruit and vegetables that are in season which are at their peak of flavour, ripeness, quality and value. This will greatly reduce food-related carbon emissions. For more information, visit the Foodwise website.
- Grow your own herbs! Pots of herbs can be bought from most supermarkets so you won't just get freshly picked herbs, but you'll reduce waste and save money too.
- Bottle your own filtered tap water instead of purchasing plastic bottled water.
- Don't discard leftover dinner. Instead, bring it to work or school for lunch in a reusable container.
- Let's go shopping... but don't forget your reusable bags! Put a reminder on your front door or in your car, so that you don't forget them.
- Recycle old clothing as rags for cleaning.
- Enjoy your daily coffee ritual from an ecofriendly coffee cup! Your reuseable cup can be cleaned and re-used over and over again, minimising your daily impact on the environment by reducing unwanted rubbish.
- Carry a pocket ashtray - a portable, reusable, air-tight container you can keep in your car, bag or pocket to dispose cigarette butts when there is no bin. Why not send a FREE pocket ashtray to a friend?
- Become a recycling ninja! Know what to recycle, what to avoid and what to reuse.
Be ecofriendly
- Next time you visit the beach, do your bit and Take 3 for the Sea! Pick up three pieces (or more!) of rubbish that you come across... even if it's not yours.
- Use an ecotourism provider on your next holiday. Visit the Ethical Escape website for information on ecofriendly holidays and accommodation.
- Save money and fuel by travelling to work or school with a group of friends.
- Buy organic food when possible. These foods are grown without pesticides or herbicides which pollute our waterways and reduce the fertility of our soil.
- Buy products that don't contain palm oil. The Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation (BOS) website has a list of palm oil free alternatives.
- Use non-stick cookware to reduce the need for cooking oil. If you need to use oil, try cooking sprays or apply oil with a pastry brush. Or substitute oil for liquids such as stock, wine, lemon juice, fruit juice, vinegar or water.
- Once a week/month eat seafood that is sustainable. For more information, visit Australia's Sustainable Seafood Guide. You can also download the Australian Marine Conservation Socierty's FREE iPhone app!
- Once a week/month eat a vegetarian meal. How about a stir fry?
- Use ecofriendly cleaning products. Some major supermarkets have introduced environmentally friendly cleaning products that are easy on the budget. Alternatively, you can use eucalyptus oil for a number of household purposes.
- Use cosmetics containing wholesome natural raw ingredients that serve to beautify and care for the human body whilst being friendly to the environment. Why not apply your makeup using ecofriendly tools aswell? Check out EcoTools.