Money Saving While Climate Saving

On a planet where prices are rapidly rising in all sectors, considering the state of our environment is often not prioritized by consumers. Generally, as buyers we associate eco-friendly products with a higher cost. Yet in many ways, the more affordable options in the market are surprisingly eco-friendly options. Simultaneous to cutting down expenses, you can play a role in mitigating the effects of climate change.

Wear Recycled or Thrifted Clothing

Clothing brands often restock inventory and create new garments to keep pace with the rapid passing of trends. While superficially this may seem like a positive thing, the throwing away and buying of new clothes happening at a rapid rate only has negative effects on the planet and people. Instead of engaging with the fast fashion industry, choose to save money and shop at a local consignment shop or seek out used clothing online through apps like TheRealReal, Vestiaire Collective, or ThredUp.

Use Public Transportation

As transportation related carbon dioxide emissions have risen, so have gas prices. If you have access to public transportation, consider cutting your emissions and spendings on transportation with a switch to buses, subways, commuter trains or even ferries.

Hydrate With A Reusable Bottle

In 2018, Americans spent 31 billion dollars on bottled water. These bottles are often used just once before they are tossed into landfills to accumulate in large piles. Fortunately, there is an affordable and eco-friendly alternative: a reusable water bottle. If you have access to clean drinking water straight from the tap, then this proves to be a very simple transition. If you are concerned about drinking your local water supply, then consider purchasing a water filtering unit, like a Brita. The Berkshire Edge reports, “For about $70/year (cost of the pitcher, 8 filters, and tap water for two people), you can filter a year’s worth of 1-gallon jugs, which would cost you just over $500 in plastic water bottles.”

Turn Off Appliances and Lights

The production of energy used to power our homes is directly correlated to air pollution, climate change, water pollution as well as thermal pollution. Simply remembering to switch the lights off or turn off the television when leaving the room can significantly reduce your electricity bills and lower demand for energy production.

Go Paperless

Formstack reports, “Worldwide consumption of paper has risen by 400% in the last 40 years, with 35% of harvested trees being used for paper manufacturing.” As an individual, a simple approach to reducing your role in this immense consumption of paper is going paperless. In the settings of your bank and utility provider’s websites there should be a box that you can select to “go paperless.” As for “junk mail”, the website OptOutPrescreen.com which serves to keep junk mail out of your mailbox.

Sources:

• Felton, Ryan. “Should We Break Our Bottled Water Habit?” Consumer Reports, 26 Sept. 2019, https://www.consumerreports.org/epa/should-we-break-our-bottled-water-habit-a5667672175/.

• “Mind Blowing Paper Consumption Statistics: Formstack Blog.” Mind Blowing Paper Consumption Statistics | Formstack Blog, https://www.formstack.com/resources/blog-paper-statistics.

• Ritchie, Hannah, et al. “Energy Production and Consumption.” Our World in Data, 28 Nov. 2020, https://ourworldindata.org/energy-production-consumption.