Green Ideas for New Year's Resolutions

For many, the holiday season is a time when families come together, reflect on the past year and plan for changes in the upcoming new year.  With the hope that one of your New Year’s resolutions will be to incorporate more sustainable practices in your daily life, environmentally.  Below are some steps you can take to hit the ground running come January 1:

Recycle More

• Identify recyclable materials that you are not currently recycling, particularly ones that you use and throw away frequently (paperboard food packaging, plastic grocery bags, household batteries, cooking oil, electronics).
• Set up a place in your home to collect them and find a local recycler where you can drop them off periodically.  If you have curbside recycling service, find out everything that is accepted in your container.
• Inform everyone in your household about the effort to recycle new materials.
• If you receive money for recycling the material, save it up and use it as a reward for keeping up with the new effort.

Start Composting

Food is the #1 least recycled material in the U.S. or Food and paper are the two largest contributors to landfill, and make up more than half of all landfill waste.

• Decide what type of composting method you would like to start (cold composting, hot composting, trench composting, vermicomposting, etc.) and either make/purchase a container or choose a location for your compost.
• Educate members of your household on what type of materials can be composted and how the process works.
• One way to make this easy is by keeping an air-tight container inside your kitchen to collect compostable materials and then periodically transfer the contents to the compost location outside.
• To help convince household members to participate, remind everyone about the delicious vegetables and abundant flowers that will result from having your nutrient-rich compost in your garden.

Adopt an Alternative Method of Commuting to Work

• Decide which method of alternative commuting you would like to pursue (carpooling, public transportation, biking, walking).
• Set up a plan for your change (identify fellow carpoolers, research bus routes/times, figure out the time it would take to bike/walk, etc.).
• Make adjustments to your morning/afternoon routine to accommodate your change.
• Take the money saved in gas and reward yourself.

For more information on some of these and other positive changes you can make at home and at work, check out the green team central and resources sections on www.OneEnvironmentNetwork.net.