This week, someone shared a Facebook post with me about the environment. I don’t know about you, but I am so grateful to wake up and be living in a place filled with beauty. The mountains, the trees, the parks, the ocean, even the neighborhood ponds and streams - all seem so precious and fragile, it’s up to each of us to do what we can protect the natural habitats we live in. None of us want to walk down a street filled with garbage, and none of us want to consume tiny pieces of plastic along with our seafood. By working together, we can protect what we love.
Recently there were so many dead tufted puffins on my favorite beach in Manzanita that I was floored by it. We walk our dogs there and often interact with the other dog owners. On this day I happened to meet a ornithologist who told me the birds had died because there food sources were drying up, and they had not been able to adapt to eat other foods from the ocean. In 2016 they died in droves and it looks like it is happening again.
What can we do to set things right, and make sure our fantastic human progress is fantastic for the planet too? Turns out it's super simple. Here are some things I've started doing:
1. Cut down on the plastic in your life
- Get yourself some reusable bags and keep them in your car, your desk, your purse, and at home. That way, you'll never be caught short at a grocery store ;)
- Let your veggies roam free! When you reach for that plastic bag to pop your potatoes in, think "Do I really need this?" If the answer is no, just pop them in your trolley loosey-goosey.
- If your store has a bulk section, try it out. Many stores even let you bring your own jars, just make sure you write the empty weight on them so you don't get charged for the extra grams!
- Bring a water bottle with you everywhere you go, and if you want to go further, get yourself a reusable coffee mug too ;)
- Say no to straws. Americans use half a million straws per day, and a lot of them find their way into the ocean, to be consumed by our beloved sea creatures. Practice saying 'No straw please' at restaurants. Apart from saving your straw, you might get the waiter thinking too!
2. Change your habits
- Try walking or biking to your destinations.
- Find new friends to carpool with.
- Invest in energy-efficient lightbulbs and home appliances.
- Shop in thrift stores and vintage boutiques.
- Bring your lunch to work.
- Turn your hot water heater down a degree or two.
- Treat baths as a luxury - and make showers the norm.
- There are so many more, but you get the idea!
3. When you see trash, pick it up.
This one is a no-brainer. If you walk to work, or you have a dog, make it a habit to take an extra paper bag with you while you stroll, and pick up the trash you see along the way. Your neighbors will thank you, and you'll have saved some trash from entering storm drains, and eventually the ocean. Good job, #CreativeGeniusYOU
4. Educate Children
Explain to kids what you're doing, and why. Make it a game. Help them understand why this world is so important to us ❤
It's summer, Creative Geniuses. While you're out there exploring the world, show it some love. Make it a golden rule to reduce, re-use, recycle. |
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