Tips to Help Reduce Your Carbon Footprint

I buy whole chickens and use the bones to make broth. I also make my own iced tea to eliminate containers and cost. We also use brita pictures instead of buying bottled water.

I compost an astonishing amount of waste with worms, easiest pets ever.I recycle newspaper right at home by using it dampened as worm bedding, coffee grounds with filters, rotten fruit skins, moldy bread, veggie scraps and banana peels, toss it in once a week and in return get the best fertilizer for your house plants and garden. Toilet paper rolls, grass clippings, fallen leaves, all of it stays right here instead of going to a landfill and becomes wormy goodness that makes everything green. I know what is in the fertilizer I use on my garden now , that makes me feel better about growing fruits and vegetables too, which has made a big difference in making my diet healthier.

I compost an astonishing amount of waste with worms, easiest pets ever.I recycle newspaper right at home by using it dampened as worm bedding, coffee grounds with filters, rotten fruit skins, moldy bread, veggie scraps and banana peels, toss it in once a week and in return get the best fertilizer for your house plants and garden. Toilet paper rolls, grass clippings, fallen leaves, all of it stays right here instead of going to a landfill and becomes wormy goodness that makes everything green. I know what is in the fertilizer I use on my garden now , that makes me feel better about growing fruits and vegetables too, which has made a big difference in making my diet healthier.

I reuse any paper I received in the mail that I don't need to save, I use the back to write notes. I also do this with cards that I might get.

I grew up in the 70's and 80's, my step dad was all about turning off the lights when you step out of the room, not having the Overhead lights on unless you absolutely need it (use lamps instead), to not let the water run in the sink while brushing teeth or washing dishes in the sink fill the tub and then rinse in bulk so you dont keep the water running.. I used to think it was a pain for all that stuff, but now, it's a must to save a buck.

I'm lucky enough to live in CA. I have not used my heater once this Fall/Winter/Spring season. My family uses blankets and we've been doing "exercise classes" when we feel chilly. It's a ton of fun and it makes our family life very enjoyable. A family that plays together, stays together :) Another thing that I insist on is that all of us have reusable bags to take to our stores. We haven't used a store plastic or paper bag in months. And we are much happier for it - who has the space to save those bags?

My tip is a combination recycling/gardening one. We live in a cool climate, so we cannot actually start seeds outdoors til mid-May. However, you need to start some seeds indoors in order to have producenin our short growing season. So, we've started our tomatoes already and will start peppers this weekend indoors, in the little seed starter sets. Our only challenge will come in another week or so, when the plants' roots will have taken up all the soil in the peat starters. So, we have been saving large plastic juice bottles (like Ocean Spray), milk cartons, large canned food cans and styrofoam cups to move the tomato and pepper starts to when they outgrow the peat planters. These will serve as the intermediate containers for the plants and some added soil until it's warm enough to put them outside. Then, everything but the styrofoam will be recycled again!

I try to save wherever we can...my computer is always shut off if we are not using it..also i make everyone unplug their cell phone , ipod etc chargers from the wall...even when not charging, they are using electriciy...also i get the grocery bags and use them to tote my recycle bottles back to the store and use them for pooper scooping...

I try to save wherever we can...my computer is always shut off if we are not using it..also i make everyone unplug their cell phone , ipod etc chargers from the wall...even when not charging, they are using electriciy...also i get the grocery bags and use them to tote my recycle bottles back to the store and use them for pooper scooping...

Not all of our toilets are low-flow, so in the older ones that aren't we place a brick in the tank so that they use less water per flush.

i make my own detergent

I use reusable grocery bags anytime I go grocery shopping- it's a great way to save the environment, and I also get 5 cents off of my bill for every bag I use! I also use a reusable Nalgene bottle while teaching so I can avoid using tons of water bottles. At the same time, I collect the water bottles that my students leave in my room and recycle them at the grocery store! I also love to donate my old clothes to the salvation army so I can help others and also get rid of the clothes in an economical way!

Instead of pouring harsh chemicals down your drains to keep them clear, pour boiling water down them as often as once a week. The boiling water will clean off the soap that sticks to the sides of the pipes. This is important because hair and other debris will stick to the soap, causing a clog. Its good for the environment because: a) no production and use of chemicals, b) less automobile trips by the drain man to clean out your pipes.

I keep my blinds open during the day so I don't have to turn on the lights. It also heats up my home in the Winter.

We bought restaurant napkins at the Sam's, instead of using so many napkins in my family of 5. They are washable and reusable for years! Laundry is done only once a week and mostly cold water.