5 Ways to Be Responsible & Sustainable

 

If you’ve been following these blogs you know the amazing things the Sustainable Development Goals are aiming to make a reality. We should all want these goals achieved for the good of all life on this planet. The question is this: Are you ready to make a change?

Goal 12 of the SDGs is Responsible Consumption and Production. This is the goal that directly affects every person on the planet, as we will need everyone pulling their weight in order to make a real and permanent change.

Let’s look at five steps to responsible and sustainable living you can easily make.

The first step is to educate yourself about why you’re doing this. If you really understand the importance and effects of living sustainably it will be much easier to stay on task. It will also be easier to communicate to others why you’ve taken this step and why they should follow suit.

Do your research and get active, spreading the message and working to ensure the importance of it all doesn’t get lost or overshadowed by big business. Remember: knowledge is power and the more people who know about and go about living sustainably the better we’ll be.

The second step is something you are probably familiar with and likely have been doing to at least a small degree for years: embracing the 3 Rs. If all of us truly commit to the concept of reduce, reuse, recycle we can dramatically reduce the amount of waste we create and leave for future generations.

Start by reducing what you consume and what you get rid of. Don’t buy fast fashion or product that are meant to be quickly discarded. Be a smart shopper and buy products that aren’t covered in a copious amount of packaging. Think before you splurge: do I need this and am I going to use it?

Continue by really learning to reuse items and making it a part of your life. The good news is there are systems that can help you stay on track. Check out the MY ECO reuse app, a fantastic tool at your disposal that can help ensure you remember everything you need to reduce your footprint.

Then of course there is recycling. The important thing here is to ensure that when you are recycling you are doing so properly. Many major cities (including both Toronto and New York) have apps to help residents know what is recyclable and where their recyclables go. As well there are initiatives like iRecycle that can help you learn more about what and why you’re recycling.

The good news is once you start incorporating the 3 Rs it will quickly become a regular part of your life.

Step three is transit. Limiting emission-heavy transit is vital for a reduced footprint and we all need to do what we can to reduce the damage. In fact our cars are responsible for one-fifth of the carbon dioxide damaging our air.

For step four it’s time to look at your diet. According to a numerous studies including one done by PNAS a sustainable diet will lower greenhouse gas and pollution levels.

This means a sustainable diet is a big part of achieving goal 12.

Adopting a sustainable diet does not mean your diet has to be bland of course. Local food is not only better for the environment it tastes better.

Companies like GoodGuide are doing what they can to help bring more people to the sustainable side, offering the background info consumers need to make responsible decisions.

For those interested in supporting farmers’ markets check out Nootrix, a handy app that can help people find their closest food options. By showing you what markets are close by, what their hours are and what products they offer the app makes it easier for anyone wanting more information.

Another very important part of sustainable eating is the adoption of a plant-based diet. Numerous studies, including ones done by the Canadian Health Association, Oxford University and the French Environment and Energy Management Agency (ADEME) have all stressed the importance of going meatless. Considering how damaging the meat and dairy industries are in terms of their environmental impact switching to a vegetarian or vegan diet is one of the best things you can do to reduce your footprint.

Sustainable eating is the right thing to do and will improve your relationship with food.

Then of course there is step five, responsible energy choices.

We are in an era when sustainable and renewable energy options are becoming a stronger presence in the marketplace, giving consumers an option when it comes to how they want to power their modern lives.

Yes, the current sustainable energy system still has issues that need to be solved to truly be considered renewable but these modern energy innovators are a definite step up from our old systems and will help keep us on track towards a better world. Explore and embrace these new options.

If you want a better future the best thing you can do is learn to live sustainably. The good news is living sustainably will not severely damage or minimize your day-to-day life as we have myriad tools that can help you live both sustainably and well. It is absolutely worth it to do a bit of research into how you’re living and make a few (small) tweaks to switch to a more sustainable life. It’s actually the responsible thing to do.