Average Jane and the Environment

Saving money while saving the environment? Is that even possible? Just like you I’m not some billionaire. I don’t own a huge company. I have very little influence in the world. So the real question is, how do I, a small business owning, average, working class woman living off a limit budget help to save the environment? The answer: in so many small ways. On their own they don’t seem like much. Together they add up to a better world.

Where do I start? I’d have to begin with transportation. It’s a tricky one for sure. You don’t want to lose your independence by completely giving up your car. Taking Uber isn’t actually saving any gas emissions. Taking public transportation isn’t always easily accessible in all neighborhoods. You really want to buy that hybrid car all the stars are talking about but can’t even afford a car that doesn’t break down at least once a year. So how do you go about reducing your gas emissions?

For starters, I always plan out my trips to the store. Why am I going to the store? If the answer is “I’m bored” or “I just wanted to look around” then most likely I either won’t buy anything or I’ll buy something I really can’t afford. The better option here is going for a walk instead. Whether it’s a beautiful day or a rainy day, going out for a walk can be interesting when you’re paying attention to the world around you. You can even bring a friend or your favorite music. Ultimately, that one walk will save gas, money and help your health. If you can’t walk much due to health issues? Find a favorite book and comfy spot, indoors or out, for some one on one time with your favorite characters.

When my answer is that I need to go to the store, I still like to plan out why I’m going to the store. I can determine which stores would offer the least trips around the surrounding neighborhoods. This doesn’t mean you have to shop at a big box store where you can buy clothing and food at one place. You can shop there, but honestly I prefer local small businesses. By planning out what I’m buying first I might find that one of the stores is in easy walking distance and doesn’t need a car at all. I may also find that a few of the stores are close enough together that I can park in a centralized location and walk between the stores. By planning out my shopping trips I’m also not just saving gas, money’s being saved by making sure it’s not spent on a bunch of extra items I don’t need. It doesn’t take much time and can be a real help to make up that list.

You may have noticed I said I prefer local small businesses. There are multiple reasons for shopping local. Yes, one of them is that I am a local small business so that just seems smart to support shopping local. Another reason is that, as a small business owner and crafter myself, I know that smaller businesses are more likely to sell items safer for the environment. The hand crafted foods at small businesses are often made with only natural ingredients. Because it can save the owner money they often times will buy ingredients like bacon ends that would otherwise have been thrown in the trash by butchers. This goes for other products as well. From body products to furniture small businesses buy and craft smarter to save money and attract the customer.

Are small businesses going to be more affordable for you the customer? In some cases, no, they won’t. In others they may be a little cheaper or the same. It depends on the business and is worth looking into. There is something else I like to keep in mind while shopping and that is quality. Yes, those big box stores may be selling items that are less money, but often times those non environmentally friendly options aren’t going to last you as long either. I’ve found that furniture built by locals is likely to last me years longer than anything bought from the big box stores. Butter from the Amish is richer and so used less than butter from the supermarket. The responsible body shop may cost three times more than the cheap product but last three to four times longer. Quality can cause you to use so much less, which in itself is better for the planet.

You can also consider some of those green online shops. I had never considered it until I started having a bad reaction to my deodorant. I tried all different natural options with no success. I finally found a natural deodorant and as I was browsing online stores for it I ran across a green company that sold that deodorant at a reasonable price. Like myself you may not be so sure about these companies at first. There was an annual subscription fee, which I tend to avoid, and even though you didn’t need to place an order every month they encouraged it so as to reduce shipping waste. To keep an open mind I decided to give their free trial offer a chance. It was great! Their products are all made to be safe for our water ways and they try to be environmentally conscious in other ways as well. The prices aren’t bad and the product works really well. From them I’m buying things like toilet paper made from responsibly sourced bamboo, scrub pads for my dishes made from walnut, shampoos that come in a tablet form rather than in a plastic bottle and all sorts of other items I never could have dreamed were available. I used to feel guilty with the home products I used. Now I feel confident cleaning my home with ocean safe products in reusable bottles. Even better, it all comes shipped together in fully recyclable materials. No foam peanuts or plastic bubbles are involved in the shipping.

Don’t worry, it’s not all about our shopping habits. You’re stuck on the products you like and don’t want to change? I get that. There are others ways I’ve learned to help reduce carbon emissions and save our planet. These little tips for around the home weren’t easy at first, as I had to change some of my living habits but I’ve gotten used to them.

You can start with electricity. How much electricity are we using? I really had to stop to ask myself that one day. I wasn’t really sure. The answer for me was “too much!”. Maybe some of you are already not using a lot but for me as time went on and more electronics joined my home the power consumption increased. I had to start forming new habits all over the home. Lights that had been temporarily left on for convenience when I was only leaving the room for a little bit are now turned off. Charging cords and appliances are now unplugged when not in use. It’s a little bit of a hassle to turn off the tv systems and have them reboot every day, but if I know they won’t be used for a while they too get turned off. I save the batteries and electric by only charging my phone for the amount of time it takes to charge and no longer. I also save battery waste by removing the batteries from remotes and scales when not in use. It makes the batteries last longer. Really, it’s about remembering that every item that is plugged in and every light that’s turned on is using electricity. By paying attention to these thing you can help save the planet and reduce your power bill.

Another item I found very helpful and important was food. I don’t mean buying meats packaged in paper instead of plastic or using water filters in place of bottled water. That stuff is good but I’m referring to actual food consumption. It seems strange but you can reduce waste by eating and cooking properly. I stopped one day to think about the fact that I was buying chicken and beef broth in containers that were ending up in the recycling bin. Yes, it’s good to recycle, but surely if I know how to make stock then I shouldn’t have to go through so many containers. After that I started making my own stock. Every time I make up a chicken, some drumsticks, or I cut the ends off vegetables I place them in a freezer stock bag. Once I have enough chicken scraps I place the bones, some of the vegetables and some seasoning in my crockpot and make chicken stock. Once I have the vegetables for beef stock I go to my local butcher to buy cheap bones, roast them up and do the same as for the chicken. Once the stock is made it’s frozen in reusable cupcake tins and placed in a reusable freezer bag. After that I started looking at all my foods in a different way. I went online and found that most of the things I was buying prepared in cans and boxes were actually really easy to make from fresh ingredients. My recycling can and trash can don’t get full nearly as fast anymore.

I also found the value of buying my food in smaller quantities. You may have noticed this happening yourselves, it seemed that there was far too much food waste ending up in the trash can. Yes, I can compost my food to feed my oxygen providing plants but there was still too much food waste. So I began buying about one week’s worth of food at a time. By buying a week at a time I found that I was less likely to change my mind about what meals I wanted to eat and the food was less likely to go bad. I even found a company for my produce I fell in love with because they sell different companies surplus and unwanted ‘uglies’. Their produce is even cheaper than at the store. My refrigerator now doesn’t have to work as hard from large quantities of food either. It was a small change to shop each week, yet made a huge difference.

I agree that large companies need to do more but we can start with all the little things. I really hope some of my advice here gives you the inspiration to follow suite. Maybe if enough of us can make those little changes it will effect our tomorrow for the better. It may even encourage those large companies to make the large changes we, the average Janes and Joes, aren’t in the position to make ourselves.