First steps to a friendlier footprint

Climate change is no secret. I’m sure you’ve heard the words being thrown around; maybe you’re all over what it means, maybe you have no idea. Either way, you’re probably thinking “yeah, I care about the environment, but man, where do I even start?” Here are some simple ways you can start leaving a cleaner footprint on our beautiful planet:

Use the correct bins

Bear with me, this one may be complicated given how many people struggle with it: actually use your recycling bin. What a concept, am I right? Look, I know that sometimes it’s downright annoying to go that little bit further and separate your waste into recyclables and trash but honestly, it’s nothing in comparison to how we’ll feel when we don’t even have a planet to live on – well, not us specifically, but generations waaaaaay down the line. I like to leave my recycling in a tidy pile somewhere in my kitchen and then take it all out to my outside recycling bin in one trip. You could have two separate bins in your kitchen, one for general waste and the other for recycling. Whatever works for you. I also encourage you to go one step further and start a compost bin for your food waste. Just put all food scraps in one small bin and then you can pop it in your garden to fertilise your soil– it’s a win win.

Start a compost bin

Further to my point above, start putting your organic food scraps into a compost bin instead of the general waste. This is a great way to reduce the amount of food you throw out. Put foods like fruits and vegetables, coffee grounds, eggshells and tea bags in the same bin. Do not dispose of meat, dairy and oils this way. Materials like cardboard and newspapers can also be disposed of in the compost as well.

Cut down your plastics

Another really easy place to start is cutting down how much plastic you use and inevitably throw out. When you go shopping for fruit and vegetables, instead of using supplied plastic bags, take your own or skip the bag all together; if you’re buying something that has to be peeled, for example bananas, you probably don’t need a bag at all. Stop using single-use plastic bags. Buy some reusable bags, be an adult and take them when you go shopping. Don’t buy plastic straws. Get a reusable water bottle instead of buying single use water bottles from the shop. So often I hear people say “I always forget to refill my water bottle” or “I forget to bring my bags to the shop”. It’s time to be responsible people. We’re adults. If you do use plastics, see if you can put it in the recycling bin – remember: not all plastics can be recycled.

What can be recycled?

If you’re not sure if your plastics can be recycled, check the packaging for a number (usually found on the bottom). The number represents what type of plastic it is and you can use that to determine if you should recycle it. Plastics with numbers 1, 2, 3 and 5 can be recycled, 4 and 6 cannot be recycled. 7 is a tricky one because it includes a range of products. If you have something with a 7 on it, just Google whether or not that particular item can be recycled.

Be more conscious of what products you buy

FYI – everything you put on your skin and then wash off goes down the drain and into our waterways, filling our water with chemicals. Start making more Earth friendly choices with the products you buy. Skincare and hair products are a great place to start. Do some research and look for organic products that don’t contain toxic chemicals. We can also be friendlier to our animals by buying products, for example make up, that doesn’t test on animals. There are so much companies out there who are proud of the advances they’ve made in ruling out animal cruelty so a quick Google search will tell you if your favourite products are naughty or nice.

There are so many other things you can do and please, be my guest. This is not a comprehensive list; it is just a place to start.

It’s time we start looking after the place we all call home.