My Environmental Resolutions in 2019
This past year, climate change felt scarier than ever. The environmental reports painted a very bleak picture for our planet's future and I started wondering if my children would grow to experience a New England without snow, among other things. For this and so many other reasons, I've decided I need to up my environmental efforts this year. I wish we would all collectively agree to do more—even things that make us a little uncomfortable—for the benefit of this beautiful planet we share.
So below is my list of things my family already does and things we plan on doing. It is by no means exhaustive and will undoubtedly change but it's certainly a start. My husband has vowed to eat less meat this year (he's our worst offender) and I am going to try to steer our picky toddler away from processed meats and packaged foods more toward fresh vegetables and fruits (wish me luck!).
I hope this list encourages others and if you read this and have any ideas that aren't included below, please don't hesitate to reach out!
Here's what we already do and plan to continue:
Recycle
Compost
Grow our own organic vegetable garden
Eat less meat (and only choose responsible farmers)
Embrace leftovers
Eat almost exclusively organic and avoiding GMO's
Eat locally whenever possible
Eat seasonally
Avoid food & beauty products with palm oil (google it)
Can and pickle extra vegetables (we pickle the peppers from our garden each year and our neighbor makes crabapple jelly from our tree)
Use environmentally friendly hair, beauty and cleaning products
Air dry most laundry
Don't over-heat or over-cool the house
Turn off lights when not in use (we can do better)
Use reusable stainless steel straws
Never buy bottled water
Don't idle car engine, even in winter
Commute via public trans (my husband)
Use LED light bulbs
Here are the things we are planning on doing this year to increase our efforts:
Buy bees wax paper and remove plastic wrap from our home (I found a bunch of nice options on Amazon)
Invest in environmentally/ethically responsible companies
Plant more bee-friendly perennials
Get more house plants (and keep them alive!)
Buy more foods in bulk to cut down on unnecessary packaging
Pick up litter when spotted whenever and wherever I go for a walk (I haven't been consistent with this but this year, I vow to up my efforts and get my son involved, too)
Lastly, we are also considering hosting a bee hive on our property (check out bestbees.com). We've wanted to do this for some time but it is a significant investment. Hopefully this is the year we can make it happen!