Summer is finally here! You've made it through finals, packing up your room at school, and the journey back to wherever you call home all in one piece. But now what? What are you doing this summer? I can answer that for you—you're going green. Whether you think so or not, being green is the cool thing to do, so whatever summer plans you have, whatever bucket list you've made, add "showing the Earth your gratitude" to the agenda.
Why?
Why should you even want to "go green" this summer?
Besides it being the trendy thing to do, there are three main reasons you should be green this summer.
- EASY PEEZY. It's SO easy. There are so many ways to be green that will make little to no changes in your daily routine, and the rest will become habit.
- EARTH IS FAMILY. As a citizen of the Earth, it's pretty much your duty to show it how much you love it. Do you tell your mom, dad, sister, brother, grandma, grandpa, dog, cat, hedgehog, that you love them before you go to bed at night, before you hang up the phone, before you leave the house? I hope so. Do you hug them and kiss them? Make them dinner once in a while? Again, I hope so. So why wouldn't you show your love for your planet in a similar way? Just because it's not a relationship that comes to mind so easily, it's still a relationship that exists, and both parties should benefit in a healthy relationship.
- SPICE UP YOUR LIFE. If you're spending your summer in your hometown, chances are you've got a pretty static routine, hanging out with the same crew from high school every night, sitting in your cars in the same parking lot you have since 9th grade, waiting for it to be 10 p.m. so you can go to Applebee's and get half off apps. Okay maybe that's just how my summers go, BUT my point is that we all get caught in these routines, and even though we love them, it's the same old same old. Make a small change in your day or your night and make life exciting!
How?
How are you going to take action to "be green" this summer?
These lovely ideas have been useful to be courtesy of www.conservation.org (a favorite of mine), but my goal is to cater these three actions to your lives.
1. Switch up your Noms.
You may or may not be a vegetarian. If you are, you may choose to cut meat out of your diet for a number of reasons; health, religion, animal rights, or environmental— awesome, go you! If you are a happy carnivore and meat lover, don't feel bad about yourself. It's definitely a tough cut to make. I can't do it myself, so I wouldn't preach to anyone else that they should. However, it's important to note the environmental issues that follow our meat industry. A study conducted by Cornell Ecologists, David and Marcia Pimentel, concluded that a meat-based food system requires more energy, land, and water resources than a lacto-ovo-vegetarian diet. [Note: lacto-ovo-vegetarian is someone who cuts out meat and eggs from their diet, but eats dairy products]. Basically, meat requires an extreme amount of energy and water to produce. Eating a plant-based diet is ultimately more environmentally friendly. This can be nearly impossible for some people to do. And that's okay. How about going meat-free one day a week. Just one! Do you think you could do it?
Use this as an excuse to try something new. Ever try a black bean burger, quinoa patty, or veggie fries? They're absolutely delicious and meat-free!
Or use it as an excuse to get pizza for lunch every Friday. I'm not judging you. I'm from New York, I don't say no to pizza. Just say no to the pepperoni and other meat toppings. Keep it to cheesy goodness or add a bunch of veggies for a more filling and nutritious meal.
I mentioned this to my best friend, a chick who eats a gross amount of meat, has always said she could never give it up. I asked her to take on the challenge, and while she claims she can't do one day, she is willing to do one meal a week. (I personally think she's a wimp).
But hey, one meal a week could turn to one day a week could even turn to more than a day a week, and my friends, anything makes a difference. I will applaud you for any effort.
2. Shop in style and hydrate, just because.
Reusable bags, containers, water bottles—they're all your friends! First, I'd like to ask you to think about the amount of plastic bags you bring home from the grocery store, shopping mall, CVS after picking up a single thing of deodorant. It's a lot, excessive even. I can prove this because when I was cleaning out the kitchen in my apartment a couple of weeks ago, I emptied two entire drawers filled with them. I lived with five other girls and one guy. I can confidently say that I only brought home a plastic bag maybe 5 times throughout the entire year. The amount of plastic bags that came as a result of six college students shopping in two semesters was nauseating.
I'm not going to lecture you about why plastic bags are bad, but to keep it simple we can throw it back to the three R's we've learned about since kindergarten. Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle. They're listed in that order for a reason. All of those bags I found at the end of the semester had been used only once. They were used to get groceries from Harris Teeter, to the car, up the stairs, into the apartment, into the fridge and cabinets, and then they were folded or crumbled up and put away never to be seen again until move-out day. Yes, these bags can be recycled. A lot of grocery stores now have bins where you can put your plastic bags to be recycled, and I encourage you all to do that if necessary. Recycling in many cases takes a lot of energy too, you know.
So what is the better option, reuse! Girls, there are some SUPER cute reusable bags out there; and boys, there are also some totally gender neutral, earthy looking reusable bags out there for you, too. Take my word for it; people respect you more when you bring your own bag. (They still respect you but also think you're crazy when you forget your reusable bags and insist on carrying all your things in your hands. Guys, you will look manlier if you take this approach). Another pro to using reusable bags is that you can fit way more items in one bag than you could with standard plastic bags. A reusable bag is also sturdier and easier to carry; so much better than cutting off the circulation in your wrists and arms as you struggle to get all of your bags from the car to the kitchen. Also, you can even get a discount on your order many times! Save your arms, save the planet, save money—nothing better!
Reusable water bottles and tumbler cups are also super trendy right now, coming in tons of fun colors and designs. The beauty of these bad boys is that you:
- Always know which one is yours. Put fun stickers on it and make it unique.
- Are more likely to drink the entire thing and then fill it up a water fountain or filtered water source as opposed to throwing it out to go buy a new bottled water.
- Will find yourself drinking more water than ever before, which is great for your health and your wallet! If you go grab a bite to eat and have your filled reusable water bottle with you, you'll be very unlikely to ask for that cup of soda or bottled water that costs God knows how much. (These come up clutch especially in airports when bottled water costs more than a meal from CookOut).
3. Point A to Point B
How are you getting around this summer? Whether it's your commute to work, a trip to the mall, or going to hang by a friend's pool, you're most likely going to be driving. Change things up to travel green! Three great options for reducing your carbon footprint are:
- Carpooling. Most often in the cases of driving to parties where there will be alcohol present, a lot of us already utilize the greatness that is carpooling. Keep that up, and keep it safe of course. What about meeting a friend for lunch or a day at the beach? Unless you live on completely different sides of town, swoop by and pick a friend up! There's no need for you both to drive separately. Limit the amount of vehicles you utilize as much as possible, but definitely don't pack a car past its maximum capacity.
- Public Transportation. Figure out your town's bus system! What could be more of an adventure than getting on a bus you've never been on? There's a whole group of people who take the bus that you haven't been exposed to because you've been too busy driving all alone in your car. Also, bus fares tend to be close to nothing compared to the amount it probably takes to fill your gas tank (unless you have a hybrid then you're a winner). Jump on a train into the city (whatever city is closest to you) instead of driving in what's most likely to be a bunch of traffic. The LIRR is Long Islander's saving grace to get into New York City, and I'd never even think of driving. Ticket prices are going up, yes, but I'd say worth it once you consider gas, and the planet, and not having to drive in traffic, and being able to eat and drink on the way there. (Food is always on the mind).
- Ride your bike. Or walk! My friends and I used to walk and ride our bikes everywhere before we got our licenses. That's why we were skinny high school freshmen and chubby high school seniors. Riding our bikes to Panera for lunch turned into driving to Taco Bell at 2am. Those changes were in fact evident in our appearances; check the yearbooks if you don't believe me. But seriously, ride your bike! It's an awesome way to be more active and get in better shape without specifically taking time out of your day to do so. If you ride your bike to work just one day a week you could reduce your carbon emissions by 20% annually. That's insane, and super awesome, and super possible.
This place we live is an incredible planet! There should be nothing keeping us from trying to have a healthy relationship with the place we call home. Would you say no to couple's therapy with your life-long partner? No, so make summer 2k15 a green one for smiles all around.
