I've recently been binge-watching videos and reading articles about becoming more eco-friendly, and I've learned so much! I want to share some of my favorite eco-minimalist tips and tricks that are easy to incorporate into your life. I'll also share why each decision is important, and resources to help you be more eco-minimalist.
If you haven't read our previous post about the definition of an eco-minimalist, you can check it out here as well as some more good ideas for eco-minimalist changes you can make. Please note that I'm relatively new to this topic, so this will be a very beginner's set of tips. And I'm trying not to go for the super-obvious stuff, like reusable shopping bags, water containers, coffee mugs, etc.
I chose to split this up into 3 articles: beginner, intermediate, and advanced. I'm basing how I categorize these tips based on how affordable they are and also how much life disruption they might cause. I think going from 0 to 100 in one step is both stressful and not likely to be permanent.
I consider myself to be a beginner because I realized after all this research how little I actually understand about living sustainably. I thought I knew quite a bit, but I really didn't. I also misunderstood some things, and I'm betting I'm not the only one.
Also, note that I've been writing this post for months in the background while I published others. I want to be as accurate as possible, and that takes a lot more time than my usual articles. For that reason, I won't be publishing all 3 of these posts (beginner, intermediate, advanced eco-minimalist tips) in a row. There will also be more articles specific eco-minimalist topics that need space all to themselves.
Here's what to expect from this article:
- Don't buy anything
- Use up what you already have
- Buy second-hand
- Offset your carbon footprint
- Encourage companies to be more eco-friendly
I consider these tips eco-minimalist (and not just eco-friendly) because the focus is on taking just small steps to make an impact while consuming as little as possible.
Being good stewards to our planet is so, so important! According to an article from the NRDC (National Resources Defense Council), we have to cut emissions globally by 40% by 2030, and 2040 is the point of no return.
I don't know about you, but I fully plan on being around through 2040. That means I need to do my part to keep this planet alive. We are all in this together. I'd really appreciate it if you could share this article with others if you think they might be interested or learn something from it. If you already know all this information, rest assured that more "advanced" information is coming soon. Thanks for reading, and I'd love your feedback in the comments section if you have any more resources you want everyone to know about.
As usual, you can also save this post to Pinterest for later if you don't have time to read it now.
- Don't buy anything
I know it's pretty normal for me to automatically want to replace something when I'm running out of it or it breaks. But the truth is, we don't always need a replacement item. For example, I'm about to replace two pairs of sandals that are falling apart (seriously, one has a metal washer holding the thong in place) with a single pair that covers the function of both. However, if one pair was still functional, I would stick with that pair and not buy a second one.
Besides replacing things that you run out of, it can be tempting to buy new things that you haven't tried yet. I know some people love getting the latest electronic gadget that has come out, or whatever other product is different and innovative.
I have several different questions that I use to dissuade myself from buying things. I ask myself:- Do I really need this?
- How often will I actually use it?
- What goals am I achieving for myself by buying this item? What goals am I putting on the backburner by owning it?
- Is there something (or multiple things) that I already own that perform a similar function?
- How many hours do I have to work to pay for this? Do I have the money now, or would I have to go into debt to get it?
- Where would I put it?
- How much [food, rent, gas, utilities] could I buy with what I'll spend on this product?
- Do I know someone who already has this? Can I borrow it from them to try it out?
- Have I researched this product, its quality, the company's information, and consumer feedback thoroughly?
- If I wait [7 days, 30 days, 6 months] to buy it, will I still want it?
- And as an eco-friendly bonus: What were the resources used to make this item? When I'm done with this product, what will happen to it?
After going through all of those questions, I usually am not motivated to buy something anymore. It no longer seems appealing to spend money on it, and I realize that I've gone through life without this thing so far, and I've been fine. At the very least, I don't want to buy it brand-new.
To read about other ways to convince yourself to not buy, check out the articles in this web search I did.
Of course, there are some things that you have to buy, like food. For those items, try to plan out your shopping list well, and stick to them to avoid getting things you don't need. I'm going to do a separate post about buying food.
Another way to avoid buying more is to repair, reuse, or recycle/upcycle what you already have.
For example, when I get to my crafts articles, I'm going to show you ways I take things I owned and turned them into other things. I also use old containers from just about anything, like cosmetics, protein powder, and pasta jars, and reuse them to store whatever fits in them.
I'm a fan of making repairs wherever possible to things I own instead of throwing them away or donating them. I haven't bought any socks in about 5 years because I use an old-school technique called "darning" to fix them.
I also repaired my smartphone after owning it for 4+ years when the "permanent" battery went out. I'm not very mechanically inclined, so I took it to Batteries Plus; they charged $99, but when they were done, the phone worked as good as new again.
One thing that people don't often talk about when it comes to sustainability is to provide proper care and maintenance to what you own to make it last longer. I have a thrifted sewing machine that may be older than I am, and it still works great because I learned how to maintain it myself. I've also read that car maintenance lowers emissions and improves mileage. My car is a 15-year-old Toyota RAV4 with 180,000 miles on it. I do the recommended maintenance on it and it still gets over 18 miles per gallon.
2. Use up what you already have
I'm definitely guilty of buying something, realizing I don't want it, and then it sits around unused.
For example, I realized recently that I really don't need to use conditioner on my hair. It's very straight, quite short, and seems to fall in the "non-porous hair" category. I don't ever dye it or use hair products or heat on it (because non-porous hair doesn't "take" products or styling easily), so it doesn't get tangled, damaged, or dried out. I only use conditioner once every few months, so I've had it forever. I've decided that I'm going to use the remainder of the conditioner as shaving cream, and after it's used up I won't be buying any more.
I could just throw out the rest of the conditioner. But that feels wasteful, so I'm going to keep at it. It's taking me a long time. However, there isn't a deadline and it isn't taking up space that I'll use for something else.
Sometimes, there's something that you really can't use. Maybe you bought a skincare product then found out you're allergic to it. It's tempting to just throw those things away, because who's going to want a partially-used something, right?
I encourage you to not assume that nobody wants it. I belong to a local Buy Nothing group (https://buynothingproject.org), and you'd be surprised what people are willing to take that is not brand-new. I see posts for food (like half-empty containers of baby formula or a package of cookies with one eaten), partially-used cosmetics, broken items, empty Amazon boxes, packing materials, wood scraps...the list goes on. Not to mention what people offer on places like Craigslist for free. eBay also has stuff that people sell that is clearly broken, or used, for parts! I watched this one video about a couple who makes $3000/month from dumpster diving. In one instance, they sold used disposable cameras to this guy who wanted the transducers for his electronics projects.
People also make art out of items salvaged from landfills. How cool is that? You can see some examples on the NRDC website at (https://www.nrdc.org/onearth/turning-landfill-make-fine-art). But why wait until something gets to the landfill? You can reach out to artists in your area doing similar work and see if they want donations.
Here are some other places where you can sell or give away unwanted items:
General marketplaces
Preloved and Freeloved
Amazon
Facebook Marketplace and Facebook groups
Freecycle (Trash Nothing)
OfferUp
Gumtree
Vintage Cash Now
Local consignment stores, thrift/secondhand stores, pawnshops, garage sales, flea markets
Nextdoor
5Miles
eBid
Bonanza
Etsy
Clothing and shoes
Mercari, Depop, Poshmark, Tradesy, LePrix, Buffalo Exchange, Vinted, and thredUP
If you own Eileen Fisher clothing that is damaged, you can bring it to a local store. They will either repair it, or recycle it into a new piece if unrepairable, and will give you a credit for recycling their clothes. They're a Certified B Corp and have a lot of detail online about the steps they take to be compassionate toward the planet, their employees, and their customers. They also have a great article here called "Why You Should Recycle Everything In Your Closet."
Nike takes back all sneakers (not just their brand) through their Reuse-a-Shoe program
Levi Strauss is working to make their jeans and stores more sustainable. According to their website, they have in-store Tailor Shops at their flagship stores, where you can bring denim "to be repaired or repurposed."
The Blue Jeans Go Green program takes denim and recycles it into the insulation. Many participating clothing stores give you store credit for your donation. You can check their website for a store near you.
The North Face started the Clothes the Loop program to take clothes AND shoes in any condition from any brand at their stores and give you $10 off your next purchase of $100 or more. I may be bringing my two pairs of worn-out sandals to them--I'm trying to figure out which company will do the best with worn-out shoes.
Speaking of sandals, the brand Okabashi (found at Target and online) is where I found my latest pair of sandals to replace the broken-down ones. They have a 2-year limited warranty on their shoes, which are ethically and sustainably made in America. You can machine-wash or put them in the dishwasher! And once they're at the end of their life, you can send them back to be recycled and receive a 15% off promo code. 😍
If your shoes are gently worn, you can donate them to the Soles4Souls program, which provides aid for disaster relief, small businesses in developing countries, and unhoused persons.
H&M claims their garment recycling program is "the world's biggest" globally. They will give you a store credit, too. They're still a fast-fashion company, but if they're what you have available, then it's better than a landfill.
Clothing swaps (find one or start your own!)
Books, CDs, Games, Electronics
Ziffit
Decluttr
Music Magpie
Cash4books.net
Abundatrade
The Gone app
Swappa
Gazelle
Reverb (for musical instruments)
Collectibles, Antiques, and Art
Collectors.com
idonowidont.com (jewelry)
CommicConnect
Metropolis Comics
Ruby Lane
ArtFire
Redbubble
Saatchi Art
society6
*A note about these resources: Please do your own research on each company for their current programs. While I tried to research each company to provide basic details, things can always change! I will try to update this page periodically, but I don't have the bandwidth to check on them all constantly.
3. Buy second-hand
Go for second-hand as your first choice. Not only is this more sustainable, but it's usually more cost-effective. Also, older items tend to be more durable because they were built to last, and you can get better quality items than you might be able to afford new. You can take advantage of what people discard because they always want the latest thing, and usually find gently used (or brand new) things in the "used" resale markets listed in the previous section.
For almost 100 years now, greedy product manufacturers have used "planned obsolescence" to ensure things break or outdate quickly and you have to spend more money to replace them. From what I saw, it started in 1924 with lightbulb manufacturers, and other industries have unfortunately jumped on that bandwagon. That's why your new smartphone starts to lag after only a year of use (Apple was caught red-handed doing this on purpose!) and it seems like my printer breaks every year or 2.
I follow an emotional-hoarder-turned-minimalist, Marissa Zen, who said she still uses the food processor she inherited from her mom. It's over 40 years old and still works perfectly. Can you imagine the average food processor you buy today lasting for 40 years? No way!
When looking for used clothing, try to avoid clothes that require dry-cleaning. There's a lot of evidence that dry-cleaning chemicals cause cancer, to the point that it might even be dangerous to bring dry-cleaned clothes into your house. Go for natural fabrics (cotton or linen is best). But give yourself some grace; it's tough to find 100% cotton clothing. There is so much clothing going into landfills; this topic needs its own post.
My go-to, when I need to buy anything, is always to visit my local thrift store first. I'm lucky to have a few independently-owned stores in my area as well as the big chains, Goodwill and Salvation Army, so it's (probably) the lowest carbon footprint for me to check there first. I prefer to support the smallest business first and then go to the larger places. If I had to pick between Salvation Army and Goodwill, I would always go with Salvation first, because it's a charity. This means store profits and donated funds typically go directly to help those who need it. Meanwhile, although Goodwill is a nonprofit, they pay a LOT of money to their CEO (at least $720,000 per year). Goodwill is often more expensive, as well.
Neither organization is perfect as is true with a lot of big companies. Plus, both have been known to redistribute their inventory across long distances, which is not the most sustainable method (though I understand why they probably do it). That's why I go to the local small shops first.
I know in other places I've been, I've seen other second-hand and thrift stores like Savers, St. Vincent De Paul, Plato's Closet, the American Cancer Society Thrift, Humane Society Thrift, and Habitat for Humanity ReStore (mostly for home goods and construction/remodeling supplies).
If you don't have any second-hand stores near you, the online options I mentioned in the above section make second-hand shopping possible. Here are some more options I found when searching for online thrift stores. If you have tried any of these, please comment about your experience. 👇
Goodfair
Thrift2U
Thrift Seekers
Swap.com
Thrifted.com
299thrift.com
OnlineThrift.net
AMVETS Thrift Store
Vegas Vultur
I'll mention again about Facebook Marketplace--I have relatives who live in very remote rural areas that don't have a Craigslist option within an hour of them. They use FB to find used goods. Some local papers also offer free ads in their online edition to people who are giving away things for free.
4. Offset your carbon footprint
If you want some basic suggestions to reduce your footprint, you can visit the EPA's free carbon footprint calculator at https://www3.epa.gov/carbon-
There are lots of really easy, free things you can do. Some also save you money. For example, switching from hot water to cold to wash your clothes, driving less aggressively, recycling, and using rechargeable batteries.
But a lot of us have no choice about having a higher carbon footprint. If the nearest grocery store is an hour away and there is no public transportation, then you have to drive. Or if you're home-bound, you probably need to order just about everything to be delivered to you. Even though I live in a metropolitan area, I still have difficulties finding things I need locally and have to get them shipped to me.
If you have similar issues, you can look at ways where your carbon footprint can be offset. The way this works is to help out with projects that work to reverse climate change. So while you aren't changing what you do in your life, you're supporting other people or organizations to reduce a regional or global carbon footprint. We all share the same atmosphere, after all, so it all adds up to help.
One of my favorite methods to offset my carbon footprint is using the search engine Ecosia. It's free, they're careful with your privacy, and each time you use it, they plant a tree. They're a Certified B Corp, too.
The internet is a very carbon-heavy place (lots of energy-sucking equipment involved), but Ecosia uses renewable energy to run its servers. They have both a mobile app and a browser extension. It's as easy as setting Ecosia as your preferred browser and then searching as usual. Check them out here.
If you want to take your efforts a step further, you can visit https://www.goclimate.com. Over about 2 minutes, you answer easy questions about your country, electricity source, diet, shopping, and transportation. From there, you can create a free account to track your carbon footprint over time. You can also subscribe to monthly payments toward projects that are working to save the planet. These projects must all meet strict standards to be included on their platform.
According to my answers, here's my carbon footprint and how it compares to the rest of my country:
I guess I'm doing pretty well, but I still need to get better! It calculated my subscription to be 8 Euros (currently $9.42) per month for myself. But I personally know lots of people who don't care about the environment and sadly, aren't planning on doing anything to change their lifestyle. That's why I decided to pay 15.50 Euros to help offset my footprint as well as that of 1-2 other people.
That's probably about the cost of eating out once or twice per month, so I'll just cut back on that to replace the cost in my budget. Meanwhile, I'll work on doing better where I can until I'm down to that 2.5 metric tonnes (or less) of CO2 per year.
Keep in mind that carbon offsetting is not a replacement for making changes to our behavior and taking personal responsibility. That's why I have it located in the "beginners" category.
5. Encourage companies to be more eco-friendly
The human race as individuals need to do their part to take better care of our planet, but we can't succeed in saving the earth if businesses don't participate. Their policies and practices control a lot of things that we must use every day, and we need to speak up and let them know that we want them to do better.
Of course, governmental involvement can also have a big impact. But waiting for the government takes even longer--first, the laws have to be written, reviewed, and enacted. Then, there is usually a grace period before they take effect. Finally, they have to be enforced. If we go straight to the businesses and get them to commit to changes, we don't have to wait for all of that bureaucracy (although it will still probably take a long time).
In your efforts to create change, start with the companies that you use the most. As a customer, you can speak personally about their strengths and weaknesses, which is key for having an impactful conversation. Start with a few places like your favorite restaurant, grocery store or food brand, and department or clothing store. If you don't know what to say, here are some articles with tips I found, including sample letters.
I'm tasking myself with getting into the habit of using all of these tips regularly before I move on to more things. How about you? Are you doing any of these things already, or will you try any of them?
- Do I really need this?
- How often will I actually use it?
- What goals am I achieving for myself by buying this item? What goals am I putting on the backburner by owning it?
- Is there something (or multiple things) that I already own that perform a similar function?
- How many hours do I have to work to pay for this? Do I have the money now, or would I have to go into debt to get it?
- Where would I put it?
- How much [food, rent, gas, utilities] could I buy with what I'll spend on this product?
- Do I know someone who already has this? Can I borrow it from them to try it out?
- Have I researched this product, its quality, the company's information, and consumer feedback thoroughly?
- If I wait [7 days, 30 days, 6 months] to buy it, will I still want it?
- And as an eco-friendly bonus: What were the resources used to make this item? When I'm done with this product, what will happen to it?
After going through all of those questions, I usually am not motivated to buy something anymore. It no longer seems appealing to spend money on it, and I realize that I've gone through life without this thing so far, and I've been fine. At the very least, I don't want to buy it brand-new.
To read about other ways to convince yourself to not buy, check out the articles in this web search I did.
Of course, there are some things that you have to buy, like food. For those items, try to plan out your shopping list well, and stick to them to avoid getting things you don't need. I'm going to do a separate post about buying food.
Another way to avoid buying more is to repair, reuse, or recycle/upcycle what you already have.
For example, when I get to my crafts articles, I'm going to show you ways I take things I owned and turned them into other things. I also use old containers from just about anything, like cosmetics, protein powder, and pasta jars, and reuse them to store whatever fits in them.
I'm a fan of making repairs wherever possible to things I own instead of throwing them away or donating them. I haven't bought any socks in about 5 years because I use an old-school technique called "darning" to fix them.
I also repaired my smartphone after owning it for 4+ years when the "permanent" battery went out. I'm not very mechanically inclined, so I took it to Batteries Plus; they charged $99, but when they were done, the phone worked as good as new again.
One thing that people don't often talk about when it comes to sustainability is to provide proper care and maintenance to what you own to make it last longer. I have a thrifted sewing machine that may be older than I am, and it still works great because I learned how to maintain it myself. I've also read that car maintenance lowers emissions and improves mileage. My car is a 15-year-old Toyota RAV4 with 180,000 miles on it. I do the recommended maintenance on it and it still gets over 18 miles per gallon.
2. Use up what you already have
I'm definitely guilty of buying something, realizing I don't want it, and then it sits around unused.
For example, I realized recently that I really don't need to use conditioner on my hair. It's very straight, quite short, and seems to fall in the "non-porous hair" category. I don't ever dye it or use hair products or heat on it (because non-porous hair doesn't "take" products or styling easily), so it doesn't get tangled, damaged, or dried out. I only use conditioner once every few months, so I've had it forever. I've decided that I'm going to use the remainder of the conditioner as shaving cream, and after it's used up I won't be buying any more.
I could just throw out the rest of the conditioner. But that feels wasteful, so I'm going to keep at it. It's taking me a long time. However, there isn't a deadline and it isn't taking up space that I'll use for something else.
Sometimes, there's something that you really can't use. Maybe you bought a skincare product then found out you're allergic to it. It's tempting to just throw those things away, because who's going to want a partially-used something, right?
I encourage you to not assume that nobody wants it. I belong to a local Buy Nothing group (https://buynothingproject.org), and you'd be surprised what people are willing to take that is not brand-new. I see posts for food (like half-empty containers of baby formula or a package of cookies with one eaten), partially-used cosmetics, broken items, empty Amazon boxes, packing materials, wood scraps...the list goes on. Not to mention what people offer on places like Craigslist for free. eBay also has stuff that people sell that is clearly broken, or used, for parts! I watched this one video about a couple who makes $3000/month from dumpster diving. In one instance, they sold used disposable cameras to this guy who wanted the transducers for his electronics projects.
People also make art out of items salvaged from landfills. How cool is that? You can see some examples on the NRDC website at (https://www.nrdc.org/onearth/turning-landfill-make-fine-art). But why wait until something gets to the landfill? You can reach out to artists in your area doing similar work and see if they want donations.
Here are some other places where you can sell or give away unwanted items:
General marketplaces
Preloved and Freeloved
Amazon
Facebook Marketplace and Facebook groups
Freecycle (Trash Nothing)
OfferUp
Gumtree
Vintage Cash Now
Local consignment stores, thrift/secondhand stores, pawnshops, garage sales, flea markets
Nextdoor
5Miles
eBid
Bonanza
Etsy
Clothing and shoes
Mercari, Depop, Poshmark, Tradesy, LePrix, Buffalo Exchange, Vinted, and thredUP
If you own Eileen Fisher clothing that is damaged, you can bring it to a local store. They will either repair it, or recycle it into a new piece if unrepairable, and will give you a credit for recycling their clothes. They're a Certified B Corp and have a lot of detail online about the steps they take to be compassionate toward the planet, their employees, and their customers. They also have a great article here called "Why You Should Recycle Everything In Your Closet."
Nike takes back all sneakers (not just their brand) through their Reuse-a-Shoe program
Levi Strauss is working to make their jeans and stores more sustainable. According to their website, they have in-store Tailor Shops at their flagship stores, where you can bring denim "to be repaired or repurposed."
The Blue Jeans Go Green program takes denim and recycles it into the insulation. Many participating clothing stores give you store credit for your donation. You can check their website for a store near you.
The North Face started the Clothes the Loop program to take clothes AND shoes in any condition from any brand at their stores and give you $10 off your next purchase of $100 or more. I may be bringing my two pairs of worn-out sandals to them--I'm trying to figure out which company will do the best with worn-out shoes.
Speaking of sandals, the brand Okabashi (found at Target and online) is where I found my latest pair of sandals to replace the broken-down ones. They have a 2-year limited warranty on their shoes, which are ethically and sustainably made in America. You can machine-wash or put them in the dishwasher! And once they're at the end of their life, you can send them back to be recycled and receive a 15% off promo code. 😍
If your shoes are gently worn, you can donate them to the Soles4Souls program, which provides aid for disaster relief, small businesses in developing countries, and unhoused persons.
H&M claims their garment recycling program is "the world's biggest" globally. They will give you a store credit, too. They're still a fast-fashion company, but if they're what you have available, then it's better than a landfill.
Clothing swaps (find one or start your own!)
Books, CDs, Games, Electronics
Ziffit
Decluttr
Music Magpie
Cash4books.net
Abundatrade
The Gone app
Swappa
Gazelle
Reverb (for musical instruments)
Collectibles, Antiques, and Art
Collectors.com
idonowidont.com (jewelry)
CommicConnect
Metropolis Comics
Ruby Lane
ArtFire
Redbubble
Saatchi Art
society6
*A note about these resources: Please do your own research on each company for their current programs. While I tried to research each company to provide basic details, things can always change! I will try to update this page periodically, but I don't have the bandwidth to check on them all constantly.
3. Buy second-hand
Go for second-hand as your first choice. Not only is this more sustainable, but it's usually more cost-effective. Also, older items tend to be more durable because they were built to last, and you can get better quality items than you might be able to afford new. You can take advantage of what people discard because they always want the latest thing, and usually find gently used (or brand new) things in the "used" resale markets listed in the previous section.
For almost 100 years now, greedy product manufacturers have used "planned obsolescence" to ensure things break or outdate quickly and you have to spend more money to replace them. From what I saw, it started in 1924 with lightbulb manufacturers, and other industries have unfortunately jumped on that bandwagon. That's why your new smartphone starts to lag after only a year of use (Apple was caught red-handed doing this on purpose!) and it seems like my printer breaks every year or 2.
I follow an emotional-hoarder-turned-minimalist, Marissa Zen, who said she still uses the food processor she inherited from her mom. It's over 40 years old and still works perfectly. Can you imagine the average food processor you buy today lasting for 40 years? No way!
When looking for used clothing, try to avoid clothes that require dry-cleaning. There's a lot of evidence that dry-cleaning chemicals cause cancer, to the point that it might even be dangerous to bring dry-cleaned clothes into your house. Go for natural fabrics (cotton or linen is best). But give yourself some grace; it's tough to find 100% cotton clothing. There is so much clothing going into landfills; this topic needs its own post.
My go-to, when I need to buy anything, is always to visit my local thrift store first. I'm lucky to have a few independently-owned stores in my area as well as the big chains, Goodwill and Salvation Army, so it's (probably) the lowest carbon footprint for me to check there first. I prefer to support the smallest business first and then go to the larger places. If I had to pick between Salvation Army and Goodwill, I would always go with Salvation first, because it's a charity. This means store profits and donated funds typically go directly to help those who need it. Meanwhile, although Goodwill is a nonprofit, they pay a LOT of money to their CEO (at least $720,000 per year). Goodwill is often more expensive, as well.
Neither organization is perfect as is true with a lot of big companies. Plus, both have been known to redistribute their inventory across long distances, which is not the most sustainable method (though I understand why they probably do it). That's why I go to the local small shops first.
I know in other places I've been, I've seen other second-hand and thrift stores like Savers, St. Vincent De Paul, Plato's Closet, the American Cancer Society Thrift, Humane Society Thrift, and Habitat for Humanity ReStore (mostly for home goods and construction/remodeling supplies).
If you don't have any second-hand stores near you, the online options I mentioned in the above section make second-hand shopping possible. Here are some more options I found when searching for online thrift stores. If you have tried any of these, please comment about your experience. 👇
Goodfair
Thrift2U
Thrift Seekers
Swap.com
Thrifted.com
299thrift.com
OnlineThrift.net
AMVETS Thrift Store
Vegas Vultur
I'll mention again about Facebook Marketplace--I have relatives who live in very remote rural areas that don't have a Craigslist option within an hour of them. They use FB to find used goods. Some local papers also offer free ads in their online edition to people who are giving away things for free.
4. Offset your carbon footprint
If you want some basic suggestions to reduce your footprint, you can visit the EPA's free carbon footprint calculator at https://www3.epa.gov/carbon-
There are lots of really easy, free things you can do. Some also save you money. For example, switching from hot water to cold to wash your clothes, driving less aggressively, recycling, and using rechargeable batteries.
But a lot of us have no choice about having a higher carbon footprint. If the nearest grocery store is an hour away and there is no public transportation, then you have to drive. Or if you're home-bound, you probably need to order just about everything to be delivered to you. Even though I live in a metropolitan area, I still have difficulties finding things I need locally and have to get them shipped to me.
If you have similar issues, you can look at ways where your carbon footprint can be offset. The way this works is to help out with projects that work to reverse climate change. So while you aren't changing what you do in your life, you're supporting other people or organizations to reduce a regional or global carbon footprint. We all share the same atmosphere, after all, so it all adds up to help.
One of my favorite methods to offset my carbon footprint is using the search engine Ecosia. It's free, they're careful with your privacy, and each time you use it, they plant a tree. They're a Certified B Corp, too.
The internet is a very carbon-heavy place (lots of energy-sucking equipment involved), but Ecosia uses renewable energy to run its servers. They have both a mobile app and a browser extension. It's as easy as setting Ecosia as your preferred browser and then searching as usual. Check them out here.
If you want to take your efforts a step further, you can visit https://www.goclimate.com. Over about 2 minutes, you answer easy questions about your country, electricity source, diet, shopping, and transportation. From there, you can create a free account to track your carbon footprint over time. You can also subscribe to monthly payments toward projects that are working to save the planet. These projects must all meet strict standards to be included on their platform.
According to my answers, here's my carbon footprint and how it compares to the rest of my country:
I guess I'm doing pretty well, but I still need to get better! It calculated my subscription to be 8 Euros (currently $9.42) per month for myself. But I personally know lots of people who don't care about the environment and sadly, aren't planning on doing anything to change their lifestyle. That's why I decided to pay 15.50 Euros to help offset my footprint as well as that of 1-2 other people.
That's probably about the cost of eating out once or twice per month, so I'll just cut back on that to replace the cost in my budget. Meanwhile, I'll work on doing better where I can until I'm down to that 2.5 metric tonnes (or less) of CO2 per year.
Keep in mind that carbon offsetting is not a replacement for making changes to our behavior and taking personal responsibility. That's why I have it located in the "beginners" category.
5. Encourage companies to be more eco-friendly
The human race as individuals need to do their part to take better care of our planet, but we can't succeed in saving the earth if businesses don't participate. Their policies and practices control a lot of things that we must use every day, and we need to speak up and let them know that we want them to do better.
Of course, governmental involvement can also have a big impact. But waiting for the government takes even longer--first, the laws have to be written, reviewed, and enacted. Then, there is usually a grace period before they take effect. Finally, they have to be enforced. If we go straight to the businesses and get them to commit to changes, we don't have to wait for all of that bureaucracy (although it will still probably take a long time).
In your efforts to create change, start with the companies that you use the most. As a customer, you can speak personally about their strengths and weaknesses, which is key for having an impactful conversation. Start with a few places like your favorite restaurant, grocery store or food brand, and department or clothing store. If you don't know what to say, here are some articles with tips I found, including sample letters.
I'm tasking myself with getting into the habit of using all of these tips regularly before I move on to more things. How about you? Are you doing any of these things already, or will you try any of them?
