Today is the first day of Plastic Free July which is a challenge set to reduce your single plastic usage. You can sign up via their website and they’ll send you plastic-free ideas, tips & tricks in weekly emails.
When signing up they give you the option to select WHERE you would like to make changes; whether you are just getting started, at work, home or in your community. You can also pledge a little challenge for yourself whether it’s avoiding single-use plastic packaging, targeting takeaway items such as bags, bottles, straws ect or to go completely plastic free.
You then also decide how long you will be doing the challenge for whether it is 1 day or the whole month. I think it is a great way to branch into cutting down on plastic, especially with the helpful tips along the way. You can find the website here & the Instagram account here.
I thought I would share the ways we are trying to be more sustainable at home that are really easy swaps to make. There are lots of way to be more eco-friendly in your home and every small thing really adds up. Even if you make one switch!
1. RECYCLE// Probably the easiest switch to make and one i’d say (hopefully) the majority of us already do. If you are confused by what exactly can be recycled and what bin ect it goes in then your local council have a really helpful guide online.
2. SWITCH IT OFF!// Another easy one but if you aren’t using it.. TURN IT OFF. Leaving your TV on stand by isn’t enough so just switch it off properly at the plug. It uses needless energy and is a complete waste – it also increases your electricity bill by a silly amount!
3. SWITCH TO A GREEN ENERGY PROVIDER// Anyone can do this & it is really easy! Once you have switched, effectively all the electric you use when on a 100% renewable tariff, is effectively carbon-free!
4. DON’T WASTE FOOD// 7.3 million tonnes of food is wasted in the UK every year, this adds to the amount of CO2 being created in landfills! So it isn’t just a waste of food & money, it’s harmful to the planet too!
5. EAT LESS MEAT// This is definitely something I need to implement more in our house & is an easy ways to be more sustainable at home! Reducing the amount of red meat you eat, even by one meal a week (we are doing meat-free Monday’s) will make a huge difference on reducing your carbon footprint.
6. ECO-FRIENDLY CLEANING PRODUCTS// You can either make your own or opt for the ready made ones in supermarkets. A lot of cleaning products have harmful chemicals in them that aren’t environmentally friendly to make or dispose of! Green cleaning products are more natural and organic to use.
7. CUT OUT SINGLE USE PLASTIC// Not necessarily completely because I know it isn’t that easy for everyone but opting for loose fruit & veg, or stopping buying plastic bottles of water can make a huge difference!
8. USE LED LIGHT BULBS// They last longer & are more efficient too! It means you will be using less power & won’t have to replace your bulbs as much!
9. SHOP LOCALLY// Now more than ever small businesses are counting on us to help them & not only does it help them, it’s also more sustainable. The closer to home these products are made & bought – the less carbon is created in their transportation!
10. GROW YOU OWN // This is something I REALLY want to start doing. Even if you don’t have much garden space you can buy some windowsill boxes that will work just as well AND filter the air coming into your house!
I hope these help & there are so many other ways to be more sustainable at home! I’d love to know your top tip and ways to be more eco-friendly.
Loved this post Rachael! I keep meaning to try an eco energy provider, they sound amazing!
Great tips! We recycle, dont eat much meat and use LED lighting. Where I can improve is not buying produce in plastic, it’s hard to make a change but I want to. I’d also love to start growing my own food but so tend to over water everything. Lots of practice will hopefully make perfect!
Great easy ideas to implement. Will be joining the challenge myself!
Great post! I didn’t realise plastic free July was a thing, going to check it out right now. Thanks.
These tips are fantastic, defiantly going to try them out. Except for growing my own veges, i do not have a green finger at all.
This is great! Thank you for using your blog to promote sustainability. Keep going 🙂
Great post! I definitely want to be more sustainable! I recycle, use LED lights and try to use as little plastic as possible!
This is such a great post! I’m trying to get better with reducing food waste, so I’ve been freezing food, so it doesn’t go off so quickly and it’s been a great help. I hope your plastic free July goes well xx
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Awesome! I am doing the challenge too and writing about it on my blog. I have already made a lot of changes and I am already realizing that the rest will be really tough.
So many simple ideas here. We’re awful for leaving plugs on when we’re not using things so I’m going to try and use this month as a good excuse to make turning them off a habit. X
We’ve recently been making a start on growing our own veg and it’s exciting to think we might be able to cook some meals with it soon! It won’t replace our normal shop bought quantities by any stretch of the imagination, but it’s a good start.
I love the idea about being more sustainable online. However, I’m not sure shopping locally necessarily is. It depends where they get their supplies. If it’s far away shipped in small quantities, that could be a bigger carbon footprint overall. Lots of other good ideas here!
We’re trying to do plastic-free July but it’s so hard when everything comes in plastic one way or another! Thank you for these tips!
So many great tips! We all have so much to work on!
This is such a great, helpful post! Always looking for more ways to give back to the heart – even if it’s simple! The daily things you can do in your every day lives are the best things! Thank you so much for this read!
Love this! Some good ideas!! I’m so bad at recycling but really want to start trying to be better at it! We have however started growing our own garden this year, so that’s a plus! XO
Love all of these ideas! I really need to work on most of them as well in my life so thank you for sharing!
These are great tips! You’re article made me feel better because we do quite a few of these things already! We’ve slowly been trying to focus more on shopping locally and hit of the farmers market too!
Loving this topic lately. I just invested in reuseable stainless steel and glass straws. I have also been planting my veggie scraps that can be planted to regrow them. I am working on cloth papertowels next or at least washable bamboo ones.
Love this!! Great tips and ideas on living a more sustainable life.
Thank you for raising awareness on such an important topic. These are all things that we can do to have a cleaner environment. Even the smallest thing, like using a reusable fabric shopping bag instead of getting a plastic one, can make a difference.
Definitely agree with just turning it off! Sometimes, just having that habit saves a lot of energy. Plus, eating less meat and replacing it with more vegetables is something I would really like to do.
Love this! I’m always looking for new ways to be waste conscious!
I just love this…you have given fantastic suggestions…I need to reduce the red meat too! 👓🍕🚢
Love these! Thanks for all of the ideas! I will have to start doing a little more!