Cars release approximately 333 million tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere annually, which is 20 percent of the world’s total, according to the Environmental Defense Fund.

When I started to read about eco-friendly living and how all can contribute towards this I found out some interesting facts. The Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) estimates that on-road vehicles cause one-third of the air pollution that produces smog in the US, China. And transportation causes 76% of greenhouse gas emissions.

Energy is one of the overlooked things, how many of us leave lights, or switches on stand by. A computer of air con running when they do not need to? There are so many things you can do to help yourself, the environment and save money on the way as well. Being more eco-friendly with your living choices do not need to be too hard. I explain to you why.

What can you do?

Cars

Use less cars, when you live in a car nation like Australia or US this can be a hard one to achieve. Walking or cycling to work is a great way to reduce your carbon footprint. Look an example of the Dutch, 36% of the people listing the bicycle as a mode of transport. For Finns and in Scandinavia we take it for granted that you can get to work using public transport, or cycling.

You can also use public transport when it is available, share a car, carpooling rather than traveling alone. Rent a car just when you need one like Go Get Car here in Australia.  There are possibilities you just need to want to make the change.

If you are using a car, what abot an eco-friendly car that produces less harmful pollution? The impact on the environment is noticeable less pollutive than comparable conventional vehicles running on gasoline or diesel. You could also consider one that uses alternative biofuels. Most of the cities in Australia use biodiesel for taxis and buses so these cars are widely available and used.

Other options are electric cars or hybrid cars. For example, Tesla has a 310-mile range on a single charge or Hyundai that has 170 miles radius. These cars have developed a lot from the early days of electric cars and you can find the charging places in most of the major shopping centers and petrol stations.

Energy

Turn it off. Energy conservation is one of the most important things you can do to reduce your carbon footprint.  Leaving your electricals on standby needlessly uses up energy – hit the off switch and you could see huge improvements, most noticeably in your energy bills!

Use eco-friendly light bulb like LED, that is available on every hardware store. More efficient and they last longer too. When next you change a light bulb think what you can do to change it for better. Recycle old ones, usually in a hardware store. Same goes for batteries.

Make sure to change eco-friendly technology as well. Next time you buy a household item look at the eco-credentials of the item and see how much they save power, electricity and how often they need to be charged. Every little count. Change your energy supplier for 100% renewable energy provider that is zero carbon. You would be amazed when you start looking alternatives that how you can find a cheaper and more eco-friendly provider.

Recycle

What do you recycle? Anything and everything or nothing at all? You can recycle a lot if you really want to. For example papers, cardboard, your green waste (can you give them away, rather than putting them on the wrong bin?) Can you use compost? Communal gardens? Options just right there.

Old furniture you could give to recycling centers, charities to people in need. Ikea is a good example of taking on their old stuff for use on shop credit in some European countries already.

You can swap, sell, gift unwanted, used items in Facebook groups or website that are for this purpose like eBay, Gumtree . Just search what you have available in your area. Lots of homeless shelters are always looking for clean clothing and toys.

If you enjoyed this episode you might like Clean Living Lifestyle with Small Steps or Scandinavian Minimalism

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