I bought an ice cream cake for the party, but it melted in all the global warming
Recycling. I know that might seem like an obvious one because, hello, doesn't everyone recycle? Apparently not. Gainesville does curbside recycling, which is great, but fully half of the people in our neighborhood don't recycle. I routinely see people throwing away milk jugs, glass bottles, and cardboard boxes-- ALL things that the city will recycle if people take a little effort to drag them to the curb. When you recycle, not only do you ensure that landfills aren't being filled with perfectly recyclable items, but also you free up your trash can for legitimate trash. You know, like all those severed limbs you've got stashed in your deep freeze. (Kidding!)
Tired of junk mail? Sign up for Green Dimes! Green Dimes is a great service that allows you to cut back on your junk mail and save trees all at the same time. Since we signed up for Green Dimes last year, I've noticed a HUGE decrease in the amount of junk mail we get. Green Dimes also lets you pick and choose which catalogs you get. So if you're sick of getting horse supply catalogs (why do we get these? we don't have a horse!!!), you can tell Green Dimes you don't want to get them anymore. It couldn't be easier.
Take reusable cloth bags with you when you go shopping. It's all fine and dandy for places like Target to encourage customers to reuse those plastic bags as trash can liners. But they eventually end up in a landfill, right? So why not cut out the middle man? We bought ours here, but these days you can find them almost anywhere.
Plant a vegetable and herb garden. Why buy tomatoes from Chile and lettuce from Argentina when you can grow them yourself in your own backyard? Planting a vegetable garden will not only cut back on your grocery bill, but will also enable you to eat fresher foods.
If you don't have the time or the space to devote to a garden, patronize your local farmers! Go to Local Harvest, enter your zip code, and you'll get a list of all the farmer's markets, farms, and more in your area. Oftentimes you can sign up for a CSA, which is essentially a subscription that gives you fresh farm products on a regular basis. We signed up for two CSAs and now we get fresh chickens and eggs through Heirloom Country Farms, and fresh vegetables through Rosie's Organic Farm. It's a great way to get fresh produce, eat more healthily, and support local businesses all at the same time.
This is just a tiny sample of the things you can do to help the earth and make life a bit brighter, for everyone. If we all do things like this, we'll step a little lighter on the earth and hopefully leave something wonderful for future generations.