5 Resolutions That Help the Planet, Too

Posted on January 7, 2017

New Years Resolutions are all about trying to do something better or be someone better. While they can help us transform ourselves, why not try to help transform the planet at the same time? Here are 5 not-as-hard-as-you-think resolutions you could try! Even picking just one could help change the world!

1. Drive Less. With the new Carbon Levy, this is not only environmentally friendly, but could save you money, too! You have lots of options: car sharing programs, transit, and biking to name only a few. These days, living car-free is a real possibility! You can start small – take your bike on short trips at first, or plan to do a bunch of errands all at once and plan your trip on transit.

2. Reduce your Waste. This is getting easier all the time. You can print documents double-sided to reduce paper use, compost your organic waste for your garden, and reuse a lot of your old stuff. Our Natural Living Series has workshops that show you how easy it is to compost indoors or upcycle your old stuff!

3. Make your Own Green Products. It’s not as hard as it sounds. Really! With only a few natural products you can replicate the use of most cleaners. Better yet, avoid the toxins that affect your health and that of your loved ones. Shampoos, all-purpose cleaners, and more are cost effective and easy. Get started with some basic tips here, or you could sign up for a workshop to learn hands-on!

4. Conserve Water. Between indoor water usage and all the water that goes to our gardens and lawns, Calgarians use a lot of water. A few small changes to your indoor routines, like taking shorter showers and only doing full loads of laundry, will stack up throughout the year. For outdoor use, you can get a rain barrel from us year-round that can capture up to 900 gallons of water a year that you can use instead of city water on your garden and lawn.

5. Become a Part-Time Vegetarian. More and more studies show that the carbon footprint from animals is a big part of our emissions – the exact number varies by study (the UN said 14.5% of human-caused emissions were from livestock back in 2013), but your personal carbon footprint from eating could be reduced by as much as half by cutting out meat. Start slow – a day a week where you eat no meat isn’t too hard. Our #meatlessmonday posts on social media can help you out. Once you get in the habit of one meatless day a week, who knows? Maybe you’ll go even further!

We hope some of these ideas inspire you! If you decide you want to do more than just one, we can even help you make your life more earth-friendly with our Eco Boot Camps! If you decide on one of these resolutions, we'd love to hear about it! Let us know on Facebook or Twitter that we've inspired you! Good luck with any resolutions you make and have a great 2017!