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Choose a renewable energy supplier
Did you know that household energy usage accounts for 30% of our carbon footprint? Making the decision to switch to a renewable energy provider is a great step forward towards reducing our impact on the environment. Find renewable energy suppliers who derive 100% of their power from renewable sources. Good Energy is currently the only green energy supplier to attain the USwitch gold standard award. Ensure that your boiler is working at its most efficient click here to find out more.
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Make smarter purchasing decisions
Perhaps the biggest reason why people refrain from buying more sustainable products is the fact they tend to be more expensive. While mass production helps to keep the costs of production down, it does so at the expense of the environment. But there is a way to overcome this: purchasing better quality products and purchasing fewer of them. Buy Me Once is an excellent example of a company that deals with top-quality and durable products. You can save up a lot by just buying from them once. For those looking to buy some furniture, consider going for well-crafted antiques built to last.
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Make your wardrobe more sustainable
Staying on the topic of saving money, did you know that an astounding £140 million pounds worth of wearable clothing is thrown away each year? This is according to Clothes Aid. Fast fashion is not only costly to our wallets, but also to the environment. It is estimated that the fashion industry accounts for 10% of the global carbon emissions. But there is a way you can help: before heading out shopping for new clothes, consider going through your wardrobe. You will be surprised at how many good clothes you have hidden in there. You can spend the afternoon mixing and matching items putting aside the ones your love. If there are some that you like but you’ve outgrown them, you can have them up-cycled by a tailor. For those with a unique taste, you can find affordable pre-loved designer items at vintage and charity shops. You can also check rental platforms such as HUrr Collective for those special occasions.
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Go for refillable options
Recycling is widely considered one of the most effective ways of dealing with plastic waste. Unfortunately, only less than half of plastic produced in this country is recycled. But there is another solution. Eco-friendly companies dealing with beauty products, cleaning products, pantry staples, and even make-up have started offering refillable options. Good Club has made a name for itself delivering dry food in refillable pots. There is also Circla, a London-based company that uses bicycles to deliver beauty products to customers and picks them up and refills them once they are empty.
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Reduce your animal product consumption
According to the Committee on Climate Change, for the UK to reach Net Zero by the year 2050, we need to reduce our meat intake. You just have to reduce it by a third to reach this goal. There is no question that most of us love meat, fish, and dairy. However, it has been found that the current level of industrial farming and over-fishing is having a huge impact on the environment. Due to this, a section of the population has opted to go vegan or vegetarian. If this isn’t an option for you, you can consider going for better quality organic and pasture-fed animal products as well as local and seasonal fish and buying it occasionally.
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Be tech-savvy
Not only has technology helped to make our lives much easier, but it has also helped in making them more energy efficient. While this might be the case, it still accounts for more than 2% of the global carbon emission – slightly above the airline industry. These smartphones that have become a key part of our lives tend to consume a lot of energy. But there are a couple of viable solutions. The first is subscribing to Honest Mobile, which cuts your phone’s emissions by half. The second option is to purchase a second-hand phone from Reboxed or a Fairphone – a modular phone made from ethically-sourced parts that can be easily replaced when needed. The third option is to stay with your phone longer if it’s still operational and resist the urge to upgrade with each new model.
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Ditch your petrol car
Ipsos suggests that the single one thing we can do that has the biggest impact on our carbon footprint is not having a car. Using bicycles and public transport to get around are fronted as an excellent way to reduce our carbon emissions and also stay fit. In cases where ditching the car isn’t practical, switching to a hybrid or an EV is a viable option.