GreenHome
Have a low-consumption year
If you’re one of the many Australians who chose to cut down on consumption this Christmas season, why not keep up the momentum and take your green initiatives into the New Year?
Or, if you’ve overindulged (on more than just turkey), perhaps you’d like take the opportunity to turn over a new leaf in January.
The simplest resolutions are always the easiest to keep. With this in mind, the Australian Conservation Foundation has come up with a few suggestions for going green in ’09.
ACF's Consumption Atlas has shown that it is through the products and services bought each year that Australian households make our greatest contribution to climate change, due to the embodied energy and water in these manufactured items.
Let's lighten the impact of this year Christmas and post-Christmas spending and make New Year's resolutions to always shop with an eco-conscience.
Top GreenHome New Year's shopping resolutions
1. When buying gifts, choose a service, not a product - to reduce embodied greenhouse emissions and water. Buy someone a voucher for a massage for example, rather than a massaging appliance. Tips: vouchers for services, film tickets, theatre tickets.
2. Buy gifts that give twice. Give your friends and family membership to charities, overseas aid groups or environment groups. Tips: membership to ACF
3. Think 'green' when you buy - look for recycled and recyclable content, minimal packaging, certified organic chemical-free contents and buy products that are made to last.
4. Think 'local' - buy food that is grown close to home to reduce food miles, with the exception of items which are FairTrade accredited - sometimes it's better to buy things like coffee, chocolate and rice which are produced overseas under FairTrade conditions. The same applies for gifts - support local industries and artists.
5. Borrow or rent items that you need rather than buying them. This is perfect for items that you use infrequently such as lawnmowers, power tools and camping gear. It's also a great way to meet your neighbours!
6. Use recycled wrapping paper, or re-use paper from gifts that friends have given you. Make cards yourself, from recycled paper and re-used magazine images. Alternatively, e-cards are a great way to cut down on your eco-impact.
7. Switching to GreenPower – electricity generated from renewable sources like wind and solar, instead of coal – is the simplest way for individuals to cut greenhouse pollution. When you switch, you’ll see no change to your electricity supply. The only difference is that for a small extra charge, some or all of the electricity you use will come from a renewable energy source and directly reduce the amount of carbon pollution that goes into the atmosphere.
8. Reduce your water usage – we've been saving water for years now, but we still have a way to go. Do your bit by getting a shower timer, installing tap aerators and switching to an efficient showerhead. If you have leaking taps or toilets, make a new year’s resolution to fix them.
9. Take up walking and cycling – reducing your reliance on motorised transport is a simple way to reduce your carbon footprint.
If you’ve already done all these things, think about taking the next step and setting yourself some more challenging resolutions. ACF’s GreenHome website has plenty of suggestions.
www.acfonline.org.au/greenhome
