Save Money and Save Nature – Protect Nature Challenge
Here are 10 ways you can save money and save nature at the same time.
1. Bring your own. Make it a habit to carry a prepacked backpack or large purse for your daily needs. Discover how much plastic waste and money you can save on a day out. Include in your bag
- a filled water bottle or a coffee/tea mug
- bags for shopping including mesh bags for produce or bulk purchases
- a few homemade snacks to keep energized
- a compact utensil set and a small container for leftovers
2. Borrow it. Reduce your carbon footprint by borrowing what you don’t need every day. Borrow anything from tools to baking pans to special occasion outfits from friends and family. Use a library card to get books, music, movies and more. Join borrowing clubs in your town, like tool and toy libraries. Renting can be a great option too.
3. Get it second-hand. We live in a consumer society, which means you can find almost anything in good shape at thrift shops or community “buy nothing” clubs. Save your money and one more quality object from going to the landfill.
4. Fix it. Sew on a new button or have the clothes tailored to fit. Repair tools, furniture and electronics. Find clubs or businesses that fix, or teach you how to fix, your aging household objects. These objects do not disappear in the landfill.
5. Volunteer. If you are looking for a unique no-cost activity, try volunteering for a local nature clean-up project. Meet people in your community, get fresh air and feel good about helping local nature.
6. Make your own cleaning solutions, creams and makeup. Many store-bought products are full of chemicals you don’t want polluting your home or body. In addition, many are shipped long distances and come in single-use packaging. There are lots of easy recipes online that cost little and minimize pollution.
7. Cook from scratch. Pre-made foods are usually packaged in plastics and filled with preservatives. Cooking from scratch using simple ingredients found at the grocery store will greatly reduce your household weekly waste, save money and be much healthier. Give yourself bonus points for buying ingredients at the bulk store in reusable containers, buying locally and buying in season.
8. Skip the car. Bike, walk or bus whenever you can. It’s cheaper, healthier and one of the best ways to help nature, by reducing vehicle emissions and its impacts on climate change.
9. Reduce food waste. Reducing food waste is an important way to help nature and save money on your weekly grocery bill.
10. Exercise outside. Walk, hike, roll, bike, lake swim, stretch, snowshoe, shovel, skate or cross-country ski. There are so many low-cost ways to get the exercise and fresh air you need while connecting with nature!
Let’s do this together
Share these challenges with your friends and family and show us what you are doing by tagging us in your social media messages and by using the hashtag #ProtectNature.
We’re on Instagram @canenvironment, Facebook @EnvironmentandClimateChange and Twitter @environmentca.
Need inspiration?
Check out our list of challenges to help protect nature.
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