Collectively, small lifestyle changes can make a huge impact on the environment-and your life. Looking for happiness and health? What’s good for the environment is also, it turns out, great for you. Here’s a collection of tips from the No Impact community.
Recently became an independent distributor with a company called wowgreen which just launched their products March 2009. All their cleaning products for residential and commercial use are 100% non-toxic. Thru this company I’m able to educate people on how chemicals they use to clean their homes & businesses are not safe for their family, workers, pets and the environment.
“Freeing the world of toxic chemicals - one household at time!”
www.GreenYourFamilyLLC.com
This post was submitted by Donna Dannunzio.
We have started a co-operative, pooled our resources, and bought more prime farmland than any of us could have afforded alone. (In fact, it’s more than even the founders can afford, and we’re seeking additional member-investors.)
Our goal is to produce most of our own food and energy, and to distribute the excess within the greater community.
We heat with wood from our own land, drive (a limited amount) on biodiesel that we make from restaurant waste, and grow almost all our vegetables and produce all our own eggs and milk.
Many of the ten current residents have home-based businesses to avoid commuting.
This post was submitted by Jan Steinman.
i gave up Shampoo a long time ago, probably at least a year and a half, and i have never been happier with my hair. its not always super dried out anymore, and I’m sure I’ve saved tons of money by not buying shampoo. i tried the balking soda thing for a while and the “transition period” lasted to long, so i just use my glycerin bar soap if i feel like i need to wash my hair, other wise i just get it wet when i shower and it seems fine. it never stinks or looks or feels dirty. i recently got it cut so i want to try the baking soda again. every time i get my hair cut now, the hair dresser tells me how nice and healthy my hair is.
This post was submitted by Tabatha.
I cut up our old worn-out sheets into napkin-sized pieces. No sewing necessary-we just fold them & keep them in a drawer. We have completely elimated the need for paper napkins, & almost never use paper towels. We use cut-up old t-shirts & other worn-out clothes for cleaning, even mirrors! For the occasional dog accidents, we use wadded up newspaper & some vinegar & water. We get just about all of our clothes from thrift shops, Freecycle, or Craigslist. We are drying more of our clothes on drying racks, & use eco detergents. We buy organic foods when possible, & try to avoid most processed foods. We have learned to freeze many more items, such as leftover pasta sauce. That really works! We use the “when yellow, let it mellow” rule in the bathroom, & we use toilet paper made from recycled paper. We use recycled aluminum foil now, when needed. We can’t afford a hybrid or solar panels or geothermal yet, but we have high hopes for the future! We have been vegetarian for over twenty years. We share our ideas about recycling & reuse with friends, & even pick up a few ideas from them.
This post was submitted by Elle.
We purchased a hillside property of several acres, some years ago. It was almost void of trees, except some at the property lines. There were several erosion gullies, poor soil for supporting native plants, etc. The slopes were between 20-35%. We started planting trees, leveled vegetable garden areas, repaired erosion gullies, etc. We terraced the steep slopes, built raised beds for vegetables, planted redwoods, pines, and fruit trees. We built a holding pond for containing some erosion causing sheet flows during the California rainy season, etc.
From our initial efforts, it’s almost 20 years. We have no significant erosion. Even the native plants seem much happier. We are happier.
This post was submitted by Reijo Koski.