green life – Eco Home Ideas

Five Green Sins We Are All Guilty Of (And How To Avoid Them)

If you are reading this, you probably care about the environment. But even if you do make an effort to reduce your carbon footprint and live a green life, you are human and there are some not-so-green habits that are hard to change. Instead of feeling guilty, follow these tips to stop repeating the same green sins.

1. “Bottled water is so convenient!”

We all know plastic bottles are bad. They use a lot of energy when created, they fill up landfills, they take forever to break down… Plastic bottles are bad. And yet, the convenience of being able to buy a bottle of water whenever you are thirsty is hard to give up. The only way to change it is with a reusable bottle. Find one that is made out of stainless steel or BPA-free plastic. They come in many different sizes, so you can find one that fits your needs. And if you don’t like the hassle of cleaning, find one with a wide mouth, that will make clean up easier. Get in the habit of carrying your bottle around and using it instead of plastic cups.

2. “Energy-saving bulbs are so ugly”

Compact fluorescent bulbs save an incredible amount of energy. Trading some of your incandescent for fluorescent bulbs can prevent the emission of 400 pounds of greenhouse gases. That’s nothing to scoff at, and yet fluorescent light can be so depressing. The good news is that not all bulbs are created equal, so you just have to shop around to find the shape, size, color and brightness that works best for you.

3. “I know batteries are bad, but it’s so much easier to throw them out”

Recycling batteries is one of those things where we can’t compromise. They are incredibly dangerous and contaminate absolutely everything. And yet, some times we all end up hiding a couple of batteries at the bottom of our trash bags. That’s bad. The good news is that recycling batteries is getting easier by the hour. Just Google recycling places near you and you’ll see that you can take your used batteries to a lot of places, including your favorite grocery store, and they will do the recycling for you. And, of course, invest in rechargeable batteries. They are recyclable too and they last so much longer.

4. “I can never bring myself to carry around a market tote”

Plastic bags are so wasteful, and carrying a reusable cloth grocery bag will prevent a lot of waste. But it’s so hard to remember to bring it whenever you go to the market. The solution is to buy a couple of totes you like and keep them in your car. If you don’t drive, buy those totes that fold up into tiny pockets and keep them in your purse or regular backpack. You will always have them with you, and you will barely notice they are there.

6 Eco-Friendly Cities That Are Too Good To Be True

It seems like the utopia we envisioned for the 21^st century was nothing more than pure fiction. With the levels of pollution rising and the ozone layer weakening more and more every day, it is a wonder if we will even make it to the next century. But there is still some hope. Throughout the world, there are cities who are doing their very best to become eco-friendly and fight off pollution.

The city of Zermatt is located on the edge of Matterhorn Mountain in Switzerland. It has resisted any and all attempts to become a major metropolitan city despite its popularity with tourists. You will not find an abundance of cars driving around here. Well you might see a few electric vehicles and plenty of bikes. The carbon footprint produced by Zermatt is virtually non-existent.

Similar to Zermatt is Freiburg in Germany. They have also adopted a car-free lifestyle. So if you want to enjoy the green hills that surround the city as well as the beautiful scenery you’ll have to do it on foot or while riding a bike.

The city of Oslo is one of the cleanest in Norway. It has replaced all of its energy producing facilities with renewable energy sources. We are not just talking about the things that power the city but also the vehicles like public transportation which now run only on biofuels instead of fossil fuels. They have also adopted a great recycling program and waste disposal system which is why Oslo is considered one of the cleanest cities in the world.

If you happen to visit Denmark, then visit Copenhagen. If the scenery and majestic castles don’t convince you to come again then perhaps the high environmental standards of living will. In order to fight off climate changes, nearly half of the residents use bikes to get to school or work. It is expected that this numbers will increase in the next few years.

If you are looking for a city that was made for bike riding then go down under mate to Adelaide, Australia. The city is so eco-green that it allows people to rent bikes for free. Plus it has over 29 parks that you can explore as you go on your little bike trek or hike. If you are not into bikes you can always use Tindo, a solar-powered bus that complete with A/C and internet service for its passengers. Aside from using solar power as a means of sustainable energy, the city is highly invested in recycling. It has even developed a program that allows for over 85 percent of the trash to be recycled.

Vancouver, Canada has implemented an ambitious plan to put an end to anything that leaves a carbon footprint in the city by 2020. To that end it has implemented bike paths that give the locals access to more parts of the city. This way people won’t feel the need to use their cars or public transportation as often.

These amazing cities are a beacon of hope for humanity’s future. Hopefully, their shining example will be contagious so that their eco-friendly philosophy spreads to every city on the planet. Then Earth can be the marvelous wonder we want it to be.