Are You Sustainable? The 3 Keys to Being Sustainable

Being sustainable is not just a process it is a way of living, acting in ways that are good for the environment and society as a whole. It is about conserving resources so that we can use them in the future, to create products and solutions that will help us meet challenges.

Trying to reduce your impact on the planet is not an easy task. However, it’s something that’s important for everyone to try and take a part in. It is our responsibility as humans to make sure we’re taking care of this beautiful planet we’ve been given the privilege of living on! If you have any questions on where to start, please feel free to contact me directly. I’d be more than happy to help you out!

In a nutshell, the sustainable life is a life in which you consume fewer resources than you produce. It is also a life that leaves something for future generations, and often it is more than just something: it is enough to ensure that they will be able to enjoy the same lifestyle as we do. Telling people this can sound a little bit like telling them they are bad. Don’t they already know what’s good? Of course they do. They want to be good, but first of all they want to live a good life today.

People who have been following their own self-interest have not been living sustainably; we have been consuming more than we produced. For the last couple of centuries the world has been able to muddle through by exploiting non-renewable resources and dumping waste into the environment — oceans, rivers, and so on. The oceans absorb some of our waste, and currently we are trying to burn off or contain the rest. This is not a sustainable way to live.

Nature knows no waste, but we humans have taken it upon ourselves to squander the earth’s resources. We’ve pushed our planet’s limits and can’t seem to stop the destruction. From bad habits like driving gas guzzlers to mindlessly tossing out food and paper, there are a lot of things we can do to be more sustainable. It’s time to take charge of our planet and start living in a more sustainable way. And we can all get started by setting smart goals for ourselves. But what should they be? What if you’re not sure how much you can do or how big of an impact your actions will make? We’ve got three tips that might help:

1. Making small changes often adds up to big results

I put it to you that we are all inherently sustainable, but many of us have lost touch with what makes us sustainable. Our lifestyles and our consumption habits have become unsustainable and we need to get back in touch with what is right for us and listen to what our bodies are telling us.

Give your body a chance to tell you how it feels by practicing the following:

• 1. Eat a small handful of nuts, seeds or fruit after every meal.
• 2. Eat lots of vegetables and fruits, raw if possible, but cooked if necessary.
• 3. Get into the habit of drinking water frequently throughout the day, like every hour or two.
• 4. Exercise at least 20 minutes each day, preferably in the morning before breakfast (see end of article for more on this).
• 5. Practice deep breathing and meditation for at least 10 minutes each day, ideally first thing in the morning when you wake up (see end of article for more on this).
• 6. Get outdoors – ideally into nature – at least once a day if possible.

In general, trying to make small changes in your life is the best way to make big results. There are a lot of reasons for this, and I’ve written about them before. It’s less overwhelming to start with small steps, and it’s more likely that you’ll keep up with them. Plus, you’re more likely to have success when you start small because small changes are easier to keep up than big ones.

Think about it: if you resolve to stop drinking soda, you can do it (assuming you’re not addicted). But if you resolve to never drink soda again, that’s an almost impossible goal.

So what does making small changes mean? For me it means things like bringing reusable bags when I go shopping and planning out my meals for the week instead of relying on what happens to be at the grocery store. These things take some effort but aren’t daunting, so they’re easy to keep up. If I wanted to lose 30 pounds by exercising every day, I’d find that much harder and would probably fail.*

I personally find sustainability much easier when I start small with little changes like these and work my way up from there. What about you?”

2. Find the root of the problem

Being sustainable is a complex thing. It’s not just about being green. It’s about being responsible for your actions. When you’re responsible for your actions, you are going to be a lot more productive than those people who are lacking in that department. Sustainability is something that most people want, but few really understand what it takes to get there.

Trying to find out ways to be more sustainable can be a difficult thing because of the lack of knowledge that is available in this area. Sure, you can watch all of those nature shows on Tv and read all that information in magazines and books, but this doesn’t always tell you what you need to know. You need to find out more information that is going to enable you to become more sustainable on a daily basis if you want to do this successfully.

What I have found is that when I started becoming more sustainable, I had the tendency to focus on my own home instead of thinking about those things that were happening outside of my home. Before I knew it I was spending so much money in one place and not realizing how much money I was saving in other places from my home improvements.

Sustainability is more than a buzzword. It’s more than a fad, too. True sustainability is about making the best use of all our resources, not just those we can see and touch.

Achieving sustainability means thinking about your life as a system, and looking at how your actions affect the whole system. You can’t solve one part of the problem without addressing others, and you can’t address problems in isolation.

Tackling problems like pollution is an important part of living sustainably, but it’s not enough to focus on that alone: you need to look at all the parts of your life together as a whole. It’s not what you do that matters most; it’s how well you do it. Are you sustainable?

3. Make sustainable choices that last

Sustainable Living is a lifestyle in which you view the earth and its resources as something to be preserved for future generations. A sustainable lifestyle promotes environmental responsibility and encourages us to be aware of our consumption and wastefulness. Becoming more sustainable is not only good for your bank account, but it’s also better for the environment!

Being environmentally responsible doesn’t have to mean giving up luxuries or living in squalor. In fact, living a sustainable lifestyle can simplify your life, reduce stress, and encourage other positive changes.

Sustainable business practices, sustainable development, and sustainable choices are becoming much more prevalent in the marketplace. Not only are people more aware of the need for a greener conscience and are taking steps toward being more sustainable, but businesses are being encouraged to adopt green policies in order to save money and become more profitable.

Truly being sustainable requires a great deal of work and commitment to make changes that not only benefit the environment, but also provide a net positive impact on our economy. But there are some simple changes that everyone can make. Whether you are just looking to avoid waste or want to be as green as possible, here are some easy steps to take that will have a big impact on your carbon footprint:

1. Use Reusable Bags: It is estimated that Americans use about 500 billion single-use plastic bags per year. That’s a lot of waste! Plastic bags aren’t biodegradable, which means they can remain in the environment for decades or even centuries after they’re discarded. By reusing bags instead of letting them end up in landfills, you’ll reduce your carbon footprint and make a difference by cutting down on unnecessary waste.

2. Buy Renewable Energy: You can purchase renewable energy , offset your emissions with Green-e Energy

Many of us have been brought up to believe that we need to consume a lot of products, and buy all sorts of junk. This is the way life is. It’s the American dream, the good life, living high on the hog. We are taught to go out and spend money on things we don’t really need and can’t afford.

Basic needs are food, water, clothing, and shelter. When you are living in survival mode or basic survival mode, you need to provide for your family’s basic needs first. After that you can think about anything extra as luxury items or additional luxuries.

After basic needs are met, then it is possible to start thinking about what else is needed in order to create a sustainable home environment. These may include things like more fuel efficient cars and appliances, solar power generation kits, rainwater collection systems, etc., these are all considered sustainable choices that last because they last long after your initial purchase of them has been made.