The easiest way
to go green is "keeping it simple." When you go back to the basics,
you're green. Whether your definition of simplicity is replacing
disposable diapers with simple cloth diapers, or having larger windows to let
in more sunlight so you use lights less during the day, the key to eco-friendly and sustainable is
simplicity.
I think there are a lot of things that have become incredibly commonplace in our lives that are just too complicated. If we could somehow simplify them, our lives would become a lot more relaxed. That's the reason Apple fans are so die-hard for Apple products: Apple makes all of their stuff just so simple and easy to use. I know I digressed from eco to tech, but the Apple example was the best and commonest I could think of to illustrate my point.
Sometimes reusing is as simple as refilling a bottle. We often buy bottled water and throw out the bottle after it's empty. But wouldn't using a food-safe refillable bottle be a lot simpler than buying a new one every time? Water fountains are nearly everywhere: they are in all public places, malls, and parks, and they all have clean drinking water.
Some other really neat examples of simple eco-friendly ingenuity:
Solar power - this one has literally been staring us in the face for as long as humans have been around! We've used steam, burned coal, fossil fuels, and even done something as complicated as split atoms to get energy: but the simplest one by far has to be solar power! Just put up a cell to collect the energy, charge up, and you are good to go!
Reusable shopping bags - I remember helping my grandmother reorganize her closet and drawers - everything she had was neatly sorted and wrapped up in cloth bundles - she didn't need plastic boxes and trays. Isn't that what a reusable shoppingbag is, after all? A piece of cloth sewn like a bag that we use to store stuff!
Bamboo utensils - When given a choice between bamboo and plastic, which do you think is more basic? Plastic, which is the result of animals and plants becoming fossilized over millions of years, slowly turning into crude oil, then processed in a factory and molded into utensils? Or bamboo, which takes less than a month to grow, after which it is cut and carved into a utensil?
Organic foods - organically grown/produced foods are also simple at heart. They don't have any of the pesticides, chemicals, or genetic engineering that non-organic foods have. In fact, they were grown just as nature has been doing for the past few billion years! Of course, we can streamline the process by farming, but otherwise, it's up to Mother Nature to do her thing!
Maybe it's time we looked a little bit inside ourselves and tried to simplify"green" our lives. Let's look back at how we used to do things, put a modern take on them, and see what kind of cool ideas we can come up with. What are some ways you have simplified to make things easier or more "green?"
I think there are a lot of things that have become incredibly commonplace in our lives that are just too complicated. If we could somehow simplify them, our lives would become a lot more relaxed. That's the reason Apple fans are so die-hard for Apple products: Apple makes all of their stuff just so simple and easy to use. I know I digressed from eco to tech, but the Apple example was the best and commonest I could think of to illustrate my point.
Sometimes reusing is as simple as refilling a bottle. We often buy bottled water and throw out the bottle after it's empty. But wouldn't using a food-safe refillable bottle be a lot simpler than buying a new one every time? Water fountains are nearly everywhere: they are in all public places, malls, and parks, and they all have clean drinking water.
Some other really neat examples of simple eco-friendly ingenuity:
Solar power - this one has literally been staring us in the face for as long as humans have been around! We've used steam, burned coal, fossil fuels, and even done something as complicated as split atoms to get energy: but the simplest one by far has to be solar power! Just put up a cell to collect the energy, charge up, and you are good to go!
Reusable shopping bags - I remember helping my grandmother reorganize her closet and drawers - everything she had was neatly sorted and wrapped up in cloth bundles - she didn't need plastic boxes and trays. Isn't that what a reusable shoppingbag is, after all? A piece of cloth sewn like a bag that we use to store stuff!
Bamboo utensils - When given a choice between bamboo and plastic, which do you think is more basic? Plastic, which is the result of animals and plants becoming fossilized over millions of years, slowly turning into crude oil, then processed in a factory and molded into utensils? Or bamboo, which takes less than a month to grow, after which it is cut and carved into a utensil?
Organic foods - organically grown/produced foods are also simple at heart. They don't have any of the pesticides, chemicals, or genetic engineering that non-organic foods have. In fact, they were grown just as nature has been doing for the past few billion years! Of course, we can streamline the process by farming, but otherwise, it's up to Mother Nature to do her thing!
Maybe it's time we looked a little bit inside ourselves and tried to simplify"green" our lives. Let's look back at how we used to do things, put a modern take on them, and see what kind of cool ideas we can come up with. What are some ways you have simplified to make things easier or more "green?"
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