Sustainable Living Simplified

A sustainable lifestyle is a way of life all people should try to live, but it can be difficult. Taking care of the environment through living sustainably can dramatically decrease the amount of environmental caused deaths every year and help keep all people healthy. An unhealthy environment can cause lung and heart diseases to become irritated through inhaling smoke and chemical filled air or living in a dirty, garbage-filled environment. People are encouraged to make sustainable choices especially when it comes to energy, food waste and food storage.

Fossil fuels and chemical fertilizers are used to produce, package and transport the food that we buy and eat from the grocery store. These fuels and chemicals only cause negative impacts on our health and on the environment, but there are ways that we can improve the way our food is produced, packaged and transported. Choosing foods that are produced or grown locally, that are natural, organic and healthy, that do not use hormones and preservatives to enhance growth of animals, and that do not use added toxins are all options to help lead and live a sustainable lifestyle.

Many food storage products that are purchased are often not reusable, including plastic bags, plastic wrap or foil wrap. These types of products are used once and then thrown away, which adds to our individual amount of waste. Choosing products that are either made from recycled materials or can be reused themselves is the best option to live sustainably. Many products such as glass food storage, plastic food storage, beeswax food wrap, or reusable snack and sandwich bags are all good substitutes for disposable products. It is important that when choosing these products, we make sure they are also not made with harmful chemicals and that they are durable because their purpose is to have a long product life.

Climate change is currently a reality in the world and in order to reverse its negative impacts on our land, people must live sustainably to protect the environment and the people.   Living sustainably means living under conditions in which humans and nature can healthily and effectively live together to preserve what we have for future generations.

To live sustainably we can use the natural resources that our country has or that other countries have. When buying new clothing items, toys or anything that you want to purchase, first think if you actually need the product, because if you do not, then it is considered waste. If the product is needed, find sustainable ways to purchase it. Other countries have different natural resources from your home country, so research can be done to see if the environmental footprint could be decreased by purchasing from another country rather than a large manufacturer. Another way sustainable living can be done is purchasing efficient products, such as fuel-efficient or hybrid vehicles or energy star appliances. These are products that reduce your carbon footprint because they are energy reducing compared to other types of the same product. One of the best ways to live sustainably is to live plastic free, so only using reusable bags, containers, and bottles. Plastic is not able to be recycled, so it stays on land forever and often pollutes the oceans and kills or harms animals.

There are many ways that people can live sustainably and it is especially important now that the climate is in crisis and suffering tremendously. People need to protect their natural resources, so that they can be used now and in future generations. There are many ways energy can be saved through new technologies, and there are many reusable products in which people can store food. Composting food also helps to reduce food waste. Shopping locally helps reduce toxins and chemicals in the environment. Not using plastic helps reduce pollution in oceans and other forms of land. Sustainability is extremely important for our world’s future, so we must start protecting our Earth now.

Sources:

https://www.cdc.gov/sustainability/lifestyle/index.htm

https://www.biologicaldiversity.org/programs/population_and_sustainability/sustainability/live_more_sustainably.html

https://www.epa.gov/sustainability/learn-about-sustainability