It is no secret to anyone who knows me even remotely well that my hippie genes run strong. I mean, I don’t like to brag but I once sent all of my camp counselors into a full-blown tissy when I was accidentally wore a “Save Mother Earth” t-shirt to Bible Camp when I was nine. (who knew that environmentalism and the hardcore evangelical Christianity of the ’90s couldn’t hang out together?) I give complete credit to my mom for this granola streak, she was the original earth mother and clearly passed down some major conservationism to me.
And while I know there are varying degrees of environmentalism and all sorts of political debates raging over pro-business versus pro-Earth, I refuse to get into all of that. I’m generally a simple gal and feel like the best I can do personally is to make my own footprint better, kinder, and safer for our planet. I start at home, always, and that’s where this list comes from. Things we can ALL do in our personal lives to make our personal effect on the Earth lesser.
I don’t always get it right (I’m the queen of forgetting my reusable bags). And I often get it really wrong (my car is a giant gas-guzzling nightmare). But there are certain things that I’ve adopted in this past year that are better for the Earth and make my inner-hippie proud. None of these are difficult and none have to be HARD NO’s, meaning you can be flexible in how you approach them. I’m a firm believer in making little changes each day that make both the world and our own life better and all of these can be little steps towards that goal.
So follow along as I share these four little changes we can all do (well, one is just for the ladies) to make this world a better, cleaner place for our children and their children. And please message me if you have any questions or you want to share your easy ways to be a better steward of this Earth. I’d love to hear!
-
Composting: In my very first What I’m Digging Wednesday I shared my compost bin. I had just started my composting journey after years of talking about it. I was enthralled and totally digging it. Flash forward two months and I’m even MORE in love with the entire composting process. If you’re not familiar with composting, it’s basically taking all of your food scraps (minus animal and dairy products) as well as yard waste (grass clippings, dead leaves) and putting them together so the natural scientific process of decomposition can happen, eventually providing you with incredibly rich and healthy soil to put in your gardens and flower beds. There are a multitude of reasons why composting is good for the earth and while it sounds complicated, it’s truly not. After two months, we’ve found that it has decreased our overall food waste and become one of the most satisfying things I’ve personally done in a long while. We do not have actual compost yet, however, watching the process is fascinating (plus a nifty science lesson for the kids) and we’re probably only about 2 months out from our first batch based on the progress we have thus far. It is easy and cost-effective to start as well. I have a small countertop composter with a charcoal lid to eliminate any smells and a larger outdoor tumbler with a closed lid to keep pests out that is in the back corner of my yard. About three times a week, I take a load from the inside bin and dump it into the outside one, adding whatever leaves and grass clippings Jeff has accumulated outside. I turn it a few times, stare in fascination as everything rots, and feel generally pretty much like an environmental badass on the way back inside. I highly recommend giving it a try, so feel free to reach out to me if you have any questions or need help getting started.
- Grab a countertop composter HERE.
- Grab a safe (enclosed) outdoor tumbler HERE.
- Watch this movie to learn more about how healthy soil is key to a healthy environment.
-
Get to Planting: I used to think I had a black thumb. Which, I guess was true considering I was prone to killing every plant I touched or that even got within a 10-foot radius of my care. Something switched this year, though. Maybe it was quarantine, maybe it’s because I’m old and crotchety and like weird things, but I am all about the plants these days. This is good, by the way, for my inner hippie because there are tremendous environmental benefits to plants, both inside and outside of our homes. In my bedroom I have multiple different plants in a corner I like to call “plant town,” and I am obsessed with this little space. Having plants in your bedroom can detoxify the air and add more oxygen. They can improve your sleep, improve your mood and help sharpen your attention. Plus, they’re pretty. So there is that. But apart from my bedroom corner, I’ve also become mildly obsessed with outdoor gardening. I even am dropping mad hints towards one husband of mine that this raised garden needs to be amongst my Mother’s Day packages. Besides the obvious pleasures I get from staring at pretty plants, the benefits of creating a personal garden are numerous. Firstly, plants clean the air and the soil. They reduce our carbon footprint (especially if they are food plants) and they help support birds and insects. There is almost no downside to gardening. It’s a stress-reducing, great family activity, and just generally something we all can do (yes, even on a small patio) to help make this world a better place.
- THIS Raised Bed Garden is on my WISH LIST.
- Small Space? Grab THIS patio planter.
- Want some indoor plants? THIS Spider plant is currently hanging out in my bedroom plant town and I love it. (it’s super hard to kill, too).
-
Change your Period: Gentlement, look away now ’cause I’m talking strictly to the ladies on this one, and we’re about to get REAL with our period talk. You don’t want to be here for this, I promise. A few months ago, my friend Monique was all “hey, I use a menstrual cup and it’s changed my life.” (yes, we’re those friends who talk about stuff like this.) At first, I was all “you’re crazy!” but then I started to do my research and I couldn’t unlearn the things I read. The average woman goes through 11,000 sanitary pads in her lifetime. ELEVEN THOUSAND. And those suckers do not just disintegrate. They hang out, just chilling in the landfills and killing our environment slowly. If you are local, you know this because about a year ago a box of pads exploded on Eldorado parkway and those suckers are still hanging out in the turn lane into our neighborhood. They stay FOREVER. Imagine if we all just made a simple swap? What would that do to our footprint on this Earth? Thus began my journey into the strangest yet most beneficial change I have made within this past year to both help the environment and my health. I switched to a Menstrual cup and noticed, after a steep learning curve and a trial and error process to find the right one, that my cramps nearly disappeared and my period became less bothersome. On top of that, I invested in a few pairs of period underwear from Thinx and have never looked back. Yes, these are pricey but they are life-changing. No more bulky pads. No more leaks. Just actual underwear that absorbs it all without being weird. Outside of the initial cost, it is actually cost-effective in the long run as well and has introduced me to something that will make my daughter’s transition into “womanhood” (gag at that verbiage) easier and less stressful than back in the good old days. I cannot stress this enough, if you’re even remotely curious, make the leap. It seems weird at first, but trust me, it’s good in so many ways. Message me if you have more questions.
- Grab the cups that work best for me HERE.
- This is another alternative cup that is good for beginners: The Flex Cup
- Thinx Panties HERE. I got a set of 3 and found that was the perfect number for me. It will obviously depend on your needs, lifestyle, and body.
-
Go Meatless (at least sometimes): It’s no secret that I’ve been vegan since January. And no, I’m not about to lecture y’all about how you should make the change to this lifestyle. I recognize that it’s a nearly impossible goal to attain. Heck, I’m a pretty abysmal vegan myself on special occasions and when I’m trying out a new restaurant. So I understand how unattainable it is to tell you to quit all meat and animal products all the time. But, I also wouldn’t be really doing my job if I didn’t nudge you gently in the direction of at least lowering your meat consumption, possibly starting with a meatless Monday challenge or choosing one meatless meal a day. The health benefits of reducing our meat intake are numerous. It’s better for your weight and reduces both your cancer and heart disease risks. These are no-brainers. But did you know that animal farming accounts for 51% of all greenhouse emissions in the world? That’s as much as all the cars, trucks, and planes combined. Yes, combined. Besides this terribly damaging effect, it’s also simply unsustainable for humans to continue to consume meat at the rate at which we do. It’s a remarkably inefficient farming practice (1 hectare of beef feeds only 1-2 people while 1 hectare or rice feeds 19-22) as well. All of this means that we have to change our meat consumption in some way if we want the world to continue to be an inhabitable place for generations to come. Plus, I grew up around dairy cows and they are wonderful animals. Watch just one documentary about how they are treated in the mass farming system and you will quit immediately. Once again, this is not a preachy call for you to drop meat completely from your diet. It’s just a gentle push for you to re-evaluate how much meat you consume and to consider working in some plant-based meals to your diet.
I truly hope you found something here that can help you take just one small step towards a better future for our planet. Let me know if something here inspired you! I’d love to see pics of you on your own environmental journey!
Peace, love, and save the earth,
Meg
Welcome to BurntToast! My name is Meaghan, and this is my safe space, a place where we can share stories, share recipes and share life. It’s my dream that you can come here, kick your shoes off and pour yourself a glass of wine while you read, laugh, and maybe even hop into the kitchen. This is my heart, for all of you to see. And ALL are welcome here.