Backyard Nature's Direct Feed from
Tips for Green Living

Everyday Environmental tips from The Nature Conservancy's online community.

Last updated on  February 4th, 2012

Tech-free for a Day: Click here

Don't check your emails more than once a day. Only turn on your computer when you need to. Plan your computer use ahead of time so that you can save your self time and not be a slave to technology. This will also save energy too of course.

What would you do if you were tech-free for a day?

 

James Byrne
ONLINE CONSERVANCY MEMBER

Visit my.nature.org to read more Everyday Environmental Tips, or to share your tips for a better world with our online community.


Sustainable Jogging: Click here

 When taking your daily jog outside, bring a reuseable water bottle instead of plastic bottle.

William Gregory Bober
Carol Stream, Illinois

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Start a Nature Journal: Click here

Start a nature journal - to write down your observations for what plants or animals are coming out or back to your area...such as birds...what plants are budding out or what trees leaf out first. Maybe you would like to learn to sketch out some of your observations.

Dr. Tom Howick
Roswell, Georgia

Visit my.nature.org to read more Everyday Environmental Tips, or to share your tips for a better world with our online community.


Start a Career in Conservation: Click here

I aspire to complete my Master's degree in Environmental and Earth Science with an emphasis on Aquatic Ecology.

Are you planning a career in conservation?  Share how you got interested in this exciting, important field.

Cody Black
FACEBOOK MEMBER

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Simpler Times: Click here

Every night that i'm home, I'll take one or two hours to light my small apartment with candle light! It saves energy, and brings me back to a simpler time!

Ms. Amanda Picanzo
MASTIC, NEW YORK

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Simple Flushing: Click here

To save water...put a large plastic bottle full of water, (close the lid of the bottle) in the toilet cistern; this will cut down on the consumption of water used when flushing by about a litre.
 

Mrs Anne Douglas
WREXHAM, UNITED KINGDOM

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Rock Hunt: Click here

 Go on a rock hunt. Round up youngsters and set off to collect rocks of all different types. Then sit and talk about why you chose the rocks you chose. Maybe learn what they are and how they got there. 

Amie Averett
North Ogden, Utah

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Re-use Everyday Items: Click here

Don't throw out anything without asking yourself if it can be reused. I got this mentality from backpacking, where you have very few resources to work with. Lots of food packaging like plastic bags, if opened carefully, can be reused for something else.

How do you re-use items in your household?

Frank
ONLINE CONSERVANCY MEMBER

Visit my.nature.org to read more Everyday Environmental Tips, or to share your tips for a better world with our online community.


Packaging Woes: Click here

Seek out no-waste packaging.  I look for products with recyclable packaging.  I avoid tetrapak, styrofoam and unnecessary bags.  I don't buy products in clamshell packing unless I absolutely have to.  Making those choices means less waste, and fewer garbage bags too.  It's a ripple effect.

Lisa D. Foster
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA

Visit my.nature.org to read more Everyday Environmental Tips, or to share your tips for a better world with our online community.


Neighborhood Cleanup: Click here

I live in a condominium complex and we have organized a neighborhood cleanup day. We'll be cleaning up the grounds, planting grass, planting flower beds, etc. I'm thinking that a neighborhood bbq will be the reward at the end of the day!

Katharine Byerline Thayer
Midvale, Utah

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One Woman's Trash: Click here

I cleaned out some closets and put some reuseable items on the curb that I didn't want, such as small stackable endtables, tv trays, etc. The next day everything was gone.

Deborah Kyrios Shapiro
ARLINGTON, MASSACHUSETTS

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Miracle Vinegar: Click here

White vinegar is perfect for killing weeds that sprout through our hard-top driveway.  The best part…it's cheap! It's also a very effective glass cleaner.

Mr. Blair Bigelow
PELHAM, MASSACHUSETTS

Visit my.nature.org to read more Everyday Environmental Tips, or to share your tips for a better world with our online community.


Magazine Swap: Click here

Instead of throwing previously-read magazines away, I drop them off in the laundry room of my apartment building.  I have noticed some people reading the magazines while waiting for their laundry to wash or to dry.  Also, some people pick up the magazines they are interested in and take them away with them.  The magazines get at least one more reading and, hopefully, get passed on to other readers.

Janis A. Martinez
Gallup, New Mexico

Visit my.nature.org to read more Everyday Environmental Tips, or to share your tips for a better world with our online community.


It's a Nice Day for a Green Wedding: Click here

For the wedding celebrations we attend, we take a green gift.

A nice reusable shopping bag (no wasted tissue or wrapping paper) filled with items such as fluorescent light bulbs, natural cleaners, water bottles, recycled computer paper, power strips etc. We also include an additional list of other ideas for green living.

We think it's a great way to start a new life; developing useful family habits.

Kirstin Millard
Orem, Utah

Visit my.nature.org to read more Everyday Environmental Tips, or to share your tips for a better world with our online community.


In My Classroom: Click here

In my classroom, I have removed all paper towels from the sink area and replaced them with cloth towels that the students use to dry their hands every time they wash them.  We have also made it a task to recycle everything that we can and use both sides of the paper before tossing it into the recycle bin.
 

Ms. Daisy Barreto
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA

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Cut and Reuse: Click here

Cut old shirts and use them as wash cloths in the kitchen and bathroom, etc.

Jeannie Linsavage
Albuquerque, New Mexico

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Bird Maps: Click here

 We'll draw a map of the backyard and then work together to identify the trees and birds we see. Binoculars, sunscreen, insect repellant and a picnic make it safe and fun for our whole family!

Mrs. Kahille Dorsinvil
Medford, New York

Visit my.nature.org to read more Everyday Environmental Tips, or to share your tips for a better world with our online community.


Become a Homebody: Click here

Make your home a place where you want to be.  Make it physically comfortable, pleasant and welcoming; develop interests that you can pursue at home (reading, cooking, gardening, writing, sewing, art, woodworking, etc.); develop a happy, well-evolved family life.  (Turning off the television and the computer games help a lot with this last.)  This doesn't require a house full of expensive stuff.  If you like your home and live in it fully, you'll be less likely to want to escape from it frequently, burning fuel and clogging the roads. 

Ms. Melissa Pejrano
LUGAGNANO VAL D'ARDA, ITALY

Visit my.nature.org to read more Everyday Environmental Tips, or to share your tips for a better world with our online community.


Babies Can Go Green Too!: Click here

If you have a baby, there are lots of ways to reduce their footprint. Cloth diapers with treated-cloth or wool covers, hanging up baby sheets and clothes insteead of putting them in the dryer, breastfeeding as long as possible, making your own baby food instead of buying little plastic and glass jars, cloth baby wipes, and automotive towels instead of paper towels to clean up messes.

Ms. Shelley A. Moreau
West Palm Beach, Florida

Visit my.nature.org to read more Everyday Environmental Tips, or to share your tips for a better world with our online community.


Athletic Environmentalist: Click here

Choose a new outdoor sport to do every day. By doing different activities, you will work more muscles in your body and enjoy diversity.

 

Christine Lynn Wysocki
Edgewater, Maryland

Visit my.nature.org to read more Everyday Environmental Tips, or to share your tips for a better world with our online community.


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