To me green lifestyle is one which does not go against nature and leads to a sustainable living and development in the world. Sustainable means maintenance and progress that is durable, consistent and does not jeopardise the interest of the health and well-being of the earth or any of its components.
Some amount of damage on nature is inevitable. We use items that are obtained from mining the earth; we use wood, water resources etc. But we need to make conscious efforts to minimise this damage. Simple changes in our lifestyle will go a long way in making it conducive to sustainability. Just by reducing the use of synthetic products we can make a very significant contribution. Plastic, Styrofoam or thermocol, non-degradable fabrics like polyester, nylon, chemically dyed cloth, synthetically made furniture materials - you just need to look around your house and you will find what to avoid the next time. Remember this when you have poojas, parties, when you go on trips, picnics or in your day to day activities.
One acronym that I bear in mind is - ARRR( A triple R). This means - Avoid (Think before buying/using anything if you really need it), Reduce( reduce the number of things you consume/use. For example, instead of using printing individual copies of minutes of the meeting in a office or apartment complex, you can send a softcopy), Reuse (do not buy things that are valid for just a single use and then need to be thrown, reuse reduces wastage and landfills), Recycle (learn to recycle and upcycle, this can be very interesting to do with both children and adults)
(Seetha Anand, founder of Ananda Foundation for Holistic and Healthy Learning and Living, author of ‘”Good” Food - Guide to Right Cooking and Eating’, remedial therapist and teacher trainer)
Five Simple things to do!
1. Go organic in what you eat, personal care and what you wear as much as possible since it reduces the chemical burden on the earth.
2. Grow as many plants and preferably edible gardens, since every drop of water is precious and if we grow what can yield, then it is more sensible in today’s times of water scarcity. This will also reduce the food miles. You can eat what you grow!
3. Home compost. Segregate waste (bio-degradable from non-degradable waste). Home composting drastically reduces the waste that goes out of your house. This also gives enriched manure to your plants. So it is a win-win situation. Citizens should not wait for the government to do something. Waste management is very much in our hands.
4. Avoid non-degradable products no matter how convenient or cute they look (toys, kitchen wear, daily use items, toiletries etc.)
5. Car pool if you can’t walk or cycle, combine works and shop online.
You see it is not really difficult!