Being eco-friendly and living a sustainable life isn’t difficult. It doesn’t only involve using solar panels, composting waste, barely using electricity and abandoning all vehicular transport. Being environmentally conscious can begin with a small act like turning off the taps while brushing or ditching all single-use plastics. There are multiple ways one can live a greener life, and no, these do not involve extreme measures. This Earth Day, to find out innovative, easy and effective ways to make our homes sustainable and eco-friendly, we asked the Girl Tribe by MissMalini what they do to reduce their carbon footprint at home and live a greener life. Here’s what they said:

7 Ways To Make Your Home Sustainable & Eco-Friendly

1. Using AC Outlet Water For Watering Plants

Most of us let our AC outlet pipe drip away carelessly and this needs to stop. This outlet water is precious and can be reused by collecting it in a bucket and using it for watering your plants. It’s simple, effective and very sustainable!

2. Using RO Waste Water For Mopping

Don’t waste the water collected in your RO purifier, recycle it! Our RO waste water ends up down a sink and it really doesn’t need to (well, without being reused again). This water is perfect to use for mopping your house and washing your clothes. This will greatly reduce your water wastage and make your home extremely sustainable and eco-friendly.

3. Ditch All Single-Use Plastics

Need we say more? Ditch all plastic, thermacol and polyester that is of the use-and-throw nature. Metal straws, cloth bags, re-usable sealing bags, bamboo toothbrushes and more are great alternatives to single-use items. Yes, they may cost a bit more, but they last much longer and will end up being cheaper in the long-run. If you are able to afford it, go for it! Ditching these items can lessen your household waste by a lot and make your home sustainable and eco-friendly.

4. Use All Parts Of Vegetables To Reduce Waste

Don’t throw away the skin and stems of vegetables as they can be used in multiple ways! The skin of vegetables like snake gourd and bottle gourd can be used to make chutneys. Potato skins can be used to make face-packs. The stems and roots of mint leaves, coriander and broccoli can be boiled and turned into delicious soups! Other non-edible parts can be easily used as fertilizers for your house-plants. By economically using vegetables not only does one get incredible value for money but also reduction in their waste which ultimately results in lesser carbon emissions!

5. Use Menstrual Cups & Bio-degradable Pads

Periods can be the the opposite of environment-friendly with disposable pads and tampons. These are made out of materials that are not biodegradable and can take centuries to dissolve, and even when they do, they are horrible for the earth. To stop this, using menstrual cups are incredible. They can be used for months and are much more comfortable than wearing a pad or tampon. However, if menstrual cups aren’t suiting you, opt for bio-degradable pads that won’t harm the environment!

6. Shop Smartly

While going to shops and malls, carry a cloth bag instead of asking for a store bag for your purchases. It leads to less wastage and saves you from lugging multiple bags around. Personally, I’m a huge advocate for this because it’s so easy to do! Additionally, be more conscious of shopping online as they use insane amounts of packaging and plastic for the smallest products. We’ve all received small lipsticks and accessories adorned with 40 layers of packaging. It is such a waste and does a lot of harm to our planet! If you have to order online, try to order as many items as possible. Avoiding fast-fashion brands can help reduce carbon emissions too and is also more ethical. Support brands that are sustainable, eco-friendly and as “zero-waste” as possible!

7. Use Towels Not Tissues

“But tissues are made of paper and they are biodegradable, why should we give them up?” – If this question is popping up in your mind, you’re not alone. While paper-towels and tissues are biodegradable, they’re not necessarily eco-friendly. Most of us end up using a lot of tissues for something that would require half of one. This leads to more waste and eventually more carbon emissions! Using towels that can be washed and reused is a sustainable and more earth-friendly option.

What do you do to make your home more sustainable and eco-friendly? Share it with us in the comments below!

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