Over the years, we have seen the advent of many trends taking more and more importance and it’s fair to say that this going green trend has been one of them. Whether it is limiting the use of plastic bags, growing our own fruit in the garden or using natural cosmetics, we are constantly thinking up ways to be more eco friendly towards our planet. However, the question that you could ask is: what are the reasons to go green? Why should we go green?
Ten years ago, I was certainly not aware of the importance of going green. I admit I did not want to take some time to think about it. Worse, at that time, I did not want to listen to some of my friends who tried to “educate” me about it.
It was a trip to Germany that was eventually my wake up call. I then started to read more and more about green products and I quickly switched to a greener lifestyle. And as most of you know, I can see the benefits of this choice everyday.
But this post is not about me. This post is for those of you who need to know the multiple benefits of going green. Let us be your friends who will try to explain you why this is so important for you, your health, your children, your grand children and our planet.
Hopefully, we can inspire you today so you go home, tell your family about what you have read, and gradually change your habits for the future.
If we don’t manage to do that, we urge you at least to make the smallest of changes as you will be surprised by the impact it has for both you and the future generations in your family (excuse the guilt trip!).
Without further ado, let’s take a look at the 28 reasons to go green.
1. Reduce your Electricity Bill
To start, we want to grab your attention with something that everyone wants to do – save money.
Nowadays, the changes are easier than ever and all you need are energy-saving lightbulbs utilizing the fluorescent options on the market.
According to the US Environmental Protection Agency, you could save up to a whopping 20% on your bill through making these green changes. If you have the money to invest in renewable energy sources such as solar panels, you will get back your money within a few years and show off to your friends as you pay less for electricity each month.
2. Reduce your Water Bill
Sticking with the theme of saving money, you could also save an extra few hundred dollars to spend on your hobbies or children by going green. Especially when there are water restrictions in place in locations such as Arizona and California, the green additions to your home could make a huge difference.
For example, appliances from Energy Star are a great start that could be followed by efficient plumbing systems. If your current toilet was constructed before 1982, take a moment to guess how much water you use per flush. Guessed? If so, did you say between 5-7 gallons?
By choosing a newer, more eco friendly model, you could reduce this to just over one gallon per flush – think of how much money this could save!
Moreover, a low-flow sprinkler is helpful in the yard and actually helps your grass to grow without being flooded. Not only will you have more money in your wallet, all your neighbors will be asking how you got your grass so green.
3. Preserve the Environment
For many years, we have been working against the land whether it is personal or commercial property. However, now is the time to change the mindset and start working with it. Rather than clearing all the trees to build your house, work with the land, cut only the bushes or trees that really are in the way, use designs that see minimal damage to the environment.
In fact, you will benefit from keeping more trees because they will provide shade to the building and they will also block the wind from damaging the outside walls.
In addition to this, we should also look towards the materials used because non-toxic products are much healthier for you and the environment – these options can be found for cleaners, adhesives, and paints. If you’re looking to move home, you could also look for a location near all the amenities so you can start to limit how much you use your vehicle and decrease gas emissions.
4. Make your home more durable
Although the initial cost of eco-friendly and green products might be more expensive, there is one important factor to remember – it is more durable and will therefore be cheaper in the long-term.
Too often, we get stuck thinking about the now and this is why we tend to reject eco friendly materials, products and changes. For the most part, you will save money in the long run because recycled decking (from recycled plastic or wood fibers) lasts five times longer than traditional decking (for example).
Since you don’t have to maintain or replace the items every so often, you will have more money when it comes to selling your home.
5. Increase Your Home’s Value
While we are on the topic of selling your home, your eco-friendly home will automatically become more valuable than if you made no changes. In the market in recent years, we have seen a huge shift towards green homes or eco-friendly homes.
From the buyer’s point of view, they are helping the environment, paying less on their bills, and have a safer house for their health – what’s not to like?
Regardless of how small the project may be, from replacing the faucets in the bathroom to installing solar panels, they will all have a difference. If you are competing with a home in the same neighborhood that isn’t as eco-friendly, you instantly stand taller as the better option.
6. Make you a smarter buyer
As soon as you realize the negative impact that certain chemicals can have on the environment as well as certain manufacturing methods, you start to become careful with what you buy, you also analyse more and more the ingredients in your daily products. This encourages you to develop a more critical mindset that will make you more immune to manipulative selling tricks.
You see through the pitches given by the companies themselves and make your own decisions. Therefore, you have more control over your purchases and really see which companies are contributing to pollution and harming the environment.
In recent years, we have turned into machines that buy products because the TV adverts tell us to but what happened to making our own decisions?
By going green, you will read the ingredients on the back of food products, for example, and this can also make you aware of things that are harmful to your health. Then, your decision to go green has a double-effect because you are healthier in your choices. Ultimately, you are more likely to go for high-quality items and do your bit for the planet.
7. Guarantee the Future of your Children
As you can imagine, you aren’t just doing this for yourself. In reality, many of the decisions you make now will have an impact for years to come, which means that your children and grandchildren will see the benefits.
If everyone decided to look after his or her own future family in this way, we wouldn’t be in the predicament we are now. As you can see, going green or choosing a green lifestyle isn’t about helping people who won’t help you back, it is about securing the future of your own family.
For some reason, there is a mindset of leaving it to the next generation to deal with because we ‘won’t be around’. However, their job will become significantly easier if we can contribute and make changes today.
If we can’t even provide them with clean water, soil that will grow crops, and air that they can breathe comfortably, surely we are doing something wrong?
Also, blaming previous generations doesn’t do anything. Although we can’t go back and change the past, we still have time to positively impact the future!
8. Improve Your Health
Whenever we look at the news, there seems to be some story about how studies are finding more and more dangerous chemicals in various products. Suddenly, we are finding out that several major brands of lipstick contain dangerous levels of lead, cancer can come from cleaning products, and air pollution causes asthma.
For many years, we have also known about the dangers of pesticides on humans, especially children. Many chemical pesticides used to kill insects on fruits and vegetables can go past the outer skin and lodge onto the inside of the fruits. So, even if you wash the outside, you leave the inside and consume those fruits and vegetables with pesticides in it that end up in your body.
So why to go green? One of the main advantages of going green is to improve and take care of our health and we all do know that health is by far the most important thing in this world… (after love haha). If we can’t go green for our own health, what can we do it for?
9. Improve your Skin
In relation to skin products, going green means using more natural products and these are definitely much healthier for your skin.
Your skin is the largest organ of the human body. It protects everything within. More than that, it is a living tissue system that can absorb applied products.
That is why when we use products heavy with harmful chemicals, they absorb into our skin, reach our bloodstream and can cause damage bit by bit that can lead to dermatitis, allergies and skin irritations.
As a result, choosing natural skincare or green make-up is a no brainer, because you avoid petroleum, and all those synthetic ingredients that prevent your skin from working properly, from regenerating, or healing properly.
That was my wake up call 10 years ago. After switching to green cosmetics, I could definitely see a huge difference in texture, tone, smoothness, glow etc…
My skin had never looked so healthy and radiant (ask my husband lol).
This is also the case for millions of people who decided to turn to natural cosmetics. Ask them if they would agree to switch back to “tradditional cosmetics” I bet they would all reply: NO WAY.
So what are you waiting for?
10. Become a Better Person
Going green changes your attitude because it makes you more aware of what you eat, what you wear, and the impact of our personal consumption… In a nutshell, this green awareness influences every bit of your personality.
You are more tolerant, more open to others because you don’t think in terms of your own life and your own world. You take into account the bigger picture and I would dare to say that this awareness makes you a better person.
Yeah, in our life, we sometimes tend to focus on our problems, our desires, and our interests. Going green kinda encourages this needed altruism feeling that helps us connect to others.
You start to look outwards rather than inwards all the time. Rather than arbitrarily making decisions, we realize that our choices affect others and our planet.
It doesn’t mean we should always put others first, it simply means that it doesn’t hurt to get from time to time a reminder of this bigger picture.
11. Enjoy Better Air
Because it isn’t something tangible, this often gets forgotten. However, the air we breathe is one of the most important factors of life because it is something we do every single moment of the day.
When you use all-natural products it makes the air you breathe better. The reason for this is because less chemicals in products mean less toxins in the air. As great as that new car smell is, it’s still the smell of all the toxins from the materials the car was made from leaking out. Homes are no exception, as the air inside a conventional new home could be up to 10x as polluted as the air outside.
Green homes provide better quality air than pre-owned and even brand new homes, making them healthier and more comfortable to live in. There are eco-friendly versions of just about everything; from regular household products to cosmetic products.
It’s a good idea to use homemade and non-toxic cleaners for your home. Traditional cleaners have chemicals in them that can induce headaches and breathing problems, and can make existing health conditions worse. You should also avoid using toxic insecticides and fertilizers, which can damage the health of you and your children. If you need to paint your home, then keep in mind that standard paints contain toxic volatile organic compounds (VOC). These compounds can damage the health of your family. So stick with low or zero VOC paints.
12. Help the Local Economy
Did you know that there are many farmers in your area probably struggling to make ends meet each year? Due to the rise of the supermarkets, their businesses are slowly fading but you can provide support by eating local and shopping for organic, seasonal products. If possible, visit a local market and buy fresh produce from the people who are producing them ethically.
By supporting local businesses, your community can grow and more money stays in your community rather than going to the multi-national corporations. As a result, you could see a boost in the amount of park benches in the area; your local park can be updated, bus shelters modernized, etc.
13. Reduce your Carbon Emissions (Indirectly)
Following on from the previous point, there is another reason why buying locally has such a huge benefit – reduced gas emissions.
When you buy fruits from Spain, they need to be shipped all the way to the US, which has a significant impact on gas emissions. When you choose to buy locally, you drastically reduce your carbon footprint. If you and everybody else in your community shopped locally, the need for shipping from Spain would reduce as would carbon emissions.
Furthermore, it takes more energy to manufacture a product from scratch, which means making a larger impact and carbon footprint. Purchasing green products that are often made up from recycled materials means your carbon footprint is also reduced, as well as reducing the amount of waste in landfill sites.
14. Help you to be more creative
So far, we have provided a number of reasons for going green but we have lots more to come if you aren’t yet convinced.
Going green also means we are encouraged to recycle and purchase used products whenever it is possible. This helps you to save money but not only that, this also helps you to become more creative and to come up with new ways to be energy and material efficient.
Rather than following the mold, you get to think outside the box and make creations from recycled materials.
Over the years, we have grown accustomed to throwing out kitchen tools, plastic bottles, and empty cans without even thinking. Now, you have a chance to use your creativity to bring them back to life for another use. Of course, we aren’t saying that you are going to reinvent the wheel with some plastic bottles but they could still make your life easier and more efficient. Not only this, you will also save money in addition to helping the environment so why shouldn’t we be creative?
Nowadays, there are many interior designers focusing on recycled materials so you could put this to good use. Perhaps you could create a piece of art as an ornament from recycled materials? Certainly, this will get your guests talking and admiring your creativity.
15. Become Self-Sufficient
Let’s face it, we all seem to rely on the huge companies these days and they absolutely love this fact and can charge more money or take advantage of our reliance on their service. With this in mind, how good would it feel to stop this and become self-sufficient?
For example, you can get rid of the dependancy on the electricity company by installing solar panels; at the same time, you will be paying less money.
While the rest of the community is complaining about the power cut that has left them without electricity for the past three hours, you will be unaffected and can continue your day with no worries. This is not only eco living this is what we could call independant living… 🙂
16. Support Removal of Sweatshops
As we have already seen, going green and supporting local businesses can give you peace of mind because you know who is making the product.
When you support ‘Fair Trade’ or ethical products, you make sure that the manufacturers are being treated fairly whether it is coffee or clothing. If everyone did this, we would never hear about sweatshops again.
One benefit to buy in the country you live, for example the US is that all products manufactured within the US follow strict and fair labor laws as well as requiring less travel from factory to consumer.
17. Reduce Carbon Emissions (Directly)
Earlier, we saw the indirect reduction of carbon emissions by choosing eco friendly products and buying locally.
Choosing green alternatives to travel can drastically reduce your direct carbon footprint.
You can really have a direct impact by choosing to ride your bike to work instead of driving. Using public transport will take one car off the road and reduce our reliance on gas or diesel. Also, let’s not forget that trains for a long journey are much greener than planes.
As well as helping the environment, you can also boost your health because cycling or even walking gets the heart pumping. With exercise, you also release endorphins and other positive chemicals that lead to an improved health of mind too. If you live near everything you need, why not invest in a bike and ditch the car? Above all else, just think about the amount of money you will save each month!
18. Improve your Stamina and Productivity
Going green saves you from toxic products and environmental pollution. It is like detoxing every day… As a result, you get more stamina, more energy, which eventually increase your productivity both at workplace and at home.
When you breathe polluted air, you are actually inhaling hamrful and toxic chemicals present in the atmosphere. Your immune system is constantly trying to battle the toxin chemicals and this reduces your ability to fight illness and drains your energy.
I don’t know if it is a direct consequence of my decision to eat more organic products, but I noticed that since this green shift I have been less ill in the following winter….
19. Encourage the green trend
By consuming green products, you contribute to increase the supply via the law of supply and demand.
The more people will consume and ask for greener products, the more companies will be encouraged to develop more green products, which means more research on eco friendly manufacturing methods.
Whether it’s altruism tied to a deep concern for the environment or simply a matter of dollars and cents, companies will be encouraged to go green.
20. Prevent Climate Change
Often, the topic of climate change brings images of the ice caps melting on the other side of the world; this leads us to forget that it is also having an impact where we live too. Each and every day, the sea levels rise and super storms become more likely because we pump harmful chemicals and pollutants into the sky.
These emissions modify the balance of gases in the atmosphere. This can lead to climate change, the ozone layer degradation and global warming. The only thing we can do to reverse these worrying effects is by reducing our emissions.
By switching to a green lifestyle and encouraging others to do the same, you can do your bit to reduce the worry and perhaps even reverse years of the Earth being poorly treated.
21. Make you Happier
Going green makes you a happier person because you have more confidence not only in the environment but in yourself.
Each day, you contribute towards a worthwhile cause and a sense of accomplishment comes from this.
You have the feeling that you contribute to a better world by your own choices and this is priceless. Remember the last time you did something out of sheer kindness for someone else? Remember the last time you helped someone who needed your help? How did you feel?
If you have children, this is even more amplified somewhat because you are training the next generation to have the same mindset.
22. Avoid Intoxication in the long run
Being green means that you avoid the harmful and toxic chemicals found in foods and cosmetic products.
Green skin products and cleaning products are free from harmful chemicals. The next time you use traditional products, take a second to think about all the dangerous chemicals entering your body. The average woman will absorb over four pounds of cosmetics in their lifetime, and guys don’t fare much better because harmful chemicals also reside within soaps, sunscreens, shampoos, and more.
Your skin is the largest organ your body has, and it absorbs up to two-thirds of everything that touches it, from soaps to sunscreen to shampoo. Given that many of us use around 10 different products each day, this can quickly add up.
Going green with personal care means using cosmetics and products that contain plant-based ingredients rather than petrochemicals. As such, these dangerous petrochemicals are kept off your skin and out of your body.
This couldn’t be truer in regards to food. Herbicides and pesticides are nothing short of poison. They work to poison things. Food grown with herbicides and pesticides is, quite simply, poisonous. You shouldn’t kid yourself into thinking it’s easy to wash these poisons off because it isn’t. It’s soaked into the food and in places you can’t clean. It’s absorbed by the roots and soaked into the soil the food grows in. Most pesticides work by damaging the nervous system. If you were to eat foods grown using pesticides you’re consuming neurotoxins, which does long-term damage to your nervous system.
23. Preserve Earth
As the population on Earth has grown in recent years, the stress on our great planet has grown stronger and stronger.
As a result, we have lost species of animal and plant due to humans drilling underwater or destroying their natural habitat.
By choosing to live green, you will show your support for the planet and ensure that there is something to see for future generations. Although we have tried to keep this light so far today, there is a real danger of ruining our great Earth beyond repair.
24. Show Solidarity
Rather than having a ‘what difference am I going to make on my own’ mentality, now is the time to show solidarity with others and provide a better future for others and ourselves.
By going green, we show that we can make a difference. Each one of us, together by consuming greener, shows that we care about our future. Of course you may be a tiny drop but millions of drops can build an ocean.
As was often proved in many instances, mankind is able of greatness when people work together towards the same goal.
25. Reduce Waste
The amount of waste we are producing on a daily basis is a scary thought that needs considering. By using recycled materials, you can stop our planet from becoming a giant trash can.
When you throw a material away, it doesn’t just magically disappear just because it has left your house. In fact, it has to go somewhere and that ‘somewhere’ is the many landfills that are beyond capacity and struggling to keep up with our growing demands. If you want to help, simply go online and find uses for your used materials and you can make a difference.
26. Create Peace
When you look at the wars that have occurred in the past few decades, you can attribute most of them with the same tag – a battle over limited resources. For example, there always seems to be stories in the news of how the Middle East, known for oil, is at war. If you choose to go green, you reduce your personal consumption. You relieve some of this pressure and contribute to more peace indirectly.
One important lesson to learn that goes with living green is to share.
If we decided to only use the resources we need, there would be more than enough for everyone around the world. How is it that, today we still have such a huge gap between the developed countries that consume almost all of the available resources and the developing world that can only afford the rest?
27. Educate Future Generations
By going green, you are essentially deciding to become responsible and accountable for your own actions, which is a great lesson for younger children and adults to learn.
When we look at the mistakes made in the past, we need to learn from them, as this is the very definition of progress. To earn a better future, it starts with decisions in the here and now and this leads us nicely onto our final reason to go green.
28. Provide Hope
Just like we have many generations that have lived before us, many other generations will follow after us.
But what if there was no hope? What if people thought they were already doomed? The final chapter of mankind would then be already written and unlike fairy tales it would not be a happy ending.
Choosing to live green goes way beyond a matter of money, or health. It gives hope. Hope for us, for every one of us on earth, and every generation to come.
That is why we should all act now for the sake of our children and their children to make sure there is still hope, as hope is a driving force that can lead to miracles. That is why this is one of the most important reasons to go green because as long as there is hope, everything is possible.
As you can see, these are some very compelling reasons as to why we should go eco friendly or green. You know the benefits of going green for the environment and for you. But as we all know, knowing is one thing, doing is what matters most.
We admit, it is incredibly easy to just close our eyes and forget about the worries in the world but this is nothing short of irresponsible. We could ignore the fact that we are buying food from half way across the world when we have perfectly good suppliers around the corner; we could ignore the fact that using our car for short distance drastically increases our carbon footprint and increases gas emissions when it would be healthier to walk, cycle or get public transport; we could ignore the fact that we are slowly killing our planet and draining its resources.
However, there comes a time where ignorance is useless because one day we will look back and ask ‘what if?’.
- What if we had gone green and stopped the resources from running out?
- What if we stopped using our cars sooner?
- What if we started to recycle sooner?
Luckily, there is still time to make an impact and there is no reason why we cannot all start today and create a better future for us and our beloved ones that we might not have met just yet.
Still not believing about the possible consequences?
History shows us that civilizations have caused their own demise by consuming natural resources faster than they could be replenished by nature. The Rapa Nui of Easter Island is a classic example.
So, now it’s up to you to decide the path you’re going to take.
It is a choice to live a green lifestyle. It is the choice that I made, and it is not as difficult as you might think.
Start out small; turn off the tap while you brush your teeth, unplug the appliances you are not using, and shop using reusable grocery bags. Starting out with baby steps like this can create a major impact on the people around you and the world as a whole. There are many small and simple ways to go even a little bit greener. It doesn’t really take a lot of time to do. All you need is a little effort, and some compassion for the world and people around you.
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