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Sustainable living ideas: how to get started

Posted by Beyond The Rack on 2021 Oct 19th

a blackboard with zero waste on it and a dozen sustainable products around

What does sustainable living mean and what are good ideas to start?

Have you ever found yourself wondering if you could incorporate self-sustainable living into your everyday routine? It is more important now than ever to help the environment we live in by reducing the amount of waste and emissions we create. But what is sustainable living? Continue reading to learn more about sustainable living ideas and how you can change your lifestyle.

What does sustainable living mean?

By reducing the number of natural resources used day-to-day, we are helping to protect the environment we depend on to survive. It involves reducing the amount of Earth’s natural resources that we use, such as:

  • Oil
  • Coal
  • Natural gas
  • Metals
  • Stone
  • Sand

Sustainable living is a concept that has been around for as long as humans have been alive. However, in recent years, more is being done to implement a sustainable environment, as all areas of lifestyle are impacted by this movement.

The current rate of energy used and the rate at which we create waste is not sustainable for Earth. The environment, wildlife, and humans are all at risk of undue harm from environmental issues such as climate change and pollution.

Get started: ideas for a sustainable lifestyle

Using more eco-friendly products, changing your diet, and reducing the amount of energy used daily are just a few ways to begin sustainable minimalism.

An eco-friendly apartment

Implementing an eco-friendly, sustainable lifestyle should start at home. By changing household products, shopping locally, and creating less waste, you are creating an eco-friendly apartment suitable for sustainable living.

Sustainable kitchens

The kitchen is a prime area for the accumulation of waste. It is reported that Americans spend more than $5.7 billion dollars each year on paper towels alone. There are many sustainable alternatives to wasteful household products, including in the kitchen.

Ditch the paper towels that pollute the environment we depend on and opt for BTR’s Luvly Sustainable Living Swedish dishcloths. Another wasteful product used often in the kitchen is foil and plastic wrap. By utilizing eco-friendly beeswax wrap, you also can help reduce the waste caused by one-time use products.

Bamboo is a sustainable alternative to plastic as it will decompose much faster and is compostable as well as easily renewable. BTR’s Natural Living bamboo products are made with bamboo sourced directly from sustainable forests. These products include:

  • Collapsible dish rack
  • Double-sided breadboard
  • Cheese grater
a cotton tote with a reusable bottle and a fern

Whether you purchase groceries from the chain grocery stores or local farmers' markets, you need bags to put the items in. Many stores use plastic bags which end up as harmful waste in the oceans and landfills. By purchasing  reusable produce bags, you can cut down on at least 10% of the plastic that finds its way into the oceans.

a women taking her groceries out of a reusable bag

Sustainable bathrooms

Many of bathroom products used daily will never decompose. Unfortunately, most of those products have a short lifetime as they are used only once. But, by using greener and compostable bathroom products, you can still cut down on harmful waste.

a set of reusable bathroom products

BTR’s Eco-Friendly line offers sustainable reusable swabs, agave bathroom sponges, as well as bamboo exfoliating wipes. An important part of sustainable production is making sure that no material is wasted making a product. Because agave leaves aren’t used to make agave syrup or tequila, they use to be discarded and unused. Such products like our bathroom sponges make sure that this is not the case.

In addition, The Humble Co Humble brush is a bamboo toothbrush made from 100% biodegradable, sustainable materials. These eco-friendly bathroom products are made using natural ingredients designed to help the environment when thrown away.

Sustainable fashion

The fashion industry is one of the main sources of pollution throughout the world. From clothes to handbags, we love shopping and spoiling ourselves with new items. But what happens with the items we throw out?

Clothing waste accounts for waste in landfills around the world; therefore, biodegradable clothes are more important than ever. However, an even better way to practice sustainable fashion is by keeping a sustainable capsule wardrobe. This simply means to keep a limited amount of clothing items together that can be mixed and matched to create multiple different looks. This is a great way to avoid falling into the mass consumption of fashion, and consistently buying new clothes trying to keep up with trends, which results in more waste. Investing in higher quality items and taking good care of them will make sure you keep them for longer, without having to buy any replacements.

In addition to clothing items, handbags and accessories are a huge part of the fashion industry. BTR Mia K handbags are eco-friendly bags made with sustainable materials. By purchasing eco-friendly bags and eco-friendly accessories, you can reduce your carbon footprint in the world.

a women at a bulk store with her reusable bag

Eco-friendly lifestyle day-to-day

We do not realize how much pollution and waste we create in our daily life. However, it is important to understand your impact. There are several things you can do to reduce the amount of pollution to create a sustainable, minimalist life.

  • Drive less: utilizing public transportation, walking, or biking reduces the number of emissions.
  • Conserve water: take shorter showers and turn the water off while brushing your teeth
  • Save energy: this reduces water and air pollution as well as helps to conserve natural resources
  • More homemade: By making your own products, like cleaning products or ingredients, you reduce your need to go buy them, which in terms reduces our mass consumption on top of the use of their plastic containers.
  • Reuse containers: Give a new life to most plastic containers from your household products by reusing them, no matter the purpose. Not only are you keeping that plastic from landfills, but you’ll also avoid buying a new one for whatever purpose you’ll have for it!

Sustainable living can come in many different forms, but it is one of the most important things you can do for the environment. Take the tips mentioned above and incorporate them into your daily life for an easy transition into sustainable living.

women hands holding various sustainable items