This Thursday, April 22, is Earth Day! In time for it, I’ve put together a list of 100 ways you can reduce household waste, lower your environmental impact, and contribute positively to the earth.
Do Our Individual Choices Matter?
In recent years, the environmental movement has shifted its focus away from our individual choices to look at how corporations drive climate change and how government policies shape environmental destruction. After all, there is only so much we can do at the individual level.
The solution to our environmental crisis lies in a new approach to organizing our economy and how we relate to one another. I’ve written about that here. Long story short, society must value people and the environment over the pursuit of corporate and private profit.
All that said, this shouldn’t discourage you from making changes for the better. Canada is one of the highest waste-producing countries in the world. On average, Canadians produce 673 kilograms of waste per year!1
There are plenty of things we can do to reduce our household waste and lower our environmental footprint. When we start making small changes, we might even inspire others to do the same.
100 Ways to Reduce Household Waste and Help the Environment
This list is divided into seven sections: kitchen, bathroom, laundry, pets, kids, out and about, and general. Some of the suggestions will be more attainable than others depending on your individual circumstances. The goal is to inspire you to make a few changes, not to stress you about the ones that are out of reach.
Kitchen
- Drink tap water
- Replace cling wrap for beeswax wraps
- Buy organic
- Ditch single use coffee pods
- Cook more often to reduce takeout waste
- Compost kitchen scraps
- Avoid purchasing vegetables and fruits that are wrapped in plastic
- Reuse glass jars
- Bake your own bread
- Buy seasonal fruits and vegetables
- Preserve foods (freeze, ferment, can)
- Switch to metal straws
- Make your own sauces, dips, and dressings
- Choose dish scrubbers made from natural materials over plastic
- Re-purpose food containers (jars, cans, etc.)
- Eat your leftovers
- Turn meat and vegetable scraps into broth
- Replace paper towels with rags
- Make your own cleaning products
- Buy loose leaf tea over bagged
- Avoid packaged foods
- Choose wood utensils over plastic
- Swap plastic bags for reusable grocery bags
- Ditch single use zip-lock bags for reusable bags and containers
- Introduce meat free days
- Store food properly to prevent waste
Bathroom
- Switch to bar shampoo and soap
- Take shorter and colder showers
- Invest in menstrual cups, reusable pads, and/or period underwear
- Ditch cotton swabs
- Choose unbleached and recycled toilet paper
- Use soap as your shaving cream
- Switch to wooden toothbrushes
- Use up extra bath and body products before buying new
- Ditch hairspray or reduce usage
- Use bath towels more than once
- Switch toothpaste for tablets or powders
Laundry
- Stop using dryer sheets
- Try laundry detergents that don’t use plastic packaging
- Hang your clothes to dry
- Mend worn clothing
- Wash clothes in cold water
- Follow washing instructions to make clothes last longer
- Use old clothing as rags or DIY them into new items
- Embrace a minimalist wardrobe
Out and About
- Bring your own cutlery and resealable food packaging when eating out
- Take the bus, commute, or ride a bike
- Pick up garbage at your local park
- Organize a park clean-up
- Volunteer at a community garden
Pets
- Reduce plastic toys
- Swap packaged dog treats for homemade
- Use eco-friendly cat litre
- Keep your cat indoors or on leash
- Pick up your dog’s waste
Kids
- Try cloth diapers
- Minimize plastic toys
- Make your own baby food
- Don’t overbuy for baby
- Get kids to craft with items around the home
- Use cloths instead of disposable wipes
General
- Go solar
- Turn off and unplug
- Find books at your local library
- Rent or borrow equipment that you don’t regularly use
- Switch to digital subscriptions for magazines
- Ditch air fresheners
- Reduce air travel
- Switch to LED light bulbs
- Buy used
- Say no to free items like product merchandise
- Take care of your belongings
- Exchange books, puzzles, clothes, and board games with friends
- Switch to digital billing
- Repair broken items
- Choose rechargeable batteries
- Buy local
- Take the bus
- Refuse junk mail – here’s how (for those living in Canada)
- Unsubscribe from mailing lists to reduce consumption
- Say no to fast fashion
- Recycle your Christmas tree
- Minimize holiday decor
- Re-gift items you won’t use
- Donate or sell old clothes, books, and toys
- Properly dispose of batteries and paint
- Choose local travel over international
- Embrace minimalism
- Re-use wrapping paper
Garden
- Reuse egg cartons as seed trays
- Grow your own herbs and vegetables
- Grow drought resistant plants
- Avoid pesticides and herbicides
- Give away or preserve extra produce
- Install a water barrel
- Remove invasive plants from your garden
- Save seeds and share them with friends
- Avoid buying plastic pots and reuse those you have
- Make a bat or bird house
- Use untreated lumber for garden beds
- Plant local wildflowers for pollinators
- Plant a wildlife garden
- Don’t grow a lawn or grow native grasses
Do Your Best and Support Political Efforts for Collective Change
I hope this list inspires you to do what you can to reduce your household footprint. Ultimately, it is the social, political, and economic circumstances that shape the future of the planet. It is going to take a colossal societal effort to turn things around. So, vote with the environment in mind, write your local government representatives, support projects for environmental justice, and understand the importance of Indigenous reconciliation.
Before you go…
Do you have any tips to reduce household waste and improve our environmental footprint? I’d love to hear about it in the comments.
Other posts you may enjoy
Environmental Destruction: Individual vs. Collective Action
Leave No Trace: The Benefits and Problems
Sources
1 Levon Sevunts. 2019. “Canada among worst waste-producing countries: study.” CBC.