I was walking down the road yesterday when I thought about the green grass along it. It gave me a serene feeling to see the greeneries around me : potted plants, trees, and the green green grass. There is thankfulness that I can still enjoy these blessings every morning.
Anyway, it gave me a drive to write something about the environment. But of course with all the hype people are getting from the global warming frenzy, I don’t think giving you tips on how to do your part in saving the environment will do much. What I will do instead, is to share with you all the part that I do. Hopefully this can inspire you that start doing your part too ^^
1. Less plastic bags.
Yes, it is the one campaigned all over Singapore nowadays. Since plastic is not degradable, the only way to take care of thrown plastic bags is to incinerate them, resulting in air pollution, CO2, and other poisonous gases.
I find that the easiest way to reduce your plastic bag usage is to shop for your groceries more often. I usually buy simple groceries like apples, jam, and bread. If I do my groceries once a week, I’ll definitely need at least one plastic bag to carry all my groceries home. But if I go for groceries shopping more often, I can buy 1-2 items per visit and I don’t need a plastic bag for it since I can put it inside my bag.
The benefits? Less plastic bags to throw away and you can queue at the express lane =) Of course I still need plastic bags for big items that I can’t carry. But the main thing is that with this trick, I use less plastic bag for myself.
2. No Air Conditioning
I think Air-Con is the silliest technology ever used by humans. We set the temperature to 18 degrees only to crawl below a thick blanket. During office hour, we wear jackets and cardigans to fight the numbing cold of the blasting air con in our offices. It’s silly -_- The next time you go to sleep, try it without air con. I’ve done so for 4 years and I’m still alive. Living without air con won’t kill someone. Trust me.
Benefits of course include savings from not buying an air con for your homes and lower utilities bills. If you are renting a place, a good bet is that your rent will be lower if you have no air con in the place.
3. Less paper
This is quite easy. I just make sure that I don’t do any mistake when I print or copy something. Other things like putting more things on a sheet of paper so I don’t need lots of it is also great. I also used wasted paper to write down my groceries list and notes. The next best thing is to share the newspaper (since we throw it away at the end of the day, might as well share it) and to read the documents online.
Benefits? Less mudslide because we have more trees and hopefully a more regular change of season. Not to mention less money on printing, copying, and binding.
4. Use public transport, or even better, walk or cycle =D
In Singapore, I think this bus and MRT are quite the obvious choice since we have a great transport system. But really, if it is not that far, it makes more sense to walk or cycle than to ride on a bus.
Benefits? Less transport money if you walk or cycle. Less parking expenses if you drive a bike or car. Not to mention less headache when you can’t find a parking slot =P
I guess that basically outlines what I do to help the environment. Of course it lowers my own expenditure here and there, but the spirit of excellence to obey the cultural mandate is also there =)
Will you do your part?
And God blessed them and said to them, Be fruitful, multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it [using all its vast resources in the service of God and man]; and have dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and over every living creature that moves upon the earth. ~Genesis 1:28 (Amplified Bible)~
