Baby Steps to Greener Living

By Kim Laehle

3 Ways to Go Light Green:

1. Open and close your curtains. On sunny winter days, open your curtains for more light and heat. In summer, keep them closed to keep cool. (Easy, right?)

2. Clean the coils on your fridge. Dusting those coils just twice a year can decrease energy consumption by up to 30%.

3. Donate (don’t dump) stuff. Too busy to make a trip beyond your trash bin? Organizations like CARH will pick up that spring cleaning pile (even e-waste items)—for free. And did you know you can donate outgrown eyeglasses? Kid-sized frames are especially needed, reports Dr. Corinne Odineal of Auburn Family Optometry. Donate at your eye doc’s office or through your local Lions Club.

Try a Shade Deeper:

1. Line dry clothes. Stephanie Emerson, a Roseville mom, line dries her family’s clothes year-round to conserve electricity.

2. Have a clothes swap party. Grab a few friends, collect what you no longer wear, and swap away. Sacramento mom Sharon Watson recycles her family’s clothes.

3. Shrink your trash can. Putting smaller trash cans out in your house or using a smaller trash can outside will definitely get you thinking about what you throw away.

4. Reduce. Most of us can recite the mantra: “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle.” And we pride ourselves on recycling. But according to GlobalStewards.org, “The critical first step of waste prevention has been overshadowed by a focus on recycling.” The site urges families to focus on consuming less in the first place.

Go Bright Green:

1. Eat less meat. Eating one meatless meal a week is a great start, but if you can do two meals a week, you’ll greatly reduce your family’s impact on the Earth. According to Robin Shreeves, if Americans reduced our meat consumption by 20%, we would save about as much in greenhouse gas emissions as if everyone switched from a standard sedan to a hybrid car.

2. Unplug. The Gibbs family in Sacramento uses only one outlet in the kitchen to consciously reduce their energy consumption. “It makes you rethink how you’re going to cook dinner… It’s kind of fun!” says Sevita Gibbs.

3. Skip the paper products aisle. Desirea Harvey, a mom of two from Fair Oaks, uses cloth towels, napkins and grocery bags, as well as cloth diapers and wipes.

4. Lose the lawn. According to University of California Cooperative Extension, a lawn is almost always the single largest water user in home landscaping. They suggest only having lawn where it really gets use (like play areas) and using water-efficient grasses.

No matter where you are on the green spectrum, Dr. Burton encourages parents to get their kids involved. Set conservation goals as a family. Global Stewards suggests that afterward, you review your monthly bills with your children. If your family was successful (in reducing energy consumption, water use or gas guzzling, etc.), consider increasing your children’s allowances by the amount saved to encourage them to find even more ways to conserve.

Lisa Carey, author of the article 20 Tips for Growing Green Children, urges parents to be good role models. She suggests talking to your children as you make your eco-decisions. It’s as simple as saying, “Let’s walk to the store since today is a Spare the Air day.” Letting them know that you are consciously making these decisions will help them follow in your footsteps. Nicole Hayes, a green mom in Cool, sums it up this way: “One of my greatest goals as a parent is to create a nature-loving individual who grows up knowing the impact of his actions on our Earth.”

Kim Laehle is a local mom of two and freelance writer. She’s also a self-proclaimed magazine junkie with 20 (count ‘em—20!) subscriptions. (She recycles all those mags, of course.) Check out her blog, DontPeeOnTheBee.com.