It’s true that we now see the need for being green and we support other peoples’ efforts, but are we doing all we can at home to walk the walk? Here are some of the easier ways to do your part in being kind to the environment:

1. Use cloth hankies to blow your nose instead of disposable tissues. Hankies are big, so either use it more than once before washing or cut it into smaller sized hankies and send it to the wash after each single use.
2. Use cleaners you can make at home with items such as vinegar, baking soda, lemons, and borax. There are numerous recipes online for all types of cleaners using simple household products. Some of these may require you use a little more elbow grease, but consider it much safer for your health and the environment – and a good little calorie-burner too!
3. Use a broom and dustpan, duster, and regular mop instead of all the throwaway products currently on the market. It may seem like such a small thing, but consider how many of these are thrown away each day. It adds up in the landfills.
4. Get yourself some rechargeable batteries and a recharger instead of always using and throwing out batteries. Even better, get a solar-powered recharger! Some of these can also recharge your cell phones, iPods, and games by simply using the sun.
5. Instead of reaching for the paper napkins, try using cloth napkins. Not only will you be doing your part to save trees, but you will add a special elegance to your mealtime.
6. Change out your plastic food storage containers for glass containers. Glass is better for your health, it lasts longer than plastic, it can be cooked in, and you can see what you are storing in the container without staring into the fridge trying to figure out what you have there.
7. Buy in bulk when you can as this uses less packaging. This doesn’t mean buying a case of canned soup as that’s still the same amount of packaging. Buy in bulk when you can get a 20 pound bag of rice, rather than in bulk where you get 20 pounds of rice in 20 boxes.
8. Look at anything you’re going to throw out and determine if it can have a second life before going to the landfill. For example, reuse a commercial cleaning bottle by cleaning it out and filling it with a homemade cleaner.
9. Compost your food scraps. When food goes to the landfills, bacteria does a number on it and heat-trapping methane gas is released. Composting is easy, plus it makes wonderful soil for your garden.
10. Did you know sunlight is nature’s favorite stain remover? Try drying your clothes on a line outside. In the winter you can use a drying rack inside.

Even if you can’t do these things 100 percent of the time, aim to do as much as you can most of the time because every little bit helps.

There’s no better time than now to start conserving energy, reducing our carbon footprint, recycling and reusing what we use, and go green. But did you consider that what’s better for the environment is also better for us? Not only does our health benefit, but so does our wallet. Here are a few ways you can help the environment while also saving money:

1. Keep your car maintained and follow a tune-up schedule. If your car is leaking fluid it will cost you to continuously replace the fluid. If your car is emitting obnoxious fumes or smoke, something may be going wrong with your car and it’s a good idea to fix it while the problem is smaller. Neither scenarios are good for the environment or your pocketbook.
2. Keep your car tires inflated to the recommended pressure and this will save you on gas and get you the least rolling resistance. Some of your precious gas goes to overcome rolling resistance. Replace your tires when it’s time and get the best ones available for lower rolling resistance.
3. If you eat out a lot, consider making more meals at home. Preparing food at home can take the same amount of time that it takes to drive to a restaurant and wait for your meal to arrive at the table. The benefits to cooking at home are in using fresh organic ingredients which are good for your body, plus it’s cheaper to eat at home and you don’t waste gas driving to a restaurant.
4. When you need to run an errand, make sure you take care of several errands while you’re out. Plan your route out ahead of time to use the least amount of gas possible. Did you know driving to your errands in a clockwise direction saves time and gas because you’re making right hand turns? Sitting at a light waiting to make a left turn uses more gas and causes your car to spew more emissions into the air.
5. Get a programmable thermostat in your home. The price of a new programmable thermostat is not terribly expensive and you can save a lot of money on your energy bill because you can program it to a lower heating temperature at night when you’re asleep and during the day when you’re not at home.
6. Plan your meals to get the maximum usage from the groceries you buy. Think about how much food you throw away each month because you didn’t eat it and it spoiled. Leftovers can be given new life by turning them into soups or stews, putting them on a pizza crust, or tossing them with pasta or lettuce. Before you buy perishable food, plan how you will use all the food, even the leftovers.
7. Take shorter showers. Every minute you shave off showering saves gallons of water. Put a gallon bucket in your shower to catch the water while you’re waiting for it to warm up. Use this water to water your potted plants or your garden. Turn off the shower while you’re sudsing up and shaving and turn it back on when it’s time to rinse off. If you tend to linger mindlessly in the shower, you might want to consider setting a timer to remind yourself to finish up.

Taking care of the environment can also mean saving money. Try these ideas and any others you come up with and enjoy your results.