10 ways to live more sustainably and help save our planet

Here’s the bad news. Earth is in trouble. Multiple environmental crises are threatening to damage our world beyond repair. In fact, if we continue on our current course, we’re pretty much done. And no, we’re not going to Mars, for a lot of reasons. There is no planet B.

Now here’s the good news. We can do this. We can save our home. How? Well, the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, so that’s what we can do: take that step. Then another, then another. Some will be big, many will be small, all will help.

Ready to get started? Here are 10 everyday, totally doable steps you can take to help save our world.

Eat less meat

A plant-based diet is hugely beneficial for the environment. Research shows that a vegan diet cuts emissions, water pollution and land use by 75% compared to diets that include over 100 grams of meat per day. A plant-based diet reduces wildlife destruction by 66% and water use by 54%.

Buy local

Shopping for local products, especially foods, is good for the planet. Not so much directly (transport is a small part of most foods’ carbon footprint) but indirectly, because buying local will divert your dollars from the agribusiness corporations that cause deforestation, pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.

Think your spending can’t make a difference? It can. When Target abandoned its DEI programs, consumers launched a boycott and store visits to Target declined for eight consecutive weeks. Meanwhile, at Costco, which ignored political pressure to end DEI, store traffic is way up and Costco is now America’s most popular store.

Avoid Amazon

Amazon is a massive emitter of CO2 and a huge contributor to the world’s plastic problem. In 2021, Amazon generated enough plastic waste to cover the Earth in 800 layers, despite the fact that Amazon “would have no problem” switching to plastic-free packaging, according to former Amazon executive Rachel Johnson Greer. “It’s really a question of will.”

If you don’t want a moral compromise packed in bubble wrap, try an Amazon alternative. There are a lot out there, like DoneGood, EarthHero and Hive. For a full list, check out our post on Amazon options.

Bag the single-use plastics

Our planet is choking on plastic. Around the world, 2,000 truckloads of plastic are dumped in the ocean every day. By 2050, there will be more plastic in our oceans than fish. Indeed, there is already a lot of plastic in fish. 99% of seafood is now contaminated with microplastics.

Don’t drink bottled water

Discarded water bottles are a big part of the plastic problem. They’re also a problem for anyone who drinks from them. The average liter of bottled water contains a quarter-million plastic particles, 90% of which are small enough to enter your bloodstream and affect your organs. Chemicals found in plastics are known to cause a variety of health problems, including cancer, metabolic disorders, ADD and low fertility.

Ditch fast fashion

The planet pays a huge price for cheap clothing. Fast fashion is the world’s second-largest consumer of water and it produces 10% of global carbon emissions, pumping out more CO2 than international flights and maritime shipping combined. In fact, it’s the world’s second most polluting industry, after oil and gas.

Reduce energy use at home

You can save a lot of electricity at home with a few simple changes. You can turn down your thermostat at night, which can cut your consumption by 10% per year. You can insulate your water heater, which could reduce heat loss by up to 45% and save you up to 16% in water-heating costs. For a longer list of energy-saving tips, see our post on saving energy at home. Also see our post on saving power in the summer months.

Get a better air conditioner

As the climate warms and heat waves bake the planet, a lot of people resort to the immediate and obvious answer: they switch on the air conditioner.

But while AC is a solution in the here and now, it’s a big problem for the future. Already, 9 out of 10 U.S. households have air conditioning and, as more people around the globe buy AC, the units will rapidly accelerate climate change. The number of air conditioners worldwide is predicted to triple by 2050, to almost 6 billion. By century’s end, air conditioning emissions alone will cause as much as a 0.5-degree Celsius increase in global temperature.

It’s a feedback loop with a hellish output. More heat brings more air conditioning, more air conditioning brings more heat. For a climate-friendly air conditioner, have a look at Gradient, a newcomer to the market making ethical, aesthetic window units that are 30% more efficient.

Choose fair trade

Fair trade is booming. Sales have grown over 10-fold since 2004. This provides a big boost for the environment, because fair trade standards promote soil and water quality, reduce greenhouse gases, protect biodiversity, and limit the use of pesticides and genetically modified organisms.

If your local store doesn’t stock fair trade products, many are available online. The Fair Trade Certified website will point you to a wide range of fair trade products, including flowers, foods, home goods, health and beauty. For fair trade coffee, try Equal Exchange or Trade Coffee.

If you like chocolate, you should absolutely check out Slave Free Chocolate, which has a list of chocolate makers that don’t use child slaves and a list of those that almost certainly support child slavery, i.e. most of the big manufacturers. 70% of the world’s cocoa comes from West Africa and many of the cocoa plantations there use child laborers or child slaves.

Use ethical-shopping apps

There are a number of phone apps that will help you buy more ethical, ecofriendly products. Buycott is an app that scans barcodes and provides details on products and manufacturers so you can make an informed decision.

Ethical Barcode scans the barcodes on supermarket items and gives you information on the companies that make them. It provides ratings so you can learn if the products you’re buying do damage to the environment or animals.

Good on You scores over 3,000 fashion brands according to their impact on people, animals and the planet. It researches companies extensively and gives you an easy-to-understand rating, from “Great” to “We avoid.”

Switch to CREDO Mobile

Here’s one more step you can take to help our planet: join CREDO Mobile, the one mobile service that cares about Earth as much as you do.

To date, we’ve donated over $95 million to progressive nonprofits fighting for the causes you believe in. We’ve given over $21 million to dozens of environmental groups, including Friends of the Earth, Rainforest Action Network and the Center for Biological Diversity.

Switch to CREDO Mobile and you’ll get all you want from your mobile service: money-saving data plans, great deals on new devices and superfast coverage on the nation’s largest 5G network.

And you’ll get much more. You’ll get an easy, effective way to make our world a more sustainable place.