In many cases, going green is totally compatible with being frugal. I think of my peasant ancestors living hundreds of years ago. How big was their carbon footprint? How many hazardous chemicals were they exposed to? Our consumerist culture has gotten us into a lot of trouble with chemicals and climate, and you can take a large step in a greener direction simply by buying less.
Here are some other ideas for saving a little or a lot of money:
- Downsize your home.
- Downsize your car, and walk/bike more.
- Eat well and stay fit so that you utilize less health care.
- Make your own household cleaners and personal products.
- Borrow (from the library, from friends) instead of buying.
- Buy used (Craig's List) or get for free (Freecycle).
- Sell (Craig's List) or donate stuff you are not regularly using.
- Lower your cleanliness standards.
- Turn off lights and electronics when not needed.
- Travel less.
- Turn up/down your thermostat and use less heat and air conditioning.
- Use reusable durable materials instead of disposable ones (batteries, cloth napkins, rags and sponges instead of paper towels, cloth diapers, food containers and baggies, beverage containers, etc.). Even if you lay out more money initially, you will certainly save money in the long run.
What About Food?
But sometimes being green does cost more money. For example, organic and natural food usually cost more money than conventional food. Check out my post on how to Save Money on Food while Going Green, which discusses my tips for saving money on organic and natural foods.
How has going green saved you money?
Related Posts
Save Money on Food while Going Green
Some Thoughts on the Cost of Going Green
How to Be a Green Consumer
Green Cleaning - DIY Cleaning Recipes
Lazy and Cheap Ways to Be Green (series of posts)
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Betsy,
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by!
I love the "Lower your cleanliness standards"!!!
When I was more of a SAHM, I often skipped showers a couple days a week. I work outside the home now and need to feel refreshed by a shower before work, but my days off are often shower free!
Another thing I have been thinking about lately is the way those in less developed countries bathe. My family in Africa bathes more often than we do, but they bathe in such a way that they use very little water. They simply DON'T LET the WATER RUN!
Looking forward to the next post!
Hi Betsy,
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by my blog. I've really enjoyed reading your blog. It fits my view on going green. It is easy to get overwhelmed if you try to do everything at once. My favorite green things to do are to buy reusables and buy used. I'd love to make all my own personal products, but I haven't got the time. So I've settled for simplifying what I do use and buying the rest natural or organic. I love the Skin Deep Cosmetics Database for information on toxicity on everything from lotion to bodywash.
These are great tips!
ReplyDeleteI want to make sure you know about reusable menstrual cups, which are my favorite reusable product because they're better than disposable in just about every way AND save me hundreds of dollars!
My local food co-op lets customers bring our own containers for refilling with any of the things they sell in bulk: lots of foods, spices, tea, coffee, and liquid soaps. Usually this is less expensive than buying the same amount of the exact same product pre-packaged, and sometimes it even costs less than buying non-organic supermarket brand in a package! And I love being able to choose what kind of jar or other container is best for my stuff.
We save a lot of money by waiting to replace things until they REALLY need it instead of having everything new and shiny.