What you can do

We are all part of the problem. Here are some easy things you can do to be a part of the solution.

• Carry a canvas bag when you go shopping, instead of choosing “paper or plastic” store bags. Plastic bags are made from petroleum, which is an oil product. Paper bags are made from trees, important absorbers of excess carbon dioxide.
• Drink from a reusable water bottle. 2.5 million water bottles are thrown away every hour. This adds to our landfills and releases methane, a powerful heat-trapping greenhouse gas.
• Replace a light bulb with a compact fluorescent bulb (CFL). CFL’s use ¼ the energy that a regular (incandescent) light bulb uses. If every home in America changed just one light bulb, it would be equal to taking 800,000 cars off the road. LED light bulbs are another energy-efficient option.
• Unplug your iPod, DS and cell phone chargers when you’re finished charging. The plug in the wall keeps draining energy, putting more greenhouse gas pollution from a coal-fired power plant into the air.
• Take shorter showers. Heating water uses energy.
• Print on both sides of the paper when using your computer printer. Also, look for paper that’s made from at least 30 percent post-consumer waste.
• Take a thermal lunch box to school filled with plastic containers instead of throw-away baggies.
• Set your computer to go into standby mode, or sleep mode, instead of using a screen-saver.
• Organize a “walk-to-school” day, encouraging anyone who can to take public transportation or walk/bike/skateboard to school.
• Buy stuff with minimal packaging.