Start small for a big impact!
While resolutions are apparently out and people now find them anxiety triggering; I on the other hand have always had fun mindfully considering and writing them down every New Year’s and I feel really good revisiting them throughout the year. They have always served me as a guide to help me keep focus on what 's important to me. The trick is to keep them realistic and simple.
If you have as one of your New Year’s goals to take some more positive action towards the environment and your own health, let me help you out and give you 5 easy ways you can be more sustainable and consequently healthier for 2023!
1 - Compost! - By composting you help offset the carbon emissions associated with organic matter decomposition , as well as soil and water pollution keep garbage away from landfills, where it would take forever to decompose and could cause soil and water pollution. Make sure you do it properly to make sure the process is Net zero carbon.
2 - Plant trees and shrubs! - Trees and shrubs are permanent features on your landscape so they offset carbon from the atmosphere for many many years. On top of that they clean the air, cool down temperatures, and serve as a habitat for birds and other nature creatures that help us keeping our system alive.
3 - Plant natives! - This way you rebuild the local ecosystem and assure survival of local species. They also usually require less fertilizers, pesticides and additional water supply for being originated from the micro environment, it’s adapted to live there.
4 - Rethink your lawn - Traditional lawn requires a lot of irrigation and other amendments (fertilizers, ph modifiers, pesticides) to keep it looking like a golf course as people expect it to be. Lawns doesn’t absorb as much rain water when compared to more natural landscapes, so its popular use is associated with floods and water pollution. You can reduce your lawn gradually but If you can’t reduce it all together, you can consider using lawn substitutes such as clover or another viable ground cover (give preference to natives if possible) and treat it organically to preserve the microflora and fauna present in the soil underneath.
5 - Grow your own food (organically) - Home grown food is healthier because you can control its conditions and amendments used. The University of Michigan presented a study saying that people who grow their own food eat more fruits and vegetables than the average grocery store consumer. CDC also considers gardening equivalent to exercising being beneficial to your health in itself. Moreover, by growing your own food, you eliminate all the carbon footprint associated with store bought alternatives.
These are fairly easy actions that anyone can begin with and you don’t have to take any drastic measures from December 31st to January 1st. You can determine easy steps,one plan, one plant, one project at a time.
We are here to show you that small changes can make a big impact and little by little change will come easily, and with beautiful designs on top of that!
Please let us know if you have any other suggestions on sustainable practices that we could add to our New Year’s resolution!
We wish you a happy new season, a healthy body and planet!
Best,
Agatha Martello
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