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From budding ecologists new to green to more experienced eco-lovers, when it comes to helping our environment, we all have some areas to improve. To help you set realistic and manageable goals for this new year, we have put together a list of 10 Green New Year's Resolutions, from easy to more challenging. Obviously, your picks will vary depending on your economic, social and geographic situation, and how green you already are. No matter which resolutions you choose, make sure you stick to them. Bookmark this page in your favorites to make it easier to remember, and share your efforts with friends and other members of our community! 
1. Eat Organic, Local and Seasonal- Why you should: Certified organic foods have been grown without the use of pesticides or herbicides, which are harmful to our health and the environment. Eating local, organic foods means that your fruits and veggies have a lower carbon footprint (i.e. less fuel used for transportation and less carbon dioxide emitted in the process). Your purchase also supports local communities, making them economically stronger. Eating local and organic will most often mean eating seasonal, too. Click here for a list of seasonal produce in your area. - How you can: Go to farmers’ markets on a weekly basis, frequent your local health food stores (Whole Foods, Rainbow Acres) more often as well as the organic section of your regular supermarket. 2. Use Canvas Grocery Bags - Why you should: Made of polyethylene, plastic bags simply don’t biodegrade. Instead, they photodegrade, i.e. the sun’s ultraviolet radiation slowly fragments the bags into bits, over hundreds of years. Paper bags, although from a natural source and biodegradable, are not a good alternative. They necessitate tree pulp and therefore have a great impact on forests. Their manufacturing also necessitates the use of toxic chemicals that pollute both air and water. Although very popular, we don’t actually recommend reusable plastic bags, unless they are entirely made of recycled plastic. Go canvas instead! - How you can: Invest into 5 to 8 canvas bags, made of cotton or hemp. (Organic is even better!) There is a myriad of shades, sizes and styles to satisfy any taste. The key is to always have one on you (in your purse), in your car and/or by your entrance door so you can remember to grab them as you leave. 3. Ban Styrofoam- Why you should: Styrofoam, aka polystyrene, is a big environmental offender. Its manufacturing and recycling (when it is recycled- most centers don’t accept it) generate dioxins, a highly toxic class of chemicals. It is a carcinogen, an endocrine disruptor, a teratogen and much more. - How you can: Simply do not purchase or use any disposable plates or cups that are made of Styrofoam. Boycott restaurants, mall food courts and other eateries which use it. Some cities in California, Seattle and Oregon have already banned the use of Styrofoam for to-go containers, and you too can go on Styro-strike. For inspiration, read Dying of Dioxins by Lois Gibbs, who hatched a “McToxics” campaign in 1987 resulting in McDonald’s stopping the use of Styrofoam clamshell containers for its hamburgers. 4. Ban Disposable Plastic And Paper Goods- Why you should: Banning Styrofoam plates and cups (see above) doesn’t mean reverting to disposable plastic or paper ones. They too, although recyclable, require the use of chemicals and natural resources for manufacturing and engender water and air pollution. - How you can: There are several alternatives. Use what you already have in your kitchen (ceramic plates and mugs, metal forks and knives, glass cups, etc) and “hire” some friends to do some washing after the fun. If that option is undesirable, you can choose from Recycline Preserve plastic plates (made from recycled yogurt cups and sturdy enough to be reused many, many times), compostable bioplastics (PLA), or bagasse (the sugarcane fiber that remains after extracting the juice from the sugarcane). Check out worldcentric for an amazing selection of such eco-friendly disposables. 5. Buy Environmentally-Friendly Clothes - Why you should: Conventionally-grown cotton is very heavily sprayed with toxic pesticides and herbicides, wrecking havoc on the environment. Human-made textiles, such as polyester or nylon, are also pretty harmful, and all involve the use of un-natural dyes. Step away from that textile industry and look into organic cotton, hemp or linen clothing dyed with natural dyes from plants and insects. - How you can: Most department stores don’t offer a wide selection of organic clothing, so you need to go off the beaten path and explore new boutiques and stores. Some outdoor equipment stores such as REI have a nice, though small, selection of organic clothes. But your best bet is probably on-line stores. 6. Unsubscribe From Unwanted Catalogs And Credit Card Offers- Why you should: According to the Environmental Defense Fund, the catalog industry produces billions of copies of catalogs each year (17 billion in 2001 to be exact). That means not only felling millions of trees for our consumeristic “needs”, but also large consumption of water and energy, as well as pollution of water and air. Same logic applies to credit card and insurance offers: if you don't want them, stop them. - How you can: Use free on-line services such as CatalogChoice to choose which catalogs to unsubscribe from. To stop credit card offers, go to optout.org and choose to opt out either for five years or permanently. 7. Ditch Your Car - Why you should: This one should be a no-brainer. Most of us don’t do it because it means more trouble and more initial discomfort: we like our cars so much, it’s so easy and so much faster to drive than to bike or take public transportation, or even carpool, which implies a certain loss of freedom. But the environmental, as well as personal, consequences are evident. - How you can: It is like going on a diet. You know the benefits to your physical and mental health in eating less, yet it seems so hard at times. If the goal seems too impalpable, focus on the personal, ego-centric advantages in using public transportation (more time to read or daydream, less expensive) or biking (more fit, more energy). Also, find a buddy to do it with! 8. Support an Environmental Cause- Why you should: Individual citizens alone will never be strong enough against lobbies with political and financial agendas. Environmental organizations such as the Sierra Club, the oldest environmental group in the United States, the NRDC, the Nature Conservancy, etc, all represent a stronger voice and a real weight against personal interest-focused industrials and politicians. - How you can: Choose an environmental cause that is dear to you and subscribe to the relevant organization: Sierra Club, Audubon (for the protection of birds), Union of Concerned Scientists (for the protection of unbiased facts about the environment), and many more. Click here for an extensive list of environmental organizations. 9. Go Solar!- Why you should: Half of our electricity is powered by coal, dirty, filthy coal. Regardless of the limitless availability of coal on earth, we need to step away from this water-intensive, water and air- polluting, eco-system disrupting energy practice and use what we have plenty of: the sun. - How you can: Besides installing solar panels on your roof, which remains costly in the short term, you can enroll in solar programs, such as feed-in tariffs, where your electricity company will buy energy from 3rd party solar power providers; or sun shares, which are community owned programs allowing customers to become virtual owners of solar power systems installed by the electricity company and to then receive credits on their bills. Check your electricity bill and contact your company. 10. Help Reform Chemical Legislation - Why you should: Chemicals have literally invaded our planet, and we only have ourselves to blame for it. It’s in our babies, in the water we drink and shower with, in the air we breathe, in the fish we eat, etc. Needless to say that these chemicals are causing all sorts of harm to our health and our environment: developmental abnormalities in humans and animals, cancers, infertility, to name but a few. - How you can: Start by becoming more and better informed, reading unbiased facts such as provided by EWG or Union of Concerned Scientists. Then talk to people, get involved in discussions. Last, contact your state representatives so they can voice your concern and help change legislation.
Be The ChangeNo matter what green resolution(s) you choose, it will help make a difference in protecting the environment. Great actions don’t happen by themselves: spread the word and take action. In the words of legendary activist Mahatma Gandhi, “you must be the change you wish to see in the world”.
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