OSC: What Small Changes Can We Make?

Hey y'all!  Ready to make some small and somewhat easy eco friendly changes with me??  The purpose of our One Small Change (OSC) Project is to encourage you to make a small change today...not some huge expensive life altering change, just an itty bitty change that I promise will have a larger impact than you ever imagined.

Maybe you already do many amazing things for our earth or maybe you are new to all this..wherever you are is a great place to be.  It can be overwhelming with all the information and products out there that some times we don't know where to start of even why we need to make these changes.  I would love these blog posts (titled OSC) to be a place of comfort and clarity...we will give simple information and ideas and create a place for you to come to and slowly understand how you can make a difference.

Since we are all in different places in our lives I wanted this first post to simply be about what are some small changes we can make.  There are many changes you can make that will have a very small impact, if any at all, on your daily life, but a large impact in the whole grand scheme of things.  For instance, let's say you switched from doing your laundry in hot water to doing it in cold or warm.  It takes 1 second to switch the knob and you never have to think about it again.  Now think if 100 people did this or even 1000 people did this.  According to Treehugger.com if you wash every load in hot water for a year it is equivalent to burning about 182 gallons of gasoline in a car and you'll end up with 2407 of CO2 per year.  It will also save you money...which is a great incentive for anyone!

So...what are some easy, inexpensive, small changes you can make today?  Here is my short list...please feel free to add your ideas to the comments and start thinking of what your change will be.  Don't worry about starting your change today or even tomorrow...just start thinking and allowing the ideas to flow through you until there is one that really sticks, then we will go from there!  Stop by next week for another post where I will be asking you what your change will be!

*Recycle or if you already recycle, be a better recycler
*Start a compost pile
*Plant a garden or just plant some indoor herbs
*Get involved in community or school efforts to "go green"
*Pick 1 grocery item and switch to organic, local, or home made
*Join a CSA or shop at local farmers markets (some places even have winter markets)
*Purchase recycled paper products (toilet paper, paper towels, kleenex, etc...just pick one to start)
*Stop using paper products by switching to cloth napkins, rags, hankies, TP, etc...just pick one to start
*Having a party? Make it a no waste party by skipping on the paper plates, etc.
*Reduce your water use...make your shower 1 minute less or fill up the bath with 1/2" less water
*Print double sided
*Drive less, combine errands
*Get outside and enjoy nature
*Hang your laundry to dry
*Reduce your use of plastics, search out items made with natural materials such as wood
*Switch to natural bath care products...just pick one
*Teach your kids about what it means to tread light on our earth
*Carpool
*Buy local and properly raised meat
*Go vegetarian or vegan or switch one meal a week to vegetarian
*Turn off your lights more often
*Use the sun to heat your home when possible
*Plant a tree
*Hang some plants in your home
*Use natural lawn care
*Wash your laundry in cold water
*Use home made or natural cleaning supplies...start by switching one of your cleaning items to natural
*Improve on an area that you are already "green" in
*Tell a friend about this project

OSC: What Small Changes Can We Make?