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As awareness of environmental issues grows, people are taking a more proactive approach to saving the planet. With harmful pollutants already having a visible impact on the world around us, an increasing number of people are choosing to forego single-use products and opting for reusable alternatives instead, for example.
When it comes to parenting, raising an Earth-friendly family could be easier than you think. Starting with minimalist baby ideas and moving on to planet-saving activities as your children grow, there are numerous ways you can protect the environment while your family expands. If you’re eager to make sustainable living part of your family’s future, take a look at these top tips for raising an Earth-friendly family.
Start young
Most first-time parents are surprised at the sheer number of things they apparently need once their baby arrives. In reality, however, most of these items are modern interventions that aren’t strictly necessary. The vast majority of parents can easily reduce the number of products they need simply by sticking to old-fashioned favourites and taking a minimalist approach to caring for a baby.
One of the most effective ways to reduce your harmful impact on the environment is to use reusable diapers, as opposed to single-use, disposable ones. Although this inevitably adds to your workload, disposable diapers are particularly bad for the environment. By committing to using reusable, cloth diapers, you can make a substantial impact on the planet. What’s more, switching to cloth diapers only seems more time-consuming if you’ve already started using disposable versions. Once you practice washing and drying cloth diapers, it’s really easy to integrate this extra task into your routine.
Grow your own food
When we visit the grocery store, it’s easy to forget just how many air miles it takes to provide you with a range of food options. While you might prefer to buy fresh, nutritious food, the chances are that a significant proportion of what you buy has been flown in. This means vast amounts of CO2 have been pumped into the atmosphere as tons of food has been moved from one country or region to another. What’s more, the fresh food you’re relying on to provide essential nutrients has probably been treated with preservatives to prevent it from spoiling during transit.
Deciding to grow your own food means you can avoid contributing to the carbon footprint of the food industry. Furthermore, when you grow your own fruits and vegetables, you can be sure that what you’re eating hasn’t been treated with genetically modified organisms and is completely organic.
If you’ve got a baby or young children, now could be the perfect time to start growing your own produce. As you begin to wean your baby on to solid foods, knowing you’re giving them Earth-friendly food grown in your own backyard will give you complete peace of mind about what they’re eating. In addition to this, young children love to grow plants in the garden and will take a real interest when they can sample food from their very own veg patch.
Get involved with your community
There are a large number of environmentally friendly community groups that are open to all age groups, so this is a great way to get involved with local activities. From tree planting drives to litter collection, there are endless opportunities to help enhance your local area and minimize damage to the environment.
When you’ve got young children, it can be tricky to keep them occupied. By signing up for community-based events and groups, however, you can ensure your kids have a varied and exciting social schedule. In addition to this, when you’re taking part in activities that are designed to help heal the planet, you’re giving your kids a great opportunity to learn from the world around them, and that is never a bad thing.
Often, planet-saving activities taking place in your local area will complement your child’s education perfectly, so it’s a great chance for them to bring their knowledge out into the real world. By putting their learning into context, you can ensure they grasp the importance of being Earth-friendly and why it’s so important for them to consider the environment when making decisions.
Becoming More Environmentally Friendly
Very few people are unconcerned about the damage our planet is experiencing but many people remain unsure how to make meaningful changes to their lifestyle. While it can take some time to adjust to being more eco-friendly, living a sustainable lifestyle can be surprisingly easy and utterly rewarding.
