SAVING THE PLANET IN 2023

7 SIMPLE STEPS TO GLOBAL WELLNESS

Hello everyone and welcome back to the Blog. It’s April, it’s Spring and it’s the time for renewal, rebirth, new growth and new beginnings. It’s also the perfect time to reassess our lives, our progress, our goals and our environment.

This time of year also is perfect for focusing on our personal wellness beginning with what we eat, how we think and when we exercise. Yet, wellness also applies to the world around us and the collective health of life on earth. It extends to our families, friends, communities, cities and countries – as well as the oceans, mountains and skies of our beloved planet and Mother Earth.

And because this month also honors EARTH DAY, we’re going to discuss wellness in a global context because while wellness may begin with the individual, it expands into everything we touch and everything we hold dear.

The way we live as individuals has a dramatic effect on the wellness of our environment and every other being on the planet. And each and every one of us can be a powerful force for positive change, improvement and global enlightenment.  Just by picking one thing from each of the seven following categories and making it a part of our everyday routine, we can change the world for the better!

BE WATER WISE

• Turn off the tap. Don’t let the water run while brushing your teeth, shaving or washing dishes.
• Fix leaks. One leaking toilet can waste 200 gallons of water a day.
• Install low-flow showerheads and toilets.
• Recycle shower water. Use a recycler that will filter your used shower water and fill your toilet for flushing.
• Fill it Up. Washing full loads of laundry on cold will save 3,400 gallons of water each year.

USE LESS ELECTRICITY

• Change your light bulbs. Compact fluorescent bulbs last 8 times longer and use two-thirds less energy.
• Program your thermostat. Avoid using energy for an empty house. Also, turning the heat down 2 degrees in the winter and the AC up 2 degrees in the summer will prevent 880 pounds of carbon dioxide from warming the earth.
• Go Green. Buying renewable energy from your utility or installing solar power are great ways to go green.
• Plug in a laptop. Your laptop or tablet uses about half the energy of the typical desktop computer.
• Paint your walls a lighter color so they require less artificial light.

EAT MINDFULLY

• Support your Farmer’s Market where purchases typically have been exposed to fewer chemicals and preservatives.
• Try organic beer. Conventionally grown hops are sprayed up to twelve times a year.
• Eat sustainable seafood. Check with Seafood Watch to see what seafood is caught using sustainable practices and is in season.
• Find locally sourced meat. Industrial farming practices are harmful for many reasons. Support your local small farms and know exactly where and how your meat choices are raised.
• Meatless Mondays. Forgoing meat and eating only veggies just one day a week will help reduce fresh water and land usage, greenhouse gas emissions and pollution.

RESPECT WILDLIFE

• Plant native shrubs and flowers that attract and sustain wildlife.
• Place bird feeders and bird baths in the yard.
• Use natural barriers for pest control instead of chemical pesticides. Try cinnamon, peppermint or talcum powder. And, use

cedar chips or cloves indoors instead of mothballs.

• Use humane traps for rats, mice and moles — and then relocate them where they can remain an important part of the bio-system.
• Cut up the plastic ring holders on beverages. They can choke and trap both land and water animals.

REDUCE WASTE

• Add a water filter. Drink filtered water from your own faucet and washable thermos instead of buying water in plastic bottles.
• Buy locally. Local goods require less paper and plastic for shipping. Less packaging equals less trash in the landfill.
• Use your own mug in the office instead of plastic, paper or polystyrene cups.
• On-line smart shopping. Know how far your items have to travel. Less travel results in less energy used.
• Stop Junk Mail. Go to com and catalogchoice.org to stop receiving pre-approved credit card offers and unwanted catalogs. If every American did this, we could save up to one million trees a year!

RECYCLE

• Buy glass. Purchase products in packaging that can be reused and recycled easily.
• Use rechargeable batteries. Especially for frequently used devices.
• Use both sides. This goes for copying and printing anything.
• Use recycled paper. Always. Better yet – go paperless for correspondence, bills and banking. After all, that’s why email and texting were invented.
• Separate waste into paper, plastic, cans and food. All can be recycled and many remains like coffee grounds and egg shells can be used for composting.

DRIVE SMART

• Slow down. 50 miles an hour instead of 70 uses 25% less fuel.
• Check your Tires. Purchase radial tires and keep them properly inflated. Underinflated tires decrease fuel economy by 3 percent.
• Lighten up on the pedal. Hard braking and accelerating reduces fuel economy. Easy does it!
• Dispose of car oil properly. It contains lead, nickel and cadmium.
• Hybrids and Electric. They are the future. If you already drive one, good for you! And, of course, carpool whenever you can.

Always remember, the road to a better world begins with us. We’re all in this together, and saving our planet in one small way, one day at a time will result in a better, safer, and more beautiful world for us and for generations to come. For, small steps lead to big changes and as we all know,

THERE IS NO PLANet B.

Once again, thanks for joining me, everyone. Until next time stay safe, stay in GOOD HEALTH and . . .

TAKE THE COURSE AND TAKE CHARGE!