Nick Koudis /Getty Images
READ MORE ABOUT:
When the Gregorio family decided to green their home, they began with two major breakthroughs. First, they owned up to their beginner status regarding all things green. More importantly, the family recognized that learning green is easy and accessible to all. Often, we lean towards leaving any specialized matter to the so-called experts. While this approach makes sense for space travel or microsurgery, it frequently results in us underestimating our abilities. Just as Evan Gregorio and his family educated themselves about green building, each of us can take the important, fun, and easy steps without fancy degrees or esoteric scientific knowledge. We can green our kitchens and our furniture. We can take it further by greening both outdoor and, um... indoor activities.
Chris Baskind, publisher of Lighter Footstep, offers some basic steps to get all of us started on a greener path, for example:
- Make the switch to Compact Fluorescent Lightbulbs to conserve energy and to avoid having to change the bulb every few months - they are not only more energy efficient but also last longer.
- Monitor your thermostat. Too much air-conditioning in the summer and too much heat in the winter (when perhaps a sweater would do) jacks up your energy consumption and your bills, too.
- Clean or replace your air conditioning filter. You'd be surprised how much energy is wasted because of built-up lint and dirt in your filtures!
- Unplug idle appliances and electronic devices. They might not be "on," but while they're plugged your appliances and electronics are zapping precious energy for absolutely no reason.
- Buy a low-flow showerhead with a shutoff valve. Less water for the same shower quality is priceless for both your wallet and the environment.
See? Contrary to Kermit's lamentations, it's easy being green...
-
- {}
