As we enter the new year, it is time to think about how we can each do our bit to make our world a better place, and help to solve our global problems rather than contributing to them. Here are some sustainability tips for 2018, to help you live a more green and ethical life in the coming year:
If you do not have a polytunnel, now could be the perfect time to buy one. A polytunnel will allow you to grow your own food throughout the year. This is one of the best ways to reduce your carbon footprint and eat healthy organic produce all year round. With a little effort (though less than you may imagine) and far less money than you might think, you can grow your own food and reduce the amount that you will have to buy.
You should like about everything you eat – increasing the amount that you grow yourself as much as possible, but also trying to buy organic, local produce wherever you can. Reducing the amount of meat you eat, and reducing the distance food travels to reach you, are two of the best ways to reduce your impact on our warming planet. Simply making conscious decisions about food can be a huge step in the right direction.
Every time you think about a new purchase, you should ask yourself whether you truly need it. While some new purchases will always to required, many of the things we buy, we do not really need. Polytunnel gardening can help us to reduce the amount we need to buy, not only in terms of food but also in terms of cleaning items, cosmetics and a wide range of other plant-derived items.
A polytunnel can help us to learn the age-old skills that can help us to live more sustainably, reduce consumption, reuse or reclaim old items and recycle 'waste'. Composting, for example, allows us to return kitchen waste to the soil, while plastic packaging can also be used to grow seeds or for a range of other garden uses.
Learning age-old skills will help us to become more self-reliant and resilient. A polytunnel is the perfect place to learn many useful skills – not just gardening but also DIY projects, herbal lore, woodworking, cooking and preserving... the list goes on. By re-skilling we can help to shore up humanity against the coming storms – whatever form those storms may take.
