Sustainable summer
Sustainable summer ideas include reducing waste with reusable items, choosing eco-friendly activities like ‘plogging’ (jogging + picking up trash), cycling, and gardening, and making conscious consumer choices like using reef-safe sunscreen and clothes made from sustainable materials. You can also save energy at home by using natural light and reduce food waste by composting and making your own popsicles or smoothies.
Reduce waste and energy
- Use reusables: Carry reusable water bottles, cups, and cloth bags to avoid single-use plastics at picnics, festivals, and the grocery store.
- Compost food scraps: Set up a compost bin to turn food and yard waste into nutrient-rich soil for your garden.
- Embrace natural light: Use natural light from windows instead of artificial lighting during the day to save energy.
- Make your own treats: Create fruit popsicles or smoothies using a blender to have refreshing, low-waste snacks.
Choose eco-friendly activities
- Get active outdoors: Go for walks, bike rides, or try “plogging” (picking up litter while jogging) to combine exercise with community cleanup.
- Plant a garden: Grow your own food, flowers, or herbs. Use water-saving practices and natural pesticides to keep it sustainable.
- Support the community: Participate in local community gardens or organize clothing and accessory swaps with friends instead of buying new items.
- Engage with nature responsibly: Visit beaches or parks prepared with reusable items, and consider organizing or joining a beach cleanup event.
Make mindful purchases
- Shop sustainably: Opt for clothing made from sustainable materials like organic cotton, bamboo, or recycled polyester.
- Choose eco-safe sunscreen: Select sunscreens with ingredients that do not harm waterways or creatures in them.
- Support local: Shop at local farmers’ markets for seasonal produce to reduce transportation emissions
- Make your Christmas gifts: give homemade biscuits, sweets, preserves, plants or any crafty thing that you can make from things that you grow or already have lying around.