It’s time to gear up for an eco-friendly summer! Summertime is radiant, carefree, and leisurely.
As a busy, working mom, it’s sometimes difficult to remember to incorporate regular eco-friendly practices into your summertime routine.
During the summer, I find myself making an extra effort to make sure my family is staying committed to being environmentally friendly!
Here are some tips to keep the planet first during your summer adventures!
Tips To Make Your Summer More Eco-Friendly
Carry your reusable bags
Don’t forget your reusable bags!
During the summers I feel like I’m in the grocery store a lot more often than normal. Whether it’s to grab a few extra items for an impromptu grill night or to grab more ice cream as a sweet treat from the heat, I find myself at our local Food Lion and Kroger purchasing small items often.
How about you? Think back to the last time you went grocery shopping or the last time you “ran to the store” to grab an item.
How many plastic bags did you pile up in your cart and stuff in the backseat of your car? 10? 20? My guess is, quite a few.
Although plastic bags are a convenient go-to, we often forget the incredible impact plastic has on our environment.
According to the National Resources Defence Council Americans use and dispose of 100 billion plastic shopping bags every year. It takes an estimated 12 million barrels of oil to produce that many bags.
This summer, remember to keep reusable bags in your car to always have them on hand, ready to go!
Go to the farmers market
Going to the farmer’s market is not only an awesome activity for you and your kids, but it’s such a great way to guarantee an eco-friendly summer.
At the farmer’s market, you’ll be buying local produce from local farmers and have an opportunity to get out to a park or farm to spend some quality time outdoors.
Farmer’s Markets help support healthy communities. They provide an opportunity for people to have access to local, fresh, organic food who may not otherwise be able to find and purchase this type of food.
This is particularly true in minority and low-income neighborhoods who live in areas with little to no access to grocery stores. By visiting local farmer’s markets, minority and low-income communities are able to choose healthy food options at reasonable prices.
In addition, when you meet and interact with the person that has grown your food, something magical happens. You build a connection. Food has a different meaning. It is no longer an ambiguous object with no origin, it is a handpicked source of food grown for you to eat and enjoy. It brings an aliveness back to food and also makes trying new foods more exciting.
According to PBS, here are some awesome fruits and veggies in season this summer. Try to snag these from your local farmers market!
Veggies in Season During Summer
- Radishes
- Arugula
- Cucumber
- Beets
- Bell Peppers
- Carrots
- Zucchini
- Garlic
- Corn
- Rhubarb
Fruit in Season During Summer
- Apricots
- Plums
- Cherries
- Blackberries
- Nectarines
- Strawberries
- Peaches
- Tomatoes
Make popsicles instead of buying them in plastic
If you haven’t noticed a bit of a theme here, eating is one of my favorite summer pastimes! It is one of the ways I make the most out of summer. Eating amazing, in-season food makes me think of happy, summer vibes.
Of all the summer foods that exist, popsicles are at the top of my list! When I was pregnant, I ate popsicles by the box. It is no surprise that our Baby Boy LOVES popsicles.
What I’ve recently discovered (I’m pretty sure I’m late to the game here) is that you can make your own popsicles! *mind blown emoji
Avoid single-use plastics and try reusable options, even when eating your summer treats.
Plastic uses oil for manufacturing. Burning fossil fuels, like oil, releases CO2 into the atmosphere. CO2 is a major contributor to the greenhouse effect. The greenhouse effect means heat is trapped on Earth, warming the atmosphere. There are many predicted impacts of the greenhouse effect.
It is important we make conscious efforts to limit our use of single-use plastics during the summer and always.
Here are the ones we’re using!
Trade in those classic popsicles for these reusable ones!
Check out this popsicle recipe book! You can read it for free on your Kindle!
Use reusable swimmers
If you’ve read any of my other blog posts, you’ll know I’m a proud cloth diapering momma!
I promote cloth diapering primarily because reusable diapers are more environmentally friendly than disposable diapers, but also because of the cost savings.
The same is true for reusable swimmers.
Although we’ve only been in our kid pool and splash pad this summer because of the current pandemic, reusable swimmers are still a must for an eco-friendly summer!
Ditch the water bottles
This is an eco-friendly tip I’ll communicate during any season of the year! Ditch the water bottles, everyone. Ditch them!
Not only is bottled water less regulated than your local water, but plastic also contains harmful chemicals that can leach in your water from your water bottle.
By consuming water exclusively from plastic water bottles you’re consuming about 90,000 additional microplastics per year.
What’s more, all water comes from the same sources.
What I mean by that is we only have the amount of water we have on Earth. No one is making more water. Therefore, there are only a few sources of water you can tap into.
If you drink bottled water, you’re drinking conveniently packaged, filtered tap water, well water, or spring water (more info here).
Be more eco-friendly this summer by rocking your reusable water bottle!
I LOVE this water bottle! It’s so cute and I always get compliments on it. It also has a tracker to make sure you’re getting in all your ounces throughout the day.
Here is my favorite reusable water bottle for my toddler.
Park the car
This may be easier for everyone because of the pandemic. This summer, keep the car parked.
Why? Cars rely on oil and reduce air quality. Driving is one of the most polluting things we do nearly every day – and we don’t even think about it.
Other ways to keep your car parked for an eco-friendly summer include taking shorter trips in the car, biking or walking to your desired designation, and going to fewer places.
If you’re in a city that has it, try some local transportation! It can be a fun experience for your kids and save on gas and carbon emissions.
Be mindful of your water usage
It’s completely natural to see an increase in water usage during the summer because quite frankly…IT’S HOT!
To practice and eco-friendly summer, however, it important to understand how much water we use and where we can find ways to decrease our consumption.
First, calculate your water footprint.
Next, check out ways to save water, even during the summer!
Being mindful of your water usage is an important aspect of water conservation and practicing an eco-friendly summer!
Support local conservation organizations
I’m always looking for local places to take my son during the summer. Although we all love amusement parks and movie theaters, it’s extremely important to visit local environmental organizations as well.
Most often, portions of proceeds made from ticket sales, donations, etc. goes towards conservation research and efforts.
I live in Chesapeake, Virginia. Here are a few local eco-friendly places to visit in my local community. Although these exact spots will be different for you, it’ll give you ideas of types of places to support!
- Back Bay Restoration Foundation
- Chesapeake Bay Foundation
- Elizabeth River Project
- Hoffler Creek Wildlife Foundation & Preserve
- James River Association
- Lynnhaven River NOW
- Mariners’ Museum and Park
- Norfolk Botanical Gardens
- Virginia Aquarium and Marine Science Center
- Virginia Living Museum
Get outdoors
I cannot stress the benefits of being outside enough. When we bring children outdoors it teaches them that we are a part of nature. It removes the fear of nature and creates a safe space for learning and exploration.
Whether you’re sitting on your front steps, hanging out in your backyard, hiking in the mountains, or walking to a neighborhood park, the most central aspect of sustainability, is fostering a love for the Earth.
Here are some incredible ways to enjoy the outdoors by Project Learning Tree.
Eat less meat
The single biggest way to reduce your impact on the earth is by eating fewer animal products! Eating less meat has a dramatic impact on the environment.
Don’t feel like you have to go all in and give up meat altogether, just eat less of it! Personally, I practice a flexitarian lifestyle. Most days I eat a vegetarian diet.
Researchers suggest eating 90% less pork, 75% less beef, and half the number of eggs normally consumed or two 5-ounce servings of meat per week would make a significant difference in reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Let Me Know With A Comment
Do you have any eco-friendly tips to share? Will you incorporate any of these tips into your summer routine?
The decisions we make have a direct impact on our environment. Even during the summer, we can still make eco-friendly choices to live more sustainably show our love for Earth!
Looking for more? Check out this blog written by Jess Rigg for 10 MORE ways to have a sustainable summer!
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