A Green & Local To-Do List for the Housebound
With Arizonans settling in to our homes for the foreseeable future, we’re taking a look at how to keep busy and improve our lifestyles with the local movement and environmental awareness at the forefront. Here are some ideas for keeping busy and making positive impact over the coming weeks.
1) Read a Book for the Planet: Curl up with a book that expands your environmental IQ. Start with the Earth Day Network’s 13 Must-Read Books on the Environment, peruse the Book topics section on the Sierra Club’s website or the list of popular sustainability titles on Goodreads. Just be sure to buy from your local bookstore who can order titles for you. They need your support much more than large online retailers.
2) Program Your Thermostat: With everything on our minds these days it’s likely that you have been ignoring that helpful little gadget on your wall. Summer temperatures are upon us and we’re spending way more time at home so this is a great opportunity to enlist your thermostat’s help to keep your energy use (read: bills) low. Per SRP, set the thermostat between 78 to 80 degrees when you are home and up to 85 degrees when you are away for cooling. Don’t know how to program your thermostat? Find the make and model number and search online to learn how.
3) Clean Green: We’re cleaning everything imaginable, all the time. Take some advice from Green Seal, a certification for cleaning products that focuses on less toxic ingredients. They have recommendations for cleaning techniques and products that combat Coronavirus. The Centers for Disease Control ‘s household cleaning resources should also be reviewed.
4) Plant a Garden: Make the dream of garden-to-table a reality by getting some seeds in the ground. Throughout most of Arizona we can grow year round, and there are plenty of resources to get you started on your planting journey, including step-by-step instructions from Good Food Finder.
5) Work on Your Wardrobe: If you are showing up to virtual meetings in your sweat pants, this is probably a good time to take some advice from sustainable local stylist Loren North. Check out Loren’s video series that will give you some guidance on what to wear when working at home, and why this is a good time to pause clothing purchases and shop your closest instead. Loren also has great strategies on shopping second hand.
6) Do a Home Water Audit: Most of us don’t pay too much attention to our home water use unless we see a spike on the water bill but we’re all likely using more water than needed. Local conservation group Water – Use It Wisely has resources to help you lower your water use through their Home Water Challenge. When you are really ready to dive into home water reduction, the Arizona Municipal Water Users Association has a step-by-step Smart Home Water guide to get you going in the right direction.
7) Get on the Reduce, Reuse, Recycle Bandwagon: A somewhat yet-to-be-seen impact of the COVID -19 pandemic is that we are creating more waste. Waste hauler Republic Services is forecasting volume will increase by 30%, which means more trips to the landfill for waste haulers, and more contamination in recycling bins. Think about the items you purchase on a regular basis and if you really need them, can replace them with a reusable item and if they are recyclable. Make sure you are recycling correctly by researching what is acceptable in your region. The City of Phoenix , the City of Tucson and the City of Flagstaff all have helpful information on their websites.
8) Eat locally grown food: Agriculture plays a prominent role in Arizona’s economy and heritage, and we are fortunate to have farmers and ranchers who are dedicated to feeding the community. As we’re shifting to eating more at home, local farmers are here to provide fresh veggies, produce, meat and dairy. Visit the Good Food Finder directory to uncover food resources across the state. Also dig into blog posts on Community Supported Agriculture programs which are fun to join, farmers markets that are open and shopping for local food products at home.
9) Get to Know Some Certified Green Businesses: Local First Arizona has launched the Arizona Green Business Program in Tempe and Phoenix, with more cities on the way. The program recognizes locally owned companies that are doing their part for the environment through energy and water conservation, waste diversion, pollution prevention, transportation emissions and more. Get to know them and support them with your purchases as you can by searching the online directory and by downloading the Shop Green mobile app for your phone.
The City of Phoenix has almost 100 businesses that are recognized through their Green Business Leaders program. The Verde Valley has an impressive list of green businesses that are recognized through the Sustainability Alliance’s certification program.
10) Start Composting: We’re cooking and eating more at home, which means food scraps and uneaten food is getting deposited into trash cans. This creates a big old environmental mess, as food and organic matter that ends up in the landfill turns into methane gas which is a more harmful greenhouse gas than the well-known culprit, carbon dioxide. If you have a backyard, you can start your own compost bin for veggie scraps. There are also options for home compost pickup with companies like Recycled City (metro Phoenix), Compost Crowd (Sedona & Flagstaff), Corbin Composting (Flagstaff) and Scraps on Scraps (Tucson).
11) Listen to Eco-Podcasts: With more time on our hands, how about stepping into the wild world of environmental podcasts? Local favorite Mrs. Green provides a green platform through her podcasts featuring national leaders like Terracycle and Eileen Fisher along with plenty of local heroes doing impactful work in Arizona. Phoenix’s Urban Farm Founder Greg Peterson has a podcast with hundreds of episodes sharing tips on backyard farming.
12) Research Environmental Nonprofits: There are so many people working on mitigating and adapting to the environmental crisis across the state, so many in fact that we created a six page list of them. Spend some free time looking over the groups that are doing important work, and consider donations of cash, volunteer time or Board service to those that resonate with you.
13) Support Local Businesses: The Buy Local movement is as critical as ever. Locally owned businesses are pivoting to provide for Arizonans, while keeping as many people employed as possible and planning for the future. In a study focusing on the impact of locally owned businesses in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, research showed that independent businesses provided community gathering spaces which were just as important as the goods and services that residents needed. Arizona’s independent businesses are here for us, so let’s make sure we are here for them. Use the Local First Arizona directory to find thousands of businesses to support.