Sustainable Development Goals: 6 Ways to Live Sustainably
Do you want to live sustainably, but don’t know where to start? Here are 6 sustainable habits you can incorporate into your lifestyle:
1. Eat Less Meat: Meatless Mondays
Animal agriculture has a vast environmental footprint. It contributes to land and water degradation, biodiversity loss, acid rain, coral reef degeneration, and deforestation, and immense animal suffering.
Globally, livestock farming is responsible for more greenhouse gases than all the world’s transportation systems combined. Livestock farming contributes to 18% of human-produced greenhouse gas emissions, more than all emissions from ships, planes, trucks, cars, and all other transportation systems combined.
According to the United Nations, a global shift toward a vegan diet is necessary to combat the worst effects of climate change.
The scale of the problem can also be seen in land use: around 30% of the earth’s land surface is currently used for livestock farming. Using land to grow crops for animals is vastly inefficient.
It takes almost 20 times less land to feed someone on a plant-based (vegan) diet than it does to feed a meat-eater since the crops are consumed directly instead of being used to feed animals. Over the last few centuries, wild habitats have been squeezed out by turning it into agricultural land.
Not only is it good for the planet, but by eating less meat, it can provide numerous health benefits. It can:
- improve heart health and reduce the risk of heart disease
- decrease your risk of getting type 2 diabetes
- promote kidney health
- improve in cholesterol profiles and blood sugar levels
- reduce cardiovascular risk
You can start eating less meat by skipping meat one day a week. Meatless Monday was first introduced during World War I as a way to reduce meat consumption to help the war effort and was revived in 2003 as a non-profit public health initiative. Here is a link to some vegetarian/vegan recipes:
2. Unplug devices/turn lights off when not in use
Did you know that in the average home, 75% of the electricity used to power home electronics is consumed when the products are turned off? Unplug your desktop, kitchen appliances, and television to cut all power when not in use.
You can also start by making the habit of turning off your lights when you leave the room. By doing so, you can reduce your carbon footprint, and reduce energy bills.
3. Water Conservation: Turn the Tap Off
It can be a simple tip, but did you know that if you turn the tap off while you brush your teeth, you can save up to 200 gallons of water per month? The average American washes his or her hands nearly 9 times a day. While you wash your hands for more than 20 seconds, you could save at least 6 gallons per day by turning off the tap while you scrub.
Using reusable bottles instead of plastic single-use bottles can also help with water conservation. It takes about 1.5 gallons of water to manufacture a plastic bottle, which is almost always made from new plastic. Not only is the production of single-use water bottles harmful to the environment, but it also ends up in oceans, polluting marine ecosystems. By investing in a reusable water bottle, you can contribute to reducing water use and protect marine species.
4. Walk, Bike or Carpool
Up to 75% of urban air pollution is caused by motor vehicle fuel combustion. According to WHO, there were 3.7 million deaths in 2012 from urban and rural sources worldwide linked to outdoor air pollution. Numerous studies have also shown that car-dominant lifestyles contribute to higher rates of diabetes, obesity, and other diseases.
Cars are a major pollution contributor, producing significant amounts of nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, and other pollution.
Walking, biking, and carpooling can not only be beneficial to the environment, but it can also improve your mental wellbeing, as well as improving lung health, and decreasing the risk of developing major illnesses such as heart disease and cancer.
5. Plastic-Free: Order Ice Cream in a Cone
Next time you order ice cream, instead of ordering it with a cup, try ordering with a cone! The ice cream cup and plastic spoon usually end up in landfills. Ice cream cones can be the most environmentally friendly ice cream delivery system. Having ice cream in a cone does not require a spoon, only your tongue.
6. Educate Yourself on Discrimination
Self-introspection is a fundamental starting point: it is important to keep learning and being aware of social issues. Sustainable Development Goal 10 aims to reduce inequalities in income as well as those based on age, sex, disability, race, ethnicity, origin, religion, or economic or another status within a country.
By watching documentaries, youtube videos, following Instagram accounts who are advocating for social justice, and obtaining knowledge about social issues, you can contribute to achieving racial equality, gender equality, and combat inequalities that persist today. Reading articles from Linens N Love is also a great option if you want to educate yourself on a variety of topics ranging from climate change to social issues!
I hope you will be able to incorporate these habits into your lifestyle and help build a sustainable future, by becoming environmentally friendly as well as tackling inequalities and discrimination that plague the world today.
Sources
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Edited by: Mehek Bhargava, Director of Research Bloggers
