• Eliminate water bottles. Ask your office to provide a water cooler and use washable cups. Bring your own drink cup to your local coffee shop to refill for you.
• Buy recycled products. What does this mean? Shop your local estate sale, garage sale or resale/thrift store. You can find items that are made from recycled products such as printer paper, toilet paper, paper towels and many more.
• Buy bulk products without packaging and bring your own bags and plastic containers.
• Donate products to your local artist or budding artist. Daycare centers, nursery schools, preschools, kindergartens, senior centers, senior communities and any arts and crafts class would love your products. Items like toilet paper or paper towel tubes, egg cartons, rubber bands, flowerpots, extra paint, glitter, pipe cleaners, colored paper, crayons, markers or paint brushes. Encourage your local grocery store to provide fruit carton inserts and deliver to the nearest artisan. Put a paper bag next to your garbage can for these items. I call it trash art.
• Place a donation bag/carton next to your door. Done with a book? Drop it in. Clothes that don’t fit or children’s belongings that are no longer being used drop in. Once full deliver to your resale store.
• Place a plastic bin or even a coffee can next to your sink. The coffee grounds and vegetable scraps are great for your garden. If you prefer, you can put the fruit and vegetable scraps out for the birds and squirrels.
• Mom’s create a clothing, toy or book exchange in your neighborhood! It’s also a good way to meet the neighbors.
• Use energy efficient light bulbs.
• Recycle your ink and toner at your local office supply store.
• Half Priced Books will take your videos, books, records, unused greeting cards, unopened puzzles and you might even receive a bit of money for them.
• Check your city and or county for recycling sites for hazardous items, clothing or paper.
• Did you know that newspaper and shredded recycled paper is great for starting a worm bin which is great for enhancing your garden?
• Support your local small business, the garage sale community, local estate sale companies or moving sales before buying cleaning products or other disposable items from a store or buying a lesser quality product from a big box store.

Recycle, Reuse, Reduce, Renew.