Great Green Idea: Green Living: 5 Keys to Green Living

5 Keys to Green Living

For the globally and financially conscious, there are a number of ways in which a person can change his or her lifestyle for the better.

One method that has proven effective is known as 'green living', or 'going green'. Green living isn't for everyone, in fact, green living can be downright hard if you're not willing to put forth a bit of extra effort. The trick to green living is to first understanding just how beneficial such a standard of living can be not only to your bank account, but also the world in which you live. When you're able to understand that, green living is no longer a chore to be endured, but an improved method of living from day to day. Green living isn't just about conservation and saving the planet, but can be about reducing consumption to the point where a person's very presence no longer makes them a drain on the environment.

Key points to Green Living:

Conservation - Conservation is a fairly simple prospect. It basically means that rather than destroying everything with impunity, we take the time to nurture it and help it grow. Like crops or even livestock, it is automatically accepted that in order to reap the best results, some care must be taken with the source of commerce in question. A crop or animal that is destroyed through neglect and irresponsibility can no longer be used for anything, and if the behavior continues it's only a matter of time before every plant in that crop or every animal in that herd has been picked off to leave nothing behind to show for their presence. The same concept applies to our planet. It isn't a tree hugging mentality to want to keep every planet on the earth from being chopped down for unnecessary products. Rather, it's a powerful need to keep breathing in oxygen, since the trees in question are a major part of that whole process.

Saving - Saving is another great way to experience green living. The old adage of one man's trash becoming another man's treasure doesn't need to apply if the original owner of said trash could see the value in something before he or she decided to throw it away. Rather than tossing things that are still perfectly usable, people can think practically about the exact reason that they're tossing a particular item in the trash heap. There's only so much space on earth and much of that is already being taken over by either pollution or garbage dumps. Is it really worth losing yet another square of our planet simply because you want the furniture in your dining room to match the color scheme you have going on in the kitchen?

Reducing Consumption - Reducing consumption is exactly what it sounds like. Consume less and there will be more later on for everyone. It's a fine line between greed and actual need, and not many people are able to walk it. Rather than getting a large meal, only get what you need to satisfy your hunger. That way you don't need to throw anything unused away and the people who have need of the food can then get it. The same idea can apply to resources as well. Don't keep water running if you aren't actively using it for something, turn off lights that you don't use, etc. The only issue with this particular point of green living, is that in order to show a marked difference, more than a handful of people will need to start practicing it.

Reuse - Reusing means to take something you think is no longer any good and simply giving it a facelift. Reuse cups, clothes, furniture, and etc and you'll see a significant increase in the amount of money you spend as well as the amount of trash you accumulate.

Recycle - Recycling isn't just about putting the glass bottles in the glass bin and the plastics in the plastic bin, though that is a process that is extremely important when it comes to cutting down on waste. Recycling also requires a good deal of imagination as well as willingness. Think of the Do It Yourself network or all those home improvement shows where the home owners or home renovators are on a budget (aka: using chopped up tires for mulch, outdoor benches for bookcases, beaten metal for headboards, chandeliers, or wall decorations).