Easy wins
Actions which will not cost you any money, but may actually save you money.

Below are some changes you can make in your household.  
Get everyone in your household to decide which change they want to make each week.
​Put a list of the changes you have decided to make on the fridge to remind you!

Turn the tap off when you brush your teeth
This saves water and reduces your water bill each month. A running tap uses up to nine litres of water a minute.

Put a jumper on before you turn the heating on
This reduces the amount of CO2 you emit from your home and saves you money

Walk instead of using the car
If you are only going a short distance why not walk.  This reduces your CO2 emissions and helps to keep you healthy

Close the curtains at dusk in the winter
This keeps the warmth in your home.  When warm air touches the cold window it cools and so you need more power to warm your home.  This will reduce your CO2 and save you money.

Reduce food waste by planning your meals properly
The average family bins £470 worth of food a year.  For ideas on how to reduce this see https://friendsoftheearth.uk/food-waste
Food takes water (and often chemicals) to grow, energy to harvest and transport.

Take a shower instead of a bath
A full bathtub requires about 317 litres of water, while taking a 5-minute shower uses only 40 to 90 litres (depending on the shower head and water pressure).

Take shorter showers
Don't stand thinking in the shower or using it as a muscle relaxer - it damages the environment.
Only use shower time for soaping up and washing down.  A quick 5 minute shower uses about 40 litres of water. (OFCOM)

Fill a jug with water and put it in the fridge 
Each time you run the tap until it gets cold, it wastes water and energy.

Washing clothes on a low temperature
Washing your clothes at a low temperature saves money and saves CO2.

​Change to low energy light bulbs
Only 10% of the energy used by an incandescent bulb produces light; the rest is given off as heat. Compact fluorescent lightbulbs (CFLs) are up to four times as efficient as incandescent bulbs.  This will reduce your energy bill. (WWF)

Recycle all your paper
Recycling 1 ton of paper saves 7,000 gallons of water, three cubic yards of landfill space and 4,100 kilowatt-hours of electricity.(WWF

Adopt reusable containers for food
The average child's school lunch generates 67 pounds of packaging waste over a year.(WWF)

Don't wash all your clothes every day
Take a good look at your washing basket - are all the clothes dirty?  Most clothes can be worn several times before washing ie jeans, jumpers, hoody, leggings.  By reducing the washing pile, you save money and save water/energy.

Practice eco driving
Research by the RAC Foundation has found that eco-driving leads to safer, cleaner and more affordable journeys. Regular vehicle maintenance improves fuel efficiency by as much as 10%. Before a long journey, check tyre pressures (tyres underinflated by a quarter can cause a 2% increase in fuel consumption), remove unused roof racks and boxes, and don’t overload the car (every additional 45kg reduces fuel economy by 2%). At less than 40mph, it’s more fuel-efficient to open a window than use air conditioning. Turn off engines for waits of more than one minute (5-8% of fuel is consumed while idling), and avoid sharp acceleration and heavy braking: aggressive driving can significantly raise fuel consumption.

Stop using cotton pads to remove makeup
A staggering 20,000 litres of water are needed to create only 1kg of cotton – that’s enough to make just one T-shirt and a pair of jeans, so any cotton you buy should count. Replacing cotton wool is a good start. Remove the initial bulk of makeup with a reusable disc, such as Face Halo (£7), soaked in plain water. These do an astoundingly good job, even on waterproof mascara. Follow with a cleanser and a wet terry-cotton flannel; both flannel and disc should last for hundreds of washing machine cycles. For toners, exfoliants and nail polish remover, use washable bamboo pads. A pack of 18, plus washbag, costs about £10.

Reduce your meat consumption
Switching to a plant-based diet can help fight climate change, according to a major report by the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which says the West's high consumption of meat and dairy is fuelling global warming.  Find tasty recipes for meals without meat       And find out how your food damages the environment by clicking here

A simple water tip  thank you for submitting this idea Lynn Fomison
When running the hot tap use a container to collect the cool water until the hot comes through. It can be a surprising amount. Use it immediately if the garden needs water or save it for when needed.

Buy fewer new clothes  thank you for submitting this idea Sustainability Centre
Don't keep buying clothes and casting them aside.  Buy good quality clothes and they will last.  Clothes use CO2 to produce, some use harmful chemicals to produce, and some use excessive amounts of water to produce.  Make yourself aware so you can make sensible choices when purchasing clothes.
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Buy less Stuff  thank you for submitting this idea Sustainability Centre
Don't keep buying for buying sake.  Think 'Do I really need this item?' and then let your answer be your decision.  You can save money and the environment by buying less stuff!

If you have easy to implement ideas please send them to us by the contact form and we will credit you.

Did you know?

Water uses energy to heat, pump to your house, and clean, before it is released back into the environment.