How to become an environmentalist in 8 steps

Step 1. Motivate yourself

It is necessary to properly motivate yourself so that the desire to start a new “green” life does not pass in a week. So, it is better to start with the area that is closest to you, and the rest will catch up with time.

“An eco-friendly lifestyle is not only about separate waste collection or buying eco-labeled products,” says Roman Sablin. – It is also, for example, fashion, and charity.

A huge part of the world’s water consumption comes from the fashion industry. And children’s toys, which, as a rule, are made of combined types of plastic, are hardly recycled at all, and therefore it is especially important for them to give a second life.

Step 2. Conduct outreach at home

One of the main reasons why the transition to a greener life ends as soon as it starts is the lack of support among loved ones.

“If you see that your initiative is perceived without much enthusiasm, do not push,” advises Roman Sablin. “There is no need to say that you will always live like this now. Say that you are conducting an experiment that will last, say, two weeks. Reassure loved ones that you will take care of the cleanliness and convenience of the experiment, and proceed.”

When dealing with disloyal others, your awareness is of great importance. It is not necessary to read special literature and sit on ecosites – it is enough to be able to answer classic questions.

For example, if relatives say that they see no point in sorting waste, because they will all go to one landfill, you can say that today it is already a well-established business – sorting companies make money on it.

And even if some of the organic waste, due to the ignorance of the neighbors, ends up in the recyclable compartment, there is no need to worry – all unnecessary will be removed during re-sorting.

Step 3. Start sorting waste

Today, almost every city in Russia has recycling points. “In Moscow, you can donate up to a hundred different fractions, less in other cities,” notes Roman Sablin, “but standard plastic, glass, metal and paper can be collected and handed over everywhere.”

The first thing to do is to find out where the nearest recycling points are located, for example, using the Recyclemap. Then you need to prepare a place in the house for collection: it is not necessary to buy special containers, a cardboard box is enough.

Before handing over raw materials for processing, it should be properly prepared. “Basic recommendations: rinse, ideally with water that remains after washing dishes, that is, recycling.

This is done, firstly, so that your house does not smell, and secondly, so that mold does not appear during transportation to the processing plant, due to which the entire batch can deteriorate,” says Roman Sablin.

Caps from plastic bottles can be unscrewed and collected separately, then donated to Good Caps, from where they are recycled and charitable. Cap collection points are located in many large supermarkets.

Step 4: Reduce Disposable Trash

“When people start sorting waste, they are faced with the fact that some part of what they buy is either difficult to recycle or impossible at all – for example, foil plastic from chips,” explains Roman Sablin.

That is why it is better to give preference to reusable things. “For a start, you can buy a reusable water bottle and buy less or no bottled water. If you are a fan of takeaway coffee, get a thermal mug.

In our Eco-School, we provide more than 40 reusable alternatives, including reusable cocktail straws and reusable ear sticks,” says Roman Sablin.

In addition to helping the environment, all these alternatives can save a lot of money. “The best thing is reusable diapers. For two years of a child’s life, on average, we buy them for one hundred and fifty thousand, and a set of reusable ones costs five thousand, and this is a serious difference, ”the expert emphasizes.

He recommends everyone who is not indifferent to the topic of ecology to read the book by Bea Johnson “A Home without Waste”, where there are excellent tips for all occasions.

Step 5. Give things a second life

Used items can be donated to charity or recycled. Each new thing is the cost of electricity, water, timber, oil and other resources. If we launch a thing in the second or third cycle, the load on the environment is reduced.

“There are charity shops in every city,” says Roman Sablin. – In St. Petersburg, this is the Spasibo chain, in Moscow – Second Wind, in Kaliningrad – Danke-Shop, in Irkutsk – Tuesday.

A good way to avoid cluttering your home with unnecessary things is wish-lists. So there are more chances that for the holidays both children and adults will be given exactly what they need.

Step 6. Save water and electricity

Brushing your teeth takes an average of at least a minute. During this time, even with a small pressure, 10-12 liters of water manage to flow out of the tap. Therefore, during cleaning, it is better to close the tap. Another important aspect of water saving is the dishwasher, which uses on average three times less water than washing by hand.

The habit of turning off the lights in rooms where we are not (you can buy convenient dimmers to control lighting) and washing not very dirty linen in eco mode will help save energy.

Step 7. Buy eco-products

The labeling of an eco-organization on the packaging of a food product, cosmetics or household chemicals is not only a guarantee of its good quality and useful properties, but also evidence that the production of such a product does not cause serious harm to the environment.

“To make sure that the ecolabel on the product packaging is real, you can use the free EcolabelGuide app,” advises Roman Sablin.

Conscious consumption is also the purchase of eco-brand furniture. Products of such brands are made from high-quality natural materials that last a long time and do not harm human health. In addition, the ethical production of furniture significantly reduces the emission of harmful substances and significantly reduces the consumption of water needed in production.

One example of such a responsible attitude to the environment is the Russian brand AQUATON. Bathroom furniture and sanitary ware of this brand are made from safe materials, and eco-technologies allow minimizing the burden on the environment.

Step 8. Participate in environmental initiatives and actions

Today, dozens of environmental events are being held in Russia, in which everyone can take part. So, you can celebrate Earth Hour with the whole world by turning off all electrical appliances in the house for one hour (the nearest one is March 26, 2022) or join the Million Trees campaign, which is carried out by the Moscow Department of Environmental Management, and plant a tree in your yard .

Tree planting programs are implemented not only by state and public organizations, but also by large companies. For example, the AQUATON brand is the initiator of planting tree seedlings in different regions of Russia.