By Callie Yow
New Year’s Day has come and gone. After envisioning the joy of manifesting the amazing adventure that 2020 will hold — and deciding that I’ll aim to get more sleep, make more time for friends and family, read more books and volunteer — I realized that one thing I left out of my New Year’s resolutions was how to be more green in the new year. I came up with the following guide to help other eco-women live the best (and greenest) year in 2020.
1. Use mesh produce bags
Those plastic produce bags are convenient for dividing up fruits and vegetables, but there’s a more eco-friendly way. Try using mesh bags (sold at Whole Foods and online here) which are reusable and easy to handle. They’re perfect for holding produce and items from bulk sections.
2. Reuse glass jars
Glass jars can be used to make overnight oats, store work lunches or leftover food, brew cold brew coffee, and more. My favorite use for glass jars is making overnight oats — Runningbyrd Tea, a local DC company, brews and sells their tea in pint-sized Mason jars, which happen to be the perfect size for making overnight oats.
3. Hang dry your delicates (and everything else, too)
As Green America notes in 5 Reasons to Ditch Your Dryer: “In many households, the dryer is the third-most energy-hungry appliance … Air-drying your clothes can reduce the average household’s carbon footprint by a whopping 2,400 pounds a year.” While you may already hang dry your delicate blouses, intimates, and certain fabrics like silk and wool, why not try hanging all your clothes to dry? All you need is a good drying rack.
4. Participate in Meatless Monday
Meat consumption causes an incredible amount of environmental harm. Meatless Monday is a great goal to have in 2020 because there are many vegan/vegetarian meat substitutes. Instead of consuming meat at every meal, try eliminating it from your diet one or two days a week and opt for delicious alternatives like vegetarian burgers, tempeh or seitan. Follow @MeatlessMonday on Twitter for motivation and recipe ideas.
5. Make the most of public transportation and rideshares
The DC Metro (WMATA) services many parts of the District, Maryland and Virginia. There are also other bus and train options throughout the region — as well as Uber, Lyft, and taxis waiting to be called (follow these tips to stay safe on public transit and rideshares). Limiting how often you drive can save, on average, 20 pounds of carbon dioxide for every gallon of gas you don’t use. If you have to drive to get safely to and from work or otherwise have to use a car, try signing up for a carpool to help others while reducing the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere.
Callie Yow has a strong love for the natural world and enjoys combining her passions for writing, strategic planning and creative problem solving to advocate for the environment in her personal and professional life.