Green Money Saving Tips
Spend Less, Feel Better About Your Purchases, & Be Kind to the Earth
These eco-friendly money saving tips will reduce stress and keep you emotionally healthy. Here are 5 ways to spend less money and lighten your footprint.
One of the most stressful parts of life is being in financial debt. Living green can be one of the best ways to get out of debt, spend less money, and feel good about your purchases. Here are 5 ways to spend less money and lighten your footprint.
5 Green Money Saving Tips: Spend Less & Feel Better About Your Purchases
1. Download new music. It’s a green money saving tip because CD cases are often made with polyvinyl chloride, which doesn’t recycle easily. Downloading new music also reduces production costs and energy. Downloading new music also reduces packaging and CDs that will end up in the landfill.
You’ll feel better about your purchases because you get to choose which songs you want to listen to. Instead of purchasing a CD because you like one or two songs, you can download the ones you like best. This saves money, and allows you to develop your own unique music selection.
2. Drink tap water. It’s a green money saving tip because "by buying bottled water, you're encouraging the industry to commidfy a priceless public resource, draining underground aquifers and disrupting ecosystems," says Adria Vasil in Ecoholic: Your Guide to the Most Environmentally Friendly Information, Products, and Services in Canada. Millions of water bottles are thrown into landfills every year.
You’ll feel better about your purchases because you’re not only saving money, you’re protecting your health. Even expensive, eco-friendly plastic bottles can leak contaminants into your water (though this is still being researched).
3. Buy less beef, poultry and pork. It’s a green money saving tip because meat production and processing plants aren't efficient or eco-friendly food sources. They can increase waste products, pollution, and fossil fuels.
You’ll feel better about your purchases because you’ll save hundreds of dollars a year by simply eating meatless meals two or more times a week. Meat is more expensive than soy, cheese or legumes. It’s also more difficult to digest and may contain unhealthy hormones or genetically modified ingredients.
4. Use your microwave or slow cooker. It’s a green money saving tip because electric and convection ovens drain tons of energy. Crockpots, microwaves and toaster ovens are more efficient than stoves and ovens. Your kitchen is probably the biggest energy-loser in your entire house; making small changes can translate to big differences.
You’ll feel better about your purchases because you’ll pay smaller bills and spend less time cooking. It costs .03¢ to microwave for 15 minutes, and .06¢ to slow cook for 7 hours. Your time could be better spent with the kids, working out, or pursuing your passion!
5. Turn off the energy vampires. It’s a green money saving tip because the digital displays on audio equipment, DVD players, TVs, coffee makers and even cell phone chargers continuously drain power. Plug them all into a power bar and flick it off before you leave the house for the day or go to bed at night.
You’ll feel better about your spending habits because you’re saving money on your lower electricity bills.
If you found Green Money Saving Tips: How to Spend Less, Lighten Your Footprint, and Feel Better About Your Purchases, try:
- What Living Green Does For Your Mind & Soul
- Financial Infidelity in Marriage
- High Self Esteem Equals More Money
