In this article, we will discuss in detail what a sustainable lifestyle means, why there is a need for sustainable lifestyle, and things we can do to live a sustainable life.
What is an article about the need for sustainable lifestyle doing on a holistic health site? Holistic in it’s definition is about the entire package. Not just things in isolation. So how we live our lives will have an impact on us and the environment around us. Eco friendly products are only the start. Mindfulness includes having an awareness of our interconnectedness. It can also encourage us to be more minimalist.
The need for sustainable lifestyle is part of the solution to living in unprecedented times of widescale human-induced damage to our natural resources. The continuous and ongoing stress on our habitat and resources is the most significant and pervasive threat to mankind and our natural environment.
Why the need for sustainable lifestyle?
The effect of our modern lifestyle has a profound effect on our health. Although the advances in medical technology have dramatically increased the average life expectancy in many developed nations over the past century, this progress has come at a cost.
Many experts believe that our current lifestyle is responsible for the rise in cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, obesity, and cancer. Thanks to the polluted air we breathe, the adulterated genetically modified food we eat and the contaminated water we drink.
Across the developed world, people live in a modern society that is highly consumerist and urban society. This consumerist society consumes a lot of natural resources every day for its existence.
We live in a world where food is available in abundance and it is always available with not much effort. Our society has moved to a stage where most of us have desk jobs that have made the life of most people sedentary.
Also, people often spend their free time watching television, playing games on electronic gadgets or surfing the internet which has resulted in gaining weight and becoming unhealthier. People spend less time on any physical activity.
Thankfully, we can reduce the negative impact of our lifestyles by imbibing eco friendly and sustainable behaviours that benefit human health and the environment. It is never too late to make a change and adopt a more sustainable lifestyle that can help in improving our health and reduce our impact on the planet.
Two key components of eco friendly living include eating fresh, whole foods and getting regular exercise. By making small changes in our everyday habits, we can make a big difference in our long-term health.
A sustainable lifestyle also helps Mother Nature maintain the ecological balance which is a must if we have to preserve our planet for future generations.
What is sustainable living?
Sustainable living means understanding how our lifestyle choices impact the environment around us. It also means exploring holistic ways to live lighter and healthier in harmony with nature. It is based on a simple mantra of meeting the needs of all, without causing harm to any.
Sustainable living and lifestyles were highlighted for the first time in Sustainable Development Goals (United Nations in 2015 to end poverty, protect the planet) (4 Education and 12.8 Responsible Consumption).
United Nations’ vision is to harness individual decision-making for integrating eco friendly lifestyle principles in day-to-day activities to make a positive impact. Sustainable living promotes a reduction in our reliance on fossil fuels and minimises our carbon footprint.
We should be mindful of the resources we use, such as energy, water, gas, electricity, or any other resource, in order to maintain balance in our homes and lives. This idea even extends to reducing selfish economic gains by curbing over-consumption.
In short, “sustainable living” is a concept that encourages us to live more responsibly on this planet – without necessarily always striving for zero waste.
What is the need for sustainable lifestyle?
The global population may reach a whopping 10 billion by 2050 and with this giant population comes more demand for – water, food, clothing, housing, and related aspirations. In a world stretched thin for resources, under extreme pressure of climate change risks, deteriorating water sources and loss of biodiversity, our lifestyle decisions and habits are pushing the planet further to the risk of environmental calamity.
Targeted action is the need of the hour.
Being eco friendly by using less energy and natural resources, and producing less waste and pollution minimizes negative impacts on the environment while improving our lives. These efforts centre around three primary areas: economic, social, and environmental considerations.
As awareness increases, more people are taking action and investing in sustainability initiatives. The integration of sustainability, being eco friendly and wellness into our lives has been found to create positive synergy as contributing to improved quality of life.
Benefits of a sustainable lifestyle
Being eco friendly as part of a sustainable lifestyle helps reduce one’s carbon footprint and preserve and conserve the earth’s resources for future generations. It is a spectrum whereby embracing any positive change is good.
So let’s look at some reasons why there is need for sustainable lifestyle and what you can do.
Being eco friendly saves money
Embracing sustainability and adopting eco friendly habits are not necessarily a direct personal or business cost. However, there are social and environmental benefits that are good for your wallet as well as for Mother Earth.
Some benefits of sustainable lifestyle include:
- Reduced utility bills due to less water use and energy consumption. This can be done by making simple changes in your daily habits such as turning off lights when you leave a room, unplugging electronics when they are not in use, and washing clothes in cold water.
- Permanent elimination of power bills because of renewable energy sources like installation of solar panels and more efficient power use with things like LED light technology.
- Savings on fuel and vehicle maintenance by using public transportation, ride shares, walking or cycling.
- Eliminating food waste by buying only what is needed, storing it correctly and meal planning.
- Getting rid of disposable packaging by shopping at local farmers’ markets or bulk buying options.
- Cutting greenhouse gas emissions by using electric vehicles.
Although monetary savings shouldn’t be the main stimulus here, it does make great financial sense to live sustainably. By making conscious and positive changes, can make a huge impact and save heaps.
Being eco friendly improves your health
Switching from a conventional lifestyle to a sustainable living improves the quality of life and increases fitness and well-being. A cleaner planet plus physical and mental wellbeing are inseparable from environment.
Several ways in which a sustainable lifestyle offers health benefits have been highlighted below:
- Certain air pollutants are linked to health conditions like anxiety, asthma, and depression. Better air quality means no toxic pollutants which improve both physical and mental health.
- Cutting down on processed and fried foods, sugary beverages, and red meats and eating a more plant-based diet has a positive effect on health and your carbon footprint.
- Choosing to cycle or walk to work instead of using your car improves your cardiovascular health.
- In switching to reusable shopping bags and steel water bottles, there is a reduction in the generation of plastic waste that ends up in landfills where the toxins in plastic tend to bind with environmental pollutants.
So, an eco friendly lifestyle surely offers a myriad of health benefits both now and in the future.
Being eco friendly saves the environment
Our lifestyle for the past half-century has had a catastrophic impact on our planet and its natural resources. This continuous destruction needs to be stopped now if we wish to give our planet a chance to recover and promote environmental conservation and improve environmental health.
Recognising the need for sustainable living will ensure that future generations can continue to enjoy nature and all of its benefits. Some tips on how we can be more eco friendly and embrace a sustainable lifestyle to save our environment and resources include:
- Save water: water is a precious resource that is often taken for granted. There are many ways to save water such as checking leaks in the water pipes and in toilets, turning the faucet off while brushing your teeth, taking shorter showers, and using a broom instead of a hose to clean your driveway. Also, use the washing machine only when it is full (to reduce energy consumption).
- Reduce the plastic menace: say no to plastic bottles and shopping bags.
- Compost waste: composting is a great way to reduce waste and help your garden grow. Kitchen scraps such as grains, dairy items, fruit and vegetable peels, coffee grounds, unbleached paper napkins, meats and eggshells. You can compost in your yard, or find a local community collection. Composting Improves the soil health by adding organic matter and helps the soil retain nutrients and moisture.
- Donate food you don’t need and make a good use of leftovers to create a variety of meals rather than throwing away.
- Treat waste water and toxic waste before disposing – reduce the pollution that enters our water bodies due to release of harmful and toxic waste from factories and industries. Treating waste reduces pathogens and chemicals that could make the water usable for aquatic flora and fauna.
- Embrace sustainable fashion: become a minimalist when buying clothes. Buy second hand clothes where possible. Also, repurpose clothes that are no longer wearable. Reduce the frequency of doing your laundry, which will make your clothes last longer and reduce consumption.
- Switch to eco-friendly personal hygiene and beauty products.
- Invest in insulation for your home: insulating your home will cut down your heat and air conditioning expenses by 20%-50%
- Recycle: never skimp on the recycling! Sort your waste and always put your waste in the right bins.
Conserving and using natural resources responsibly and carefully is important, and we should not put our own needs ahead of the futures of our children and grandchildren. We will compromise the ability of future generations to live a healthy, comfortable life if we continue to take and not replace.
Recognising the need for sustainable lifestyle not only promotes healthy environment but also ensures that the entire world now and into the future gets to live in clean and more healthy living conditions.
A sustainable lifestyle creates a better economy
Economic development can be enabled through sustainable living. Contrary to popular belief, adopting eco friendly practices is not an expensive business. In fact, it can lead to more significant financial savings in the long term, aside from the environmental benefits.
Environment and the local communities are receiving humongous benefits from increased investment in sustainability. In addition to building community, sustainable practices also benefit local small businesses.
Recycling materials reduces the need to harvest new materials.
Economic empowerment and poverty reduction strategies can be transformed by using state-of-the-art sustainability operations. By creating efficiencies in water systems, energy use, transportation, and resource use, communities become more equitable and resilient while lowering their costs.
A sustainable lifestyle improves social-wellbeing
A state of psychological restoration is one of the positive consequences of being pro-ecological. Engaging in eco friendly activities and sustainability leads to joyfulness, gratification, personal well-being, contentment and intrinsic motivation.
Therefore, in order to boost your social wellness, having a strong support system is crucial if you are suffering from anxiety, dejection, burnout, bitterness or stress.
Nearly every decision we make — from how we reduce our food waste, how we commute to work, where we shop, what type of packaging we use for gifting, how much plastic is there in our kitchen, how much red meat we consume, which products we use for cleaning, and how much food we throw away — is an opportunity to decide on a healthy choice for the planet.
These tiny, professedly invisible actions can make significant sustainable impacts on the planet.
Conclusion
From the effects of climate change to the depletion of natural resources, it’s clear that we that there is an urgent need for sustainable lifestyle. We must strive for better conservation of energy and natural resources, as well as reduce our impact on the environment through responsible practices and everyday activities.
Making sustainable choices can go a long way in helping us lessen our carbon footprint and ensure that future generations will be able to live on a healthy planet. Living sustainably involves making small changes in your everyday habits. It need not be difficult, and it can help you improve your health and general wellness and save money.
You can be more eco friendly by reducing energy consumption, waste and pollution creation, and supporting environmental conservation efforts to make a difference. Start living a more sustainable lifestyle today and help ensure the future of our planet!
Websites for further reading
https://www.unep.org/explore-topics/resource-efficiency/what-we-do/sustainable-lifestyles
https://theroundup.org/why-sustainable-living-important/
https://1people.com/en-nz/blog/post/the-effect-sustainable-living-has-on-wellbeing.html
https://www.conserve-energy-future.com/HowSolarPowerPanelsWork.php
https://www.smallfootprintfamily.com/how-to-save-money-by-going-green
https://www.conserve-energy-future.com/30-breathtaking-reasons-to-switch-to-reusable-bags.php
So that is a lot of information about the need for sustainable lifestyle and some eco friendly tips. Please comment below with your thoughts about the topics mentioned in this article below.
