Michelle Neff - Simple Acts to Save Our Planet: 500 Ways to Make a Difference

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First Adams Media hardcover edition April 2018

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Interior design by Katrina Machado

Interior images Shutterstock/Lucky Vector; Curly Pat; Kaspri; 123RF/Macrovector; amovitania

Cover design by Sylvia Mcardle

Cover images Shutterstock/Lucky Vector; Curly Pat

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Neff, Michelle, author.

Simple acts to save our planet / Michelle Neff.

Avon, Massachusetts: Adams Media, 2018.

Series: Simple acts.

LCCN 2017055482 (print) | LCCN 2017057723 (ebook) | ISBN 9781507207277 (hc) | ISBN 9781507207284 (ebook)

LCSH: Environmental responsibility--Handbooks, manuals, etc. | Environmental protection--Handbooks, manuals, etc. | Sustainable living--Handbooks, manuals, etc. | BISAC: NATURE / Environmental Conservation & Protection. | NATURE / Reference. | HOUSE & HOME / Sustainable Living.

LCC GE195.7 (ebook) | LCC GE195.7 .N44 2018 (print) | DDC 363.7--dc23

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017055482

ISBN 978-1-5072-0727-7

ISBN 978-1-5072-0728-4 (ebook)

Many of the designations used by manufacturers and sellers to distinguish their products are claimed as trademarks. Where those designations appear in this book and Simon & Schuster, Inc., was aware of a trademark claim, the designations have been printed with initial capital letters.

Now is the time to take a stand and protect the earth! Every day offers opportunities to help the environment, and in Simple Acts to Save Our Planet , youll find 500 easy ways for anyone and everyone to do their part in their daily lives. For instance, you could:

Bring reusable containers to restaurants for leftovers

Stop the junk mail by unsubscribing from all those catalogs

Share important articles and petitions on social media

Plant a tree (or two!) in your neighborhood

Learn about endangered species and how to protect them

Get your ice cream in a cone instead of a single-use cup

Ditch the plastic bags and use a tote bag at the grocery store instead

And your influence doesnt stop there! Humans have a unique ability to alter our natural environment, and by making simple changes to the things you do every day, you can protect the planet now and make a real difference for the future. Whats more, your commitment to sustainability may inspire others to take action as well! Who knows, when your coworkers see you using your own mug instead of Styrofoam cups, maybe theyll try out new travel mugs themselves. Want to make your neighborhood a bit greener? Start a compost pile to help your garden grow, and then share your strategy (and homegrown fruits and vegetables) with neighbors to spread the word.

Remember, little acts really do add up to big change. Flip through these pages and head out the door to start protecting Mother Earth!

Buy in bulk. Not only will buying items such as spices, beans, grains, dried fruits, and canned vegetables in bulk help cut down on the amount of waste produced, but youll also save money and will eat healthier. Also, bulk items usually arent loaded with preservatives to keep them fresh.

Shop at thrift stores . As they say, one mans trash is another mans treasure! Head down to your local thrift store to purchase gently used items that would otherwise clog up landfills. Added bonus: you can save up to 50 percent on the original price tag of designer items.

Bring a tote bag to the store. Simply by bringing a tote bag to the store you can help prevent hundreds of plastic bags from entering our precious oceans.

Support personal care companies that opt out of using microbeads. Microbeads are microscopic plastic beads typically used as exfoliating agents in beauty products. But heres the problem: they dont degrade. Because of their small sizethere can be as many as 100,000 microbeads in just one squeeze of face washthey often end up in local water treatment facilities and oceans. Help protect important marine life that might be harmed by these microbeads simply by switching products!

Unsubscribe from catalogs. Make a quick phone call to cancel catalog subscriptions, and encourage friends and family to do so too. Think of all the paper youll save!

Use a dishwasher to conserve water . Rather than washing dishes by hand, an ENERGY STARcertified dishwasher can save about 5,000 gallons of water a year!