If you’re anything like I was, when “helping the environment” comes up in conversation you find yourself drifting further and further towards the outskirts of the conversation, while making occasional comments like, “Well one person can’t save the world,” or “I don’t think that my small effort will make a difference.” Somewhere deep in your subconscious you hope that someone will agree with you and change the subject.

The truth is, the thought of the only planet known to be able to sustain life crumbling beneath your feet at an alarming rate is … well, scary. And, more often than not, we (and I mean all of us) try to push our fears away and pretend that they don’t exist. Well, guess what? They do! And they won’t go away without a conscious effort to change the way we live.

Believe it or not the change starts inside. We all have to come to the realization that we are all connected and one small change made by each of us adds up to massive change for all of us!

Next, we have to figure out what we can do to help (without terribly inconveniencing ourselves).

Lastly, we have to spread the word. Take the time to tell at least one person a day what you’re doing to help save our planet (just pretend you’re getting paid for it)!

SMALL THINGS YOU CAN DO:

-Wash clothes in cold water. (Believe it or not, they get just as clean.) Almost 85 percent of the energy used to wash clothes goes to heating up the water.

-Use compact fluorescent light bulbs (after your older, regular bulbs burn out).

-Cut 2 minutes off of your shower time. (You will save gallons of water a day.) It will save money too.

-If you choose to eat meat (and I don’t know why you would, considering how the animals are treated), try to substitute a meatless meal once a week. It’s like taking a lighter step on the environment .

-Recycle. (When we re-use what we have, we don’t have to use precious resources to make more.)

-When your casually surfing the web, Google “How to go Green” and find many more little ways you can help.

If you have a particularly unique way to help us save our planet, comment here or e-mail me at nikki@baltimoregaylife.com and I will post it on the web!