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Earth Day 2024: 8 ways to live more sustainably
By Life Kit

Updated Tuesday, April 16, 2024 • 2:46 PM EDT

Being an Earthling isn't easy these days. From flash floods and devastating earthquakes to extreme heat, no matter where you are on the planet, the effects of the climate crisis are vast and real.

We know individual actions can only get us so far, and solving the astronomical issue of climate change is the job of governments and policies. But we also know that our decisions matter. Consuming less energy at home, composting and upcycling, using our voices and our votes – all of these individual choices can help tip the scale towards progress.

The Life Kit team curated some of our favorite sustainability tips from past episodes. They're not going to solve the climate crisis, but these practices can help garner momentum as we work toward a more sustainable future.

Switch to climate friendly home appliances
By using home appliances and vehicles that run on electricity, we can help reduce our carbon footprint and leave more fossil fuels in the ground. Here are a few appliances to consider:

Induction stove: These use magnetism to heat a pan and consume less energy than a traditional electric stove.

Clothing dryers with the "Energy Star" label: Efficient dryers that have the Energy Star label use about 20% less energy than regular dryers.

Water heaters that use heat pump technology: They're two to three times more efficient than most electric water heaters and can help save money on utility bills.

Making these upgrades to your home and lifestyle will cost money — and you will need to plan ahead. So don't feel like you have to change out your appliances overnight. Instead, buy them as your existing machines wear out.

Eat seafood responsibly
Let's say you're at a restaurant or the fresh fish counter at the supermarket and you want to get the salmon — but you're not sure whether it's sustainable. To find out, simply ask the server or the fishmonger. Here are two key questions:

Is this fish pole- or line-caught? If the answer is yes, that's usually a good sign, says Jennifer Dianto Kemmerly, vice president of global ocean initiatives at the Monterey Bay Aquarium in California. "Even at a commercial scale, a fishing boat can see what they just reeled in and if they caught a fish that's too small or is a different species they didn't intend [to catch], they can quickly release it."

Is this fish caught in the U.S.? If so, it's probably a sustainable choice. "The U.S. has some of the most stringent regulations" of fishing in the world, Kemmerly says.

Eat less meat
Meat production is hard on the environment: It requires a lot of land to raise cattle — and globally, many forests are being cleared to make room for those animals. Deforestation releases lots of heat-trapping carbon dioxide that had been stored in the trees into the environment. And cows themselves release a lot of methane, a powerful greenhouse gas, in the form of burps.

If people in the U.S. and other heavy meat-eating countries could cut back their beef consumption, it could have a major impact on creating a more sustainable food system.

To curb your diet's environmental impact and fight climate change, you could go vegetarian or vegan — but you don't have to. It turns out, cutting back a little can have a big impact.

Richard Waite, a senior research associate in the food program at the World Resources Institute, recommends eating less of the most resource-intensive meats: goat, lamb and especially beef — the most commonly consumed of these meats. Cows "take the most land to grow and feed," he says.

Ditch fast fashion – keep your clothes for the long haul
Trends move so quickly these days. It's tempting to buy what's hot and follow whatever fleeting microtrend is "in" right now.

But that leads to more clothes in landfills – only 1% of clothing actually gets recycled into new clothing. And making textiles is a very water-intensive process, not to mention human labor issues with a lot of fast fashion manufacturing.

Related Story: 5 tips to ditch fast fashion and cultivate a sustainable closet
If you want to reduce fashion waste, ask yourself one question before you buy a new item of clothing: "Will I wear this at least 30 times?"

This question, says thrifting advocate Symphony Clarke, can shift your mindset and help you buy clothing with the notion that it should stay with you for a long time.

Freeze produce you can't use right away — and compost the scraps once you have
About 8% of greenhouse gas emissions come from wasted food, and roughly half of all food waste occurs during "the consumption stage," meaning waste from foodservice and households.

Related Story: How to compost at home
One of the best tools to help reduce wasted food? The freezer. Here's how to use it:

If you're not ready to use fresh fruit and vegetables right away, freeze them. This locks in flavor and nutrients, and it's better than letting fresh produce languish in the fridge.
Store your compost – fruit and vegetable peels, eggshells, coffee grinds – in the freezer until you've filled a bag and can take it to your local community garden or compost collector. That way, you can keep out smells and vermin, and then contribute to creating rich, healthy soil to grow new food.
Cut back on plastic by figuring out how much you use and why
The plastics problem is overwhelming. There's so much of it overflowing landfills and littering waterways and a lot of it can't or won't be recycled.

The most effective thing you can do to cut back on plastic is to figure out how much you use. Environmental activist Shilpi Chhotray suggests going room by room – bathroom, bedroom, kitchen, living room – and doing an audit of the plastics in your home. (Don't forget to check the trash!)

Related Story: The plastic problem isn't your fault, but you can be part of the solution
Not only will this help you understand how much plastic you use, but how you're using it. That way, you can make a plan for how to cut back.

Are you using a bottle of body wash? Replace it with a bar of soap. Bring your own tote bags for groceries instead of packing your goods in plastic bags, or your favorite reusable mug to your local coffee shop.

Switch to clean energy at home
Whether you're a homeowner or a renter, in a lot of states, you may be able to move away from powering your home with fossil fuels – as long as you pay your utility bill.

Related Story: Take on climate change at home and cut carbon emissions. Here's how
"Call your local utility company and let them know that you want your electricity to come from 100% clean energy," says Donnel Baird, CEO of BlocPower, a startup company that's carrying out energy upgrades of buildings in several cities.

While your utility company stays the same, you may be able to choose the supplier of your energy. A quick call to your utility company to make the switch can lead to a meaningful change in the way you power your home.

Use your voice and your vote
We know that passing on plastic straws is not going to do much to limit Earth's warming. So, speak up. Tell companies what practices you want to see from them. "They're listening, more than ever before," says Keefe Harrison, CEO of the Recycling Partnership.

Related Story: How to run for office
If you want to influence policy, let your representatives know what matters to you. Write them, call them and keep the climate in mind as you think about voting. And if you've got big ideas you aren't seeing reflected, consider running for office yourself with this handy guide.

The podcast portion of this story was produced by Sylvie Douglis with engineering support from Josh Newell, Robert Rodriguez, Gilly Moon and Maggie Luther.

We'd love to hear from you. If you have a good life hack, leave us a voicemail at 202-216-9823, or email us at LifeKit@npr.org. Your tip could appear in an upcoming episode.

If you love Life Kit and want more, subscribe to our newsletter.

Transcript
ANDEE TAGLE, HOST:

This is NPR's LIFE KIT. It's Earth week. And let's not dance around it - being an Earthling isn't easy these days. Flash floods and devastating earthquakes, extreme heat and shrinking ecosystems and rising sea levels and raging forest fires - no matter where you are in the planet, the effects of the climate crisis are vast and real. They're a constant source of big worry and fear for most and big struggles for many. It can be easy to feel hopeless amid so many compounding disasters or frustrated by the snail-slow pace of change. And it's true - individual action has its limits, but it's not too late to come together and make a real difference.

According to a recent report from the U.N., the world can still avoid the most extreme dangers of the climate crisis if, collectively, nations can work together to embrace the solutions and technology needed to cut emissions rapidly. Again, to be clear, we're not putting solving the climate crisis on you, listener. That's done by governments and policies. But we know that our decisions matter. Using less energy at home, choosing to live and work in walkable areas, composting, upcycling - all of these individual choices can add up and help tip the scales towards progress. And the good news is there are endless ways to start.

I'm Andee Tagle, one of the producers of this show, and in this episode of LIFE KIT, our team is here to help you get going on your green living with tips from some of our favorite sustainability episodes. We've got a list of ideas as big and green as your favorite tree, so don't you leaf.

(SOUNDBITE OF JONATHAN ELIAS AND SARAH TREVINO'S "MAGIC IN THE HILLS")

TAGLE: Up first, producer Sylvie Douglis. Hey, Sylvie.

SYLVIE DOUGLIS, BYLINE: Hey, Andee. So my tips are about food waste. We all know it's a huge contributing factor to the climate crisis. But I learned from our episode about combating food waste that 8% of greenhouse gas emissions come from wasted food, and roughly half of food waste occurs during the consumption stage, meaning waste from, like, food service, restaurants and households.

TAGLE: That is a lot.

DOUGLIS: Yeah, it's something we all know that we can work on by being more thoughtful and realistic when grocery shopping, or for me, it's really just resisting the urge to order takeout when I've got fresh groceries just waiting to be used. But there's a few tips that I want to share, and they both have to do with one kitchen appliance. Can you guess what it is?

TAGLE: Could it be the fridge or the freezer?

DOUGLIS: Yes, it's the freezer.

TIFFANY DERRY: Make the freezer your best friend (laughter).

DOUGLIS: So that's Tiffany Derry. She's a chef in Texas, and she's a huge proponent of using your freezer to cut down on waste.

DERRY: I freeze anything that I'm not going to use quickly. Berries, pineapple - I mean, all of those fruits are things that people buy already. Why not get it while it's in the peak of season and then pop it in a bag and just have it in your freezer ready to go? You know it's delicious. You know what time of the year it was brought in.

DOUGLIS: And freezing food is healthy, too. Freezing stuff locks in flavor and nutrients. And it's better than letting groceries languish in the fridge.

TAGLE: Ugh, my poor groceries. So many have languished. And I hear you have another freezer tip up your sleeve.

DOUGLIS: Yeah, my freezer is not that big, but I'm putting it to work with another way that I tackle food waste, which is composting. So I started composting in the past couple years, but I live in an apartment and don't have any outdoor space, so I compost in my freezer. And then once a week, I take this sort of alien-looking popsicle of frozen peels and pits and rinds and coffee grounds, and I drop it off at my community garden. And it's kind of fun 'cause you get to meet other people in your neighborhood doing the same thing, and you get to spy on their eating habits, too.

TAGLE: I would not be mad at that. And bonus - if it's frozen, it doesn't smell, right? Because I know that's what a lot of people have a problem with when it comes to composting.

DOUGLIS: Yeah, no smell. And then it gets turned into rich, healthy soil. And last summer, they gave me a baggie of the soil from our community garden to bring home and use in my house plants.

TAGLE: Wow. A full loop. I love it.

DOUGLIS: Yeah, it's great. But I've also learned about some ways to compost that rely less on the trusty freezer. There's vermicomposting, which is where you take a big sort of five-gallon bin, order some worms online and compost indoors. And then there's also the Japanese method of bokashi, which is essentially fermenting your food scraps. So there's a lot to look into.

TAGLE: Worms and bacteria - what fun. Thanks, Sylvie.

DOUGLIS: Thanks, Andee.

(SOUNDBITE OF HARUN IYICIL'S "SOUL BLISS (MAIN)")

TAGLE: Up next, producer Audrey Nguyen. Hey, Audrey.

AUDREY NGUYEN, BYLINE: Hey, Andee.

TAGLE: What have you got for us today?

NGUYEN: My tip comes from an episode I worked on last summer with Rebecca Davis about plastic. I got to say, when I sit down and think about the plastics problem for too long, I get really overwhelmed. Like, I know we're not going to recycle our way out of the climate crisis, so I've definitely questioned how much my actions, like, as an individual can make an impact. But working on the piece helped me recognize on a very emotional level that some action is better than none.

TAGLE: I feel you. Overwhelmed is the right word, for sure. There are so many plastic products in our life. They all have different numbers. I just - I don't even know where to start.

NGUYEN: Well, in the episode, Rebecca interviewed Yvette Arellano, the founder of an environmental justice organization called Fenceline Watch. The group is based in my hometown, Houston, Texas, and they advocate for marginalized communities that are concerned about the long-term effects of pollution from petrochemical plants.

REBECCA DAVIS, BYLINE: Why is it so important to use less plastic, anyway?

YVETTE ARELLANO: Because it affects children's lives. It increases cancer rates. And it hurts people. You know, why would we want to participate in something that is actively oppressing and hurting people's health?

NGUYEN: Before working on the episode, I hadn't fully appreciated the relationship between fossil fuels, plastics and public health.

TAGLE: Yeah, actively oppressing and hurting people. Wow. What more can we do about this, Audrey?

NGUYEN: So we've all heard the phrase recycle, reduce and reuse. And lots of folks say we should put more emphasis on the reducing and reusing part of that instead of just maintaining the same level of consumption and just recycling. Now, full disclosure - I've gotten a lot worse about using single-use plastic during the pandemic with, like, all of the takeout I've been eating.

TAGLE: You're not the only one, I'm sure.

(LAUGHTER)

TAGLE: Also guilty.

NGUYEN: So I've been thinking about something another expert did.

SHILPI CHHOTRAY: What I started doing was literally taking an inventory of all of the plastic in our apartment.

NGUYEN: That's Shilpi Chhotray. When we talked to her, she was the global communications lead from Break Free From Plastic. Shilpi tallied up the different types of plastic packaging she had in her home, which gets me to the tip I'm here to share today. Do an audit of the plastics in your home. It will help you understand not only how much plastic you're using but also how you're using it. So you can make an actionable plan about how to cut back.

CHHOTRAY: It was a wakeup call for us because a lot of the plastic that we thought could be recycled, we learned they're actually not getting picked up by curbside recycling.

TAGLE: Oof. Auditing the whole house sounds like a huge undertaking. Imagine you want to go room by room, right? I know there are a lot of plastic bottles in my bathroom right now, for example.

NGUYEN: That's exactly right. Go room by room. Take note of all the plastic, and don't forget to check the trash. Shilpi says that the two main areas you're probably going to see the most plastic are in your kitchen and, like you noticed yourself, Andee, the bathroom. After you finish your inventory, think about ways you can reduce your use of those plastics.

TAGLE: OK. Are there any sustainable swaps that you've tried, any that you recommend, any favorites, Audrey?

NGUYEN: I think one of the easiest things I've done is switch from body wash to a bar of soap. I also recently discovered that there's a shop down the street from me that lets you bring in your own containers and buy hand soap and dried goods. So I'm going to check that out later this week. I also tried switching over to toothpaste tabs at some point, but my partner hated the texture and, like, hard vetoed that swap. So those are out.

TAGLE: I am Team Veto on that. We tried.

NGUYEN: (Laughter).

TAGLE: I can't - I just - I don't - I can't do it. But definitely lots to consider this Earth Day or perhaps plastic-free July. Thanks, Audrey.

NGUYEN: Thanks.

(SOUNDBITE OF JOSEPH PINCUS' "ROLL DEEP")

MEGHAN KEANE, BYLINE: Hey, Andee.

TAGLE: Hey, Meghan, managing producer of LIFE KIT. What do you have today?

KEANE: Well, Andee, before we get started, I just want to say that's a really nice top you have on today. How many times do you think you've worn it?

TAGLE: Oh, thanks, M.K. This old thing - I picked this up last spring maybe and have just brought it back now that the weather's a little warmer. So maybe 10 times.

KEANE: OK. All right. The reason I ask you - it's not to shame you, I promise, but rather to get us thinking about how often we really wear the clothes we have in our closet. You know, trends move so quickly these days, and I'm on TikTok enough to know that the youths are going to make fun of anything that I own that was in fashion before, like, the year 2016.

TAGLE: (Laughter).

KEANE: And it's very tempting to just buy the cheap stuff and, you know, wear what's ever the microtrend right now.

SYMPHONY CLARKE: People are so quick to - oh, it doesn't fit anymore. Trash. Oh, this doesn't look good anymore. Trash.

KEANE: (Laughter) That's...

TAGLE: Guilty.

KEANE: ...Symphony Clarke. She goes by The Thrift Guru on TikTok.

TAGLE: I know her. She was in our sustainable closet episode.

KEANE: Sure was.

CLARKE: We live in this generation now where people won't even get caught dead seeing people, like, wearing the same outfit twice. That's the lifespan of their clothing. Once a picture is taken, it's done.

KEANE: Now, I'm not quite at that level, but I have been known just to buy a new piece of clothing simply because I wanted it and not because I needed it.

TAGLE: And that leads to a bigger issue, right? Because so much of used clothing just ends up in landfills.

KEANE: Yes. And it's estimated that only 1% of clothing actually gets recycled.

TAGLE: Wow.

KEANE: You know, making textiles is a very water-intensive process, not to mention human labor issues. I mean, there is just so much wrong with how clothing gets manufactured. It's overwhelming. But as a consumer, you can think about, you know, buying more thrifted clothes. And this is my tip for you - before you buy, ask yourself this question.

CLARKE: When you go shopping, when you look at an item, will you wear this item at least 30 times? And that alone will get people thinking, like, what? Why would I want to wear something 30 times? That's really the key. You want to actually extend the lifespan of clothing.

TAGLE: That's a really nice mindset shift. You know, you're creating a speed bump for yourself to see if this is something you're going to keep out of a landfill. Plus, think about money, right? Cost per wear.

KEANE: Exactly. And I would even go further and recommend people think about a 60- or a 90-wear test. If you get a stain on it, how are you going to take care for that piece of clothing so you just don't toss it out? So my tip is to think of your clothes not as disposable and use this 30-day rule before you bring something new into your closet.

TAGLE: I love it. I'm going to see how many wears I can get out of this shirt now. Thanks, M.K.

KEANE: Thank you.

(SOUNDBITE OF KRISTOPHER FLAGG AND SKINNY WILLIAMS "HER SOUL GLOW")

BECK HARLAN, BYLINE: Hi, Andee.

TAGLE: Beck, our wonderful visuals editor. Hello.

HARLAN: Hello. So I want to kick us off with a little trivia.

TAGLE: Oh, gosh.

HARLAN: You ready?

TAGLE: Go for it.

HARLAN: OK. What percent of greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S. would you attribute to buildings?

TAGLE: OK. I have had to guess a lot in this episode. Am I on a secret game show? OK. What percent would I attribute to buildings? Maybe 10%?

HARLAN: Oh, Andee, I'm sorry...

TAGLE: (Laughter).

HARLAN: ...You're not going to win that brand-new electric car. No, no. Not a bad guess, but it's more.

DONNEL BAIRD: Buildings in the United States are responsible for 30% of greenhouse gas emissions across the country. If you want to do something about climate change, your home is among the most important places to look.

HARLAN: That's Donnel Baird, the CEO of BlocPower. And while we don't have control over all buildings, if we start where we do have some control - our homes - there's definitely something that we can do to reduce emissions, even if you're renting. So in a lot of states, if you pay your utility bill, you may have some control over the source of your electricity. Here's Baird again.

BAIRD: The very first thing you can do is you can call your local utility company, and you can let them know that you want your electricity to come from 100% clean energy.

TAGLE: Wow. This is huge, Beck. I had no idea this was an option for renters.

HARLAN: Yeah, it's exciting. It's called consumer choice. And while your utility company stays the same, you can sometimes choose the supplier of your energy. So I rented a room in a group house in D.C. for many years, and my housemates and I did this. Our utility company was Pepco, but we had an option to choose who actually supplied that energy. All in all, it took about 30 minutes to make the switch, and then boom - every month, you're just automatically getting electricity from clean energy.

TAGLE: Wow. This is a great tip, Beck. But 30 minutes, is it that easy? I'm assuming you want to look at rates and read all the fine print, of course.

HARLAN: For sure. Yes, absolutely, do your due diligence. But in terms of environmental impact for time spent, this is a really good return on investment.

TAGLE: Yeah, absolutely. Sounds like a super easy and efficient way to reduce your carbon footprint.

HARLAN: Yeah. So just call your utility company or set aside a little time with Michael Google (ph) to see if this is an option for you.

TAGLE: (Laughter).

HARLAN: And I know that spending time on the phone with your utility company is no one's favorite pastime. But I'm very bad at life admin, and I promise that this is actually pretty painless. And if you find out that it's not an option for you, there are tons of other ideas about how to green your home in our episode, from switching out your light bulbs to insulating your windows - really sexy stuff...

TAGLE: (Laughter).

HARLAN: ...Here. I know. But it does make a difference. So just search LIFE KIT, climate change and home, and it should be one of the first results.

TAGLE: Yes, please. And there's a lot more where that came from.

HARLAN: The planet will thank you, and so will we.

TAGLE: Yes, we will. Thanks Beck.

HARLAN: Thank you.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

TAGLE: And that brings us to the end of our episode. We hope we inspired you to start being more sustainable in your corner of the planet. But if these tips don't do quite enough for you, don't forget about the two very powerful tools already in your toolbox - your voice and your vote. Run for local office. Write to your politicians and demand more climate action. Tell your favorite companies what green practices you want to see from them or divest from ones that don't have them. Amplify the work of climate scientists on your social media or voice your support for sustainability bills. We can all make a big impact with our words, our wallets and the ballot box. The time is now.

You can find the full version of all the episodes we talked about today at /lifekit. And if you love LIFE KIT and want more, subscribe to our newsletter at /lifekitnewsletter. And now, a random tip from one of our listeners.

CHRIS MAHAFFEY: My name is Chris Mahaffey (ph). I make a lot of hummus, but cleaning up after hummus is actually not that fun. So what I've started doing is putting soap and water into the blender and pressing pulse multiple times to get it cleaned on its own. That way, you pour the water right out, do a little scrubbing, and you're fine.

TAGLE: If you've got a good tip, leave us a voicemail at 202-216-9823, or email us a voice memo at lifekit@npr.org. This episode of LIFE KIT was produced by Sylvie Douglis with engineering support from the fabulous team at NPR West - Robert Rodriguez (ph), Gilly Moon and Maggie Luthar. Meghan Keane is the managing producer. Beth Donovan is the senior editor. Our production team also includes Audrey Nguyen, Clare Marie Schneider and Mansee Khurana. Our digital editor is Dalia Mortada, and our visuals editor is Beck Harlan. I'm Andee Tagle. Thanks for listening.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

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