Helloooo all my lovely readers?
Can you believe it’s August already? Whenever the calendar hits August, I know that the year is starting to wind down because Christmas in July has passed, and after my birthday in October, I start getting ready for Christmas, so it’s essentially Christmas in my mind from October through to January. Yes, I know that I’m mildly obsessed with Christmas, but there’s no way to enjoy such a merry holiday in such a short time frame, so I just … extend it a little…
Anywho, the start of August also marks my 8th eco-friendly monthly challenge. I’ve really had such fun with these challenges, and I can’t wait to implement them more in my life when I move into my flat in the UK. This month, I struggled to think of an idea. I finally settled on trying to size down my carbon footprint, particularly with travel, so here it goes!
Driving less
Unfortunately, in South Africa, driving is pretty much essential. You can’t get around if you don’t drive because public transport isn’t a great option here so many people have cars, or some other kind of vehicle to get around. So, I’m going to try and drive a lot less before I head back to the UK. If I need to go shopping, I’ll try to make sure I can do it all in one place, or at least engineer my day, so the driving is minimal. I always try to carpool with my boyfriend, so that helps, and because it’s still covid, I’m also planning to just try and leave the house as little as possible, so that accomplishes the same goal, right?
Walk, walk, walk
When I finally get back to the UK and finish quarantine, I plan to walk until I can’t feel my feet and then walk some more. It sounds weird, but I really miss walking around. Not just because it’s great exercise and a chance to get some fresh air, but walks when I was in England always turned into fun chats with friends even if we were just going to get groceries. So, my plan is to try and walk everywhere, and as much as possible (within reason). Not only is it great for the earth, but it will also help me hopefully drop a few kilograms because I’m moving around so much.
Public transport when needed
Unfortunately, sometimes you have to admit defeat that walking may not be the best option. For instance, say you have to travel across the country or across town. Even if you’re going to do your bulk shopping, I think struggling to carry all that home might be shooting yourself in the foot. Public transport is another great way to get around that is more earth-friendly than having your own vehicle, so taking the bus or train is a much cleaner option and something I plan to be using more when I need it once I’m back.
Unplug, lights off
Most of my goals this month are around transport, but there are plenty of other easy ways to reduce your carbon footprint, including how we eat and how we live in our homes. Eating less meat is a great way to reduce your carbon footprint, but I won’t tackle that challenge specifically this month as I plan to do one more specifically around food, maybe next month, and I’ve been trying small weekly challenges such as going vegetarian. You can check out my sustainability challenge collab with Happy Panda. She tried going vegan for a week, and I was vegetarian for a week(you can read how these went here and here).
Another small way we can reduce our carbon footprint is by thinking of how we live at home. Small things such as turning the lights off in rooms you aren’t in, or when you don’t need them, unplugging any electronics or cables that aren’t in use and opt for more energy-efficient home items such as an induction kettle or LED bulbs. If my dad starts asking me more why I’m working in the dark, you’ll all know why.
And that’s that! Thanks so much for reading, everyone. What do you all think of this eco-friendly challenge? What methods do you use to reduce your carbon footprint? Lastly, any suggestions for my last four challenges? Let’s chat in the comments section!
Lots of Love
Blondey on a Mission xxx
Tall Blonde Tales 
I would suggest being mindful on how much you use technology because using the internet increases your carbon footprint. I’m glad you mentioned driving. My family has been car-free for almost 30 years for green reasons. Sometimes, it’s not easy, but you find other ways around it
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Oooh that’s a very good point thanks for sharing! Wow that’s crazy congrats I tip my metaphorical hat to you xx
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You’re welcome! I have been following this IG account @onesaveaday and they have amazing info on what you can do to save the planet. And thank you. We have learned a lot from it
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Oooh thanks for that will definitely check them out!!
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You’re welcome! Btw, sorry I haven’t worked on the collab post lately. I have had some stuff going on in my life lately
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No worries I completely understand just let me know when you’re okay to work on it xx
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Thank you! I am applying for PR and there’s a long process to it
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Ahh good luck with that!
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Thank you!
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This is such a great idea. Because of COVID i’ve stopped taking public transport too, going to be mindful of my car/cab travel too.
Another great way to reduce your carbon footprint is to just clear your email inbox. Our inboxes consume so much energy adding to our carbon footprint.
Good luck with the challenge. ❤️
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Oh wow good for you! Seriously?? I had no idea something as insignificant as an email inbox can impact your carbon footprint but thanks for sharing! ❤️
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I have a long (about 25 mile/40km) commute right now. I used to drive a Hyundai Elantra. I heard about five years ago that Hyundai was coming out with a small hybrid (Ioniq), and when I saw that, I thought, I think that might be my next car, since this commute probably isn’t going away. I’ve had the Ioniq hybrid for three years now, and I love it. I have the kind of personality that is the polar opposite of the stereotypical hybrid car owner in the US, but hey, I’m a complicated anomaly and I’ve known that for years. (The commute isn’t exactly ideal, considering that my last job was a 5-7 minute bike ride if it wasn’t raining, and I would take public transportation if it were possible, but sometimes life doesn’t work out nicely.)
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Oh wow that is a hectic commute!! Glad your car at least works for you xx
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It’s really not hectic. I’m right on the edge of the suburbs of a large metropolitan area, but my work is away from the city, two towns over, and most of the drive is on a divided highway. So it really only slows down when two trucks pass each other and don’t time it well.
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Ahhh okay I see
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Great steps. I think I already implement all of those (not by choice though😂😂😂)
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Haha well that’s great at least well done! 😂😂💗
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I agree with ‘justcalmwildness” also covid makes me want to stay home more, even to finally succumbing to shopping on line, where everything is just about possible. Never too old to learn.
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Wow that’s so good Wendy and haha nice to hear you’re trying online shopping
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Wow, that’s amazing! Reducing our carbon footprint is something that’s in our hands but it’s not something that most people care about. This is amazing what you’re doing, keep going!
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Thank you! Exactly it’s one small thing that’s in our control – there are so many unexpected things though that can reduce your carbon footprint
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I completely agree with you. I feel like more people need to realize it more that the benefit of the world is in our own hands.
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Preach!!! It just takes creative thinking to get people to realise that and want to do it
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Yeah
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