Small Things Everyone Does

With regard to man wreaking damage on the environment, one great scholar asks, “What is development if it is destroying our own future?” So, it is not the big things that the organisations do that count most. It is the small things everyone does that carry weight. As a Malay proverb says, “Sikit-sikit, lama-lama jadi bukit”, meaning “bit by bit it becomes a hill”.

In coming years, environmental issues will be a very important challenge to face.

How do we as consumers adapt to it? We can do the following small acts on our part to save the earth:

- Take your own bags for shopping to carry home groceries. Plastic bags are not eco-friendly and are non-biodegradable. Plastic bags take 400 years to bio-degrade.

- Use a bicycle or walk for short trips and local shopping. It’s 100% eco-friendly and keeps you fit.

- Turn off televisions, stereos and computers when not in use - they can use between 10% and 60% of the power when on and contribute to global warming.

- Prepare and bring home-cooked meals to work or school. It’s healthier and far more economical than eating outside.

- Collect unused paper products at home and take them to recycling centers. Recycling of wood products can save millions of trees a year.

- Stop using chemical pesticides. Planting certain plants in your kitchen garden, such as mint and basil can help to keep pests away.

- Replace lights used with compact energy saving fluorescent lamps. They use ¼ of electricity and last 4 times as long as a normal light bulb.

- Decide on what you need before opening the fridge. Repeated opening waste electricity and add up to your utility bills.

- Avoid using Styrofoam. It’s non-biodegradable and depletes the ozone layer.

- Volunteer for a green project in your local community. Start or join a community environment program to preserve the environment in your neighbourhood.

- Share the advice and tips you’ve learned on sustainable consumption with your family and friends.

- Cool your house the smart way. Use white window shades, drapes, or blinds to reflect heat away. Air conditioners contribute to global warming.

- Buy locally grown food. Not only will you be saving money but you are also supporting the livelihood of local farmers.

- Help reduce the world’s rubbish dumps – don’t use disposable products like paper plates and napkins, plastic utensils and cups.

- Saving water means saving electricity; because one of the biggest users of electricity is supplying water and cleaning up sewage.

- Follow nature’s way to care for your garden. Use organic compost instead to improve soil health for gardening.

Source: FOMCA