Sustainable living: 5 ways to start living sustainably NOW
Sustainability is not a new topic as climate change and its impacts continues to dominate the news cycle. We are often reminded that our behaviour and living habits are affecting the planet and causing:
Global warming
Water scarcity
Plastic pollution
Natural disasters
There are so many pressing issues that it can be overwhelming to figure out where you can start to make a difference.
As a building designer, to reduce your carbon footprint, my advice is that the best place to start is to improve the performance of your building fabric. According to the Energy Savings Trust, a quarter of the heating in your home is lost through the roof and even more from the walls. Insulating them to a good standard should always be a priority. However, before I recommend turning your house into a carbon-negative building, there are some easier ways you can make a difference.
Get a thermostat
The easiest way to reduce your energy footprint and bills is to have a programmable thermostat. Even better if you can control your heating digitally from the palm of your hand with smart thermostats like Nest or Hive,
Smart systems learn your behaviour and can ensure your home is always warm when it needs to be. British Gas reports that the Hive smart thermostat could save you £130 a year on your energy bills, while other manufacturers claim smart thermostats will reduce your bills by up to 35%. It all adds up.
How to get the most out of your smart thermostat
Automate it to lower the heating when it detects you have left the house.
Heat rooms separately as you need them.
Set schedules to create cool spaces in the evenings, which has been proven to be better for sleep.
Building designer tip: Install a sound MVHR (Mechanical Ventilation and Heat Recovery) system. Here is a brilliant guide for beginners.
Level up this tip: Switch to a renewable energy supplier. Specialist small suppliers include Good Energy, Octopus Energy, Bristol Energy who produce 100% of their electricity from zero-carbon sources. Many of the larger energy firms also offer 100% renewables tariffs.
2. Get a water butt to collect rainwater
In May 2023, new research suggested that there are seven regions in England that are currently in danger of running out of water by 2030.
Only 1% of all freshwater is easily accessible, and we are using more water than the earth can replace itself. The Water Scarcity Clock highlights this issue. The average person in the UK uses 150 litres of water every day. We need to use less. Some countries are already running out of water.
Start with using a water butt to collect rainwater to use for gardening, watering plants, washing the car or filling up the paddling pool in summer. They cost between £30 and £50 on Amazon and are worth every penny.
Building designer tip: Install a rainwater harvesting tank in your garden and use it to flush your toilets. Here are the many advantages.
Level up this tip: Turn off the tap when you brush your teeth. 68% of people still leave the tap running while they brush their teeth. This small habit could save up to 24 litres a day in your household. It also saves money by reducing your water bills.
3. Support your local economy by shopping locally
One of the best ways to reduce your carbon footprint and help the local economy is to support local businesses especially because of the Covid-19 pandemic. As the co-owner of an independent coffee house, I know the lengths many local retailers go to use better ingredients and to meet ethical standards.
Most of the time, this may mean slightly more expensive products, but they are unable to match major supermarkets that use economies of scale to keep costs low. If you have visited a local butcher, you would understand the difference in quality that smaller shops strive towards. They also produce less waste as they order less.
Supermarkets import food from all over the world, and because the food travels a long way to get to their shelves, there is a more substantial amount of embodied carbon in their products. By visiting the local farmers’ market or your local independent health food shop, there is plenty of fresh, in-season, locally sourced food to purchase that you will be directly supporting.
Building designer tip: Keep local stores in mind when ordering materials. We always specify local suppliers and natural materials where we can.
Level up this tip: Select products with recyclable packaging and support zero-waste shops. Zero Waste Near Me is a UK-based, comprehensive resource of local businesses and community initiatives to help you on your journey in living more sustainably.
4. Go plastic free and prevent plastic pollution.
Plastic waste is a more significant issue than we think it is. Every year about 8 million tons of plastic waste escapes into our oceans. These plastics break down into smaller pieces unable to decompose and not only harm our marine life but to an extent, humans as well. Friends of The Earth breaks it all down for us. Even when we come across recyclable plastics, only 9% of all plastic waste has ever been recycled.
You can start cutting down on your plastic waste in a few simple steps. Using reusable bags on grocery shopping, ditching single-use plastics such as straws (go strawless!), drinking water from the tap instead of bottled water and using reusable coffee cups are some of the ways.
Building designer tip: Use natural insulation instead such as hemp, wood fibre or sheep’s wool insulation. Here are some examples of natural insulation materials and suppliers.
Level up this tip: Get involved in a local beach clean-up. Keep Britain Tidy has various activities that encourage families to help out.
5. Go green and be healthier by taking part in Meat-Free Mondays
The conversation met with the most resistance when I speak about sustainability is meat consumption and eating less meat. I suppose there is a labelling issue with being a vegan or a vegetarian for some people. Well, be a flexitarian. A flexitarian is someone who chooses to be flexible with their lifestyle choices around food. Being flexitarian has kept me healthier, saved me money on my weekly shop and opened my mind to many tasty alternatives.
The idea is to reduce our meat consumption. By doing that, we cut the most significant contributor of greenhouse gases, even more than all cars, planes and other forms of transport put together. If you still need more convincing, the Reducetarian has 10 more reasons.
Building designer tip: Concrete is the ‘meat’ of the construction industry. Cement is the source of 8% of global CO2 emissions. Use cement blended with alternatives. We specify Ecocem where we must use concrete.
Level up this tip: Try a week of being vegetarian. Where to start? Here are some recipes from the BBC Good Food Guide and Great British Chefs to get you going.
Vote. Your voice matters.
The last piece of advice is not really a tip; it’s a call to your civic duty. One of the perks of living in a democracy is our voice matters. If enough of us take a stand on issues that we feel strongly about, the government has to take notice. The only way we can lobby against the corporations — 70% of emissions come from large corporations — is to put pressure on our leaders as citizens; choosing local parties and politicians who represent our views and our values. You can make a difference with your actions.
Start making a difference by educating yourself on everything sustainable. Read
Climate Justice: Hope, Resilience, and the Fight for a Sustainable Future by Mary Robinson and Cradle to Cradle: Remaking The Way We Make Things