How to Help Preserve the Environment from Home
“For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction,” states Newton’s Third Law of Motion. The earth we journey and its beauty that we experience are ours to nourish and to heal, the same way the earth does to us. Our reach may seem limited from within our homes, but we still can take care of our environment now. Opening our eyes and hearts to the actions we take and their effects must be our first step.
According to an article by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), although people believe that implemented quarantines are helping heal the environment, these have actually caused a number of negative consequences to our surroundings. One example of the COVID-19's negative impact is the increase of the amount of non-recyclable waste due to the implementation of restrictive health measures to prevent the worsening of the pandemic. This led consumers to preferring online shopping, food take-away, and deliveries, and forced retailers to resume the use of single-use packaging.
We, at Nixie, believe that we can keep the environmental damages at bay. Here are a few things we can do as active advocates of saving and preserving our environment.
1. Prepare your own food at home.
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Being at home is the best time to level up your cooking skills! Preparing your own meals at home not only guarantees you the sanitation, nutrition, and taste of what you’ll eat, but can also help reduce the amount of waste that you may produce from consuming take-away and online-ordered food.
2. Support local businesses.
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Discover the diverse local products your homeland has to offer, especially those from small businesses. You’ll never know what treasures surround you until you taste and experience them for yourself! Through reducing the deliveries coming from overseas, we can minimize our carbon footprint and the greenhouse gases we produce. Plus, you can save up on the shipping fees!
3. Grow your own garden to promote biodiversity.
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If you can grow your own garden in a simulation game, why not make it a reality? Having your own garden not only provides you mood-boosts and quality food to consume, but also invites biodiversity. Let the little birds and friendly bugs into your garden to help them thrive this season. In return, they can help your garden bloom through eventual pollination.
4. Use less paper.
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Take advantage of your favorite devices in taking down notes, journaling, creating art, and other activities that traditionally require the use of paper. There are various apps that can help you with your needs! Through this, you can create less waste and keep things more accessible with just a few clicks.
5. Use biodegradable or zero-waste materials.
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Recycling during this crisis may assist in spreading the COVID-19 virus, and can risk your family’s health. So what else can we do to maintain an eco-friendly lifestyle? The key is to use only biodegradable materials and choosing to support small businesses that use this kind of packaging. There are now even wonderful zero-waste supplies that you can plant, such as pencils and papers.
If recycling is still something you would like to do, make sure that all the objects you will keep have been disinfected well.
6. Connect with co-advocates online.
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Discussions can further help boost awareness and push plans into actions. By connecting with co-advocates, creating impact can be more enjoyable and meaningful. Through these interactions, we’re not only cultivating environmental growth but a relational one as well. You can do this by joining social media groups, forums, and other digital discussions.
Ridge to Reef to City
You are invited to join us this August 22, 2020, at 3PM, for Ridge to Reef to City, a digital talk on the effects of the COVID-19 crisis to the environment. This collaboration with Project CURMA will be held via Zoom, and will be led by key speaker Mr. Toby Tamayo.
Let’s discuss further how we can still make changes that will result in the best preservation and improvement of our green Earth, despite the COVID-19 pandemic at hand.
You can register here: https://nixiemktg.typeform.com/to/jwzbLxqg
For any inquiries regarding the event, you can reach us through:
https://www.facebook.com/nixie.official/
https://www.instagram.com/nixie.official/
We hope to meet you there! Stay safe and healthy.
Sources:
https://www.grc.nasa.gov/www/k-12/airplane/newton3.html
https://unctad.org/en/pages/newsdetails.aspx?OriginalVersionID=2333
https://www.ottawariverkeeper.ca/10-ways-to-protect-the-environment-during-the-covid-19-pandemic/
https://www.aarp.org/health/healthy-living/info-2017/health-benefits-of-gardening-fd.html
https://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/gardens-gardening/your-garden/help-for-the-home-gardener/advice-tips-resources/visual-guides/adding-biodiversity-to-your-garden.aspx
https://www.fastweb.com/student-life/articles/eight-simple-ways-to-help-the-environment