Did you participate in WWF’s EarthHour yesterday evening? The global movement to tackle climate change and animal loss is now in its 11th year. But this year, beyond the 60 minutes ‘lights out’ moment, WWF asked people to publicly make a promise to and for the planet.

To inspire you to make a promise too, I wanted to share some of my favorite tips for reducing waste and plastic use that can help contribute to long-lasting change for a greener future. We can always strive to be better and even just adopting one of these tips into your routine and consciousness is a great step in the right direction.

Awareness is a powerful first step in any practice. And becoming aware of what and how much waste and plastic we produce each day will help towards changing your habits. Begin to pay attention to any patterns that may result in unnecessary waste and think of ways that you might be able to cut back.

Reusable drink containers

If you buy a cup of coffee every day in a disposable cup, you are creating about 23 pounds of waste in just one year. Investing in a reusable coffee mug is the easiest way to cut down on your waste. Using a reusable glass or stainless steel water bottle instead of buying plastic water bottles is also a simple and worthy switch to make. And if you like to use straws with your beverages, keep reusable stainless steel straws with you at all times.

Cloth bags for grocery shopping

Keep your reusable cloth bags in the car or on your front door handle to help you remember to bring them to the store with you. A pack of mesh produce bags that you can purchase at your local grocery store is also a worthy investment.

Jars for bulk items+ Glass tupperware

In addition to reducing packaging waste, shopping in bulk also saves you money–you’ll only be paying for the food, not the packaging.

Here’s a list of kitchen switches you can make.

Begin with the items you dispose of most often and work your way through the list at your own pace:

  • Replace your daily disposable coffee mugs with a reusable mugs.
  • Replace your daily disposable water bottles with a reusable stainless steel or glass containers.
  • Invest in glass Tupperware
  • Replace disposable cutlery with a reusable Spork
  • Replace disposable produce bags with reusable Produce Bags
  • Replace plastic bags with reusable Tote bags plastic bags
  • Replace zip lock bags with Stasher Bags
  • Replace saran wrap with Bee’S Wrap
  • Replace disposable straws with a Reusable Straw
  • Replace disposable tissues with a reusable Handkerchief
  • Replace paper towels with reusable Paper Towels

Bathroom products

Bathroom products are often a big source of waste. Use recycled and unbleached toilet paper, recyclable bamboo toothbrushes and use cloth towels instead of paper towels or purchase the recycled and unbleached versions that can be composted with your food scraps. Buy soaps and shampoos in bulk and store in glass just like in the kitchen. Or make your own following my many DIY recipes.

Here’s more bathroom switches you can begin to make: