What are your tips for being more environmentally friendly? Tell Unilever for a chance to win a £300 voucher!NOW CLOSED

[MichelleMumsnet]

Unilever have asked us to find out what Mumsnetters' tips are to make sure that your family is more environmentally friendly.

Here's what Unilever say, "At Unilever, we believe there has never been a better time to create a better future for our children; a world where everyone has enough food to eat and no child goes to bed hungry; where everybody can enjoy life today while protecting the planet for future generations.

"If we all work together to take small actions every day that make a real difference, we can build a world where everyone lives well and lives sustainably.

"We're committed to taking positive action on climate change within our business, but we also want to inspire our consumers to make those small changes that can make all the difference."

So, what positive habits have you got in to which help you be more environmentally friendly which you can pass on to other Mumsnetters? Maybe it's as simple as getting yourself and your DCs into the habit of switching off the lights as you leave the room? Are you a champion for only buying sustainably sourced products or managing down the food miles in your weekly shop? Perhaps you're now using reusable instead of disposable products, everything from batteries to razors to ink cartridges? Or maybe you've ditched the car in favour of cycling? Whatever your tips are, we'd love to hear them!

Everyone who posts their tips on the thread will be entered into a prize draw to win a £300 Love2Shop voucher!

Thanks and good luck,
MNHQ

Always switch lights off - hard getting DS to do this! Carry reusable bags when shopping, reuse products where you can, use up leftovers as much as possible, recycle, donate old items to charity, buy free range and sustainable sourced products, save water - don't run tap when brushing teeth, only boil the water you need, turn shower off when conditioner is soaking in and using shower gel, those are all I can think of for now but there are probably more!

Blimey Breadandwine, that's important news to know. Thanks for posting it.

We don't leave anything on standby. Recycle carefully, have shorter showers and make a point of walking rather than using the car.

Vegetarian so no meat reared for us. Reuse lots of packaging for junk modelling with the DCs instead of buying craft material. Probably the biggest one is have just switched jobs so can walk to work so not transport impact for me. Although I drive on my days off which is something I could probably cut down on.

Reusable nappies! We're on our second cloth bum now and they've saved us a fortune as well as being good for the environment. No more pooey rubbish dumps!

Turn off switches off the wall and try to save heat and energy where possible. I don't have a car so we walk and use public transport

We REDUCE, RE-USE, RECYCLE!!!

Reduce wasted energy - we turn off the computer rather than leaving on stand-by, turn off lights when leaving room, turn off taps while brushing teeth. Reduce wasted materials - we avoid a separate paper towel for each little spill, we use misprinted computer paper for scribbles/notes, etc. Additionally, we re-use & recycle carrier bags & packaging, and donate good old clothes/books/toys to charity.
We walk to the shops instead of taking the car - save on petrol, get some exercise, plus a little less carbon monoxide is released into the environment.
Soaking clothes in bleach over night? The following day, use the bleached water to sterilise wash basins and toilets, rather than pouring down the plug-hole. Etc., etc.

Every little bit helps ...

Buy less shit.

Have fewer DC.

Try not to dump mercury in the environment or cause massive deforestation in Indonesia.

Keep your promises to COP21.

One fun thing we're doing is trying to have something flowering in the garden every day of the year that bees like. We're nearly there but have a bit of a lull in November so we're open to suggestions of things that flower around then that bees like.

DOn't drive a car.
Buy locally and avoid the major corporations. Shop in charity shops and recycle what you can.

We used re usable nappies for a year, recycle any thing that we can. We turn off everything at the plugs, buy only what we eat and cycle/ walk when possible :)

I like your style, PlentyOfPubeGardens.

walk everywhere and plant lots of tree and plants.

The best thing I did was have solar panels fitted my bills are half what they used to be

telling my kids to stop leaving the tap on when they are brushing their teeth (a lot!!!)

Use Freecycle to get rid of things that you no longer need. One mans junk is another mans treasure

We became vegetarian which is supposed to be environmentally friendly. I avoid too much travel and we think about everything we buy and challenge whether we are being unduly influenced by advertising and what everyone else is doing. We wash in a sink rather than baths and showers every day and only do a load of washing when it is full. In the winter we wear many layers and use electric blankets. We share toys and clothes across our family. I also save bath water to fill the water butt in the summer and grow as many vegetables as I can.

turn off the tap whilst brushing teeth, always recycle plastics and tins where possible xx

We recycle as much as possible, and the children are involved in that.

I am always on at the DH and DDs to recycle and think of the enviroment in whatever they do: switch electical items off at the plug, don't use too much water, don't leave lights on etc. I also always insist on walking to school regardless of the weather (we just 'dress' according to the climate).

We recycle what we can and often donate to charity. I love buying from auctions, too. We switch lights off when we leave a room and have radiators reflectors behind all radiators.

Food waste is my biggest gripe, if we keep on demanding more food, the supermarkets will try to deliver cheaper, thus using cheaper food from abroad. I stick to a food list and plan our meals, making me able to afford to buy at our local farmers market.
This is better for our local economy, and less mileage on food been transported!!!

We recycle a lot and keep food wastage to a minimum by planning our shop and meals and batch cooking. We have also started walking more and leaving the car when we are going less than couple of miles. I have to also follow after the DCs to make sure they put their lights off.

cycling for shorter journeys rather than taking the car :)

DCs have water bottles at night (not my choice!) I put unused water in the kettle in the am to boil up for my coffee rather than chucking it down the sink. Either that or water the plants with it!