Environmentalists get stereotyped a lot — either as stinky hippies on the one end, or eco-snobs on the other. Of course, most of us fall somewhere in the middle, like most people. We wanna live well and happily — on limited funds.
And maybe because of these financially trying times, living the good green life on a budget seems to be the topic du jour on all the enviro-blogs. Read them, and you’ll get tips on everything from paying for just half a melon at Whole Foods to cooking pasta more efficiently:
Broke? 20 Fun Things to Do Without Spending a Dime. EcoSalon’s Sarah Irani highlights the usual hiking and stargazing type stuff — but expands the list to turn your attention to guerrilla gardening to urban foraging.
FREE museum admission nationwide first weekend of each month in 2009. SchizoFrenetic’s Zak points out that Bank of America card holders can enjoy free museum entry on the first weekend of every month this year. Of course, Zak wonders: “is this really a necessary incentive given they scooped up bailout money?” That I don’t know — but the free admission’s a done deal, so take advantage of it!
Easy Peasy Tip: Use less Pasta-Water! Tiny Choices links to a New York Times article that shows you can cook pasta with a lot less water — and save a lot of energy — and save money on your energy bills. I’m guessing the water will start boiling a lot faster too, for impatient environmentalists!
Half is sometimes better at Whole Foods. Lori Johnston at MNN, a website that I also write for, reveals how Whole Foods customers can save a lot of money by taking advantage of Whole Foods’ customer service policies. “Feel free to ask the produce department to cut your cantaloupe in half when you know a whole one will go unused. The same requests are met in the bakery, cheese and meat departments to help customers cut costs.” Read and learn!
Digging in your pantry. Robin Shreeves, also at MNN, invites you to join the “eat what you’ve already got movement.” The cost savings are obvious –
Got your own eco-nomical tips? Share them in the comments!
Photo by _e.t
Update, 4/27/09: How to eat sustainably on a food stamp budget
Dandelion leaves are very nutritious and can be had for free. They are less bitter when picked before the plants put out flowers.
I would guess that communities with hebicide bans have more dandelions (and safer ones too).
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Comment by Martin — March 8, 2009 @ 10:53 am
If you like to cook, want to increase the amount of fruit/veg in your diet, and can’t always make it to the farmer’s market, join an organic-produce delivery service like spud and create a standing order. It seems a little pricey on the surface, but on the other hand, you’ll always have an abundance of healthful food around and you’ll be inclined to cook it (or snack on it) so it doesn’t go to waste. End result = using that money efficiently, as an investment in your health!
Comment by Jody — March 8, 2009 @ 12:34 pm
And to emphasize the “eco” part, you can choose how local or in-season you’d like your stuff to be. The delivery service (which only delivers to you on the day of the week the driver is scheduled to be in your zip code) is nice too: it reduces a lot of car trips.
Comment by Jody — March 8, 2009 @ 12:43 pm
Funny, I was just talking to someone else about buying a half pineapple at Whole Foods moments before reading this post! I usually don’t buy fresh pineapple because I know I won’t eat a whole one before it goes bad. Whole Foods is offering a decent service by letting you buy half of some items, especially for people living alone. I hate that Trader Joe’s requires you to buy x-pre-set-amount-of-something.
Comment by M — March 8, 2009 @ 3:36 pm
Don’t forget to bring your own bags to Whole Foods to save a few cents.
Grow your own fruits, vegetables, & herbs if you can.
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Comment by Asianmommy — March 9, 2009 @ 11:11 am