The holidays are over and the New Year has just begun. Most of us start the New Year with good intentions of sticking to our ‘resolutions’, but few of us actually ever do. This year try making some simple, yet life changing New Year’s resolutions that will benefit you, your family and the environment. These simple changes in your daily routine continued throughout the year can make a difference. Below are 17 simple suggestions that are easy to do and can set you on the road to sustainable living. Better yet, some may even save money as well as helping the environment.

1. Reuse shopping bags, or better yet, get a durable bag to carry with you to the grocery store and on all your shopping trips.
2. Stop using hazardous household cleaning products: Household cleaning products contain a huge array of chemicals that are hazardous to you and the environment. Switch to green cleaning products which are just as effective and are comparable in cost.
3. Buy locally made and grown products. Support local agriculture and rural economies by shopping at your local farmers market if possible. To locate a farmers market or local grower near you, click here. As an added bonus, locally grown products usually require less packaging and eliminate the environmental costs of long-distance transport. The added bonus is that local fruits and vegetables are often fresher, higher in nutritional value (read the report here; Soil Quality from Long-term Organic Management Nearly Doubles Flavonoids in Organic Tomatoes ) and locally produced goods help support your own community.
4. Buy fewer disposable items. Look for long-lasting goods that won’t have to be replaced as often. You’ll reduce waste and save landfill space.
5. Compost leaves and garden trimmings. The compost will improve your garden soil, reduce fuel required to take your garden trimmings to the landfill and will reduce waste in the landfill.
6. Buy recycled products whenever possible. While you’re shopping with your reusable shopping bag, look for products with recycled content. Buying recycled closes the cycle by putting resources back into use.
7. If possible, find a carpool partner to share your daily commute. Carpooling helps reduce air pollution and traffic congestion. It could mean room for more trees if less land is needed for highways! If you live close enough to work, try biking or walking several days a week.
   
8. Be active! If one of your resolutions is to get more exercise, try doing your shopping and errands on foot as part of your exercise program. Walking will help keep automobile pollution down and, like carpooling, help ease traffic congestion. Rather than driving to the gym, get outside, enjoy the sunshine and get fit. If you live in an area that gets snow in the winter try snowshoeing or cross-country skiing. In the spring and summer try hiking, backpacking, gardening or learn to fly fish.
9. Feed and reward your dogs and cats with organic food. Don't forget your pets when switching to an organic lifestyle. Typical dog and cat 'off-the-shelf' cookie brands that you find at box stores are less expensive than organic treats since they use waste products from meat packing houses, expired oil by-products and other fillers.
   
10. Switch to environmentally friendly commercial laundry soaps.
11. Hang your laundry out to dry if the weather permits; unless you live in Bend, Oregon where it is against the law inside city limits to have a clothesline (a sad commentary to a city that boasts how environmentally friendly it is). In sunny weather, drying your laundry the old fashioned way: outdoors on a clothesline is better for the environment (you'll save energy by not using the dryer) and better for your clothes.
12. Make your own cleaners. Try using natural, home-made cleansers instead of chemical ones. Here are a few simple recipes: For an all-purpose cleanser, mix ½ cup vinegar in one quart of water (reduce water for hard jobs). Use it in a spray bottle. Instead of commercial fabric softener, add ¼ cup (or less) borax to the laundry wash cycle. To deodorize and soften laundry, add one cup of vinegar to the rinse cycle.
13. Say no to fast food and supermarkets and yes to organic and local produce. Locally grown organic food tastes better and you'll feel better for it. The production of organic food causes much less environmental damage than conventional agriculture. It comes without those pesky pesticides and the demand for organic food is growing at 40 per cent a year. Grub from your local farmers markets or grocers helps the local economy and also makes you feel part of the community.
14. Grow your own food. Have a small yard or no yard at all; no problem. You can grow an herb garden and fresh, organic lettuce even if you live in an apartment with nothing more than a small balcony! Visit our gardening section for tips on growing your own herbs and vegetables.
    
15. Take up Organic Gardening using no pesticides. Organic gardening is the perfect way to get fit, save money and grow something new from seed. Growing your own fruit, vegetables and plants in the garden is proven to help reduce stress and you will benefit from the increased wildlife from birds to bees to butterflies in your garden. Digging deep is good exercise and therapeutic at the same time. Start composting. It minimizes landfill waste and recycles it back into the earth. For more information on organic hardy gardening visit HardyGardening.com. To buy sustainably grown herbs, perennials and shrubs grown with organic methods, visit StargazerPerennials.com.
    
16. Recycle. A mature tree will produce just 14 newspapers. The energy saved by recycling one aluminum container will run a television for three hours. Recycling one glass bottle will save enough energy to light a 100-watt bulb for four hours.
17. Cut air-conditioning use by planting trees around your house. One estimate is that three mature trees around a house can cut air-conditioning needs by 10 to 50 percent. If 100 million trees were planted around homes and businesses, the nonprofit conservation group American Forests estimates, $4 billion would be saved in energy costs. Planting trees anywhere will also help remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, helping to offset the damage from burning fossil fuels.