Think Global Act Local

Supporting small businesses - whether within your own hometown or not - means supporting community, families, local economy, connection, creativity, entrepreneurship, independence, lower taxes, the environment, and ourselves in a variety of ways.

“Think Globally, Act Locally" urges people to consider the health of the entire planet and to take action in their own communities and cities. Long before governments began enforcing environmental laws, individuals were coming together to protect habitats and the organisms that live within them. These efforts are referred to as grassroots efforts. They occur on a local level and are primarily run by volunteers and helpers.

"Think Globally, Act Locally" originally began at the grassroots level; however, it is now a global concept with high importance. It is not just volunteers who take the environment into consideration. It is corporations, government officials, education system, and local communities.”

Small businesses are crucial to the local economy - any local economy. They represent a long-term stability in the community, and offer more stable jobs to well-qualified, knowledgeable workers than do corporations who send jobs overseas while your neighbour faces a layoff. They pay a living wage to happy employees, thus creating a lower turnover rate and building relationships with long-term customers.

Locally-owned businesses are more likely to donate to community charities. They minimize urban sprawl. And they are more likely to support other locally-owned businesses. Since company owners live within the community, they care about the impact their business has on both the surrounding environment and society and conduct business is a responsible manner.

This interconnectedness means less pollution, less waste, and more involvement in local politics.

Small businesses care more about your experience than your Rand. They understand their livelihood relies on our trust and they work to earn it and our referrals. This means they won't sell us stuff we don't need and will provide us with honest feedback of a product.

Tips on how to THINK GLOBAL- ACT LOCAL

At home

Compost all of your organic materials/resources

Keep the soil covered at all times with either living vegetation or organic mulches

Use minimal to zero commercial fertilizer on your lawn, flower beds and garden

See if your local government has organic matter available

More is better when it comes to lawn species composition

Plant for shade areas, living fences, windbreaks and hedgerows

Install bird feeders, bird homes and bird baths, bat and butterfly houses and

Plant vegetation (especially flowering shrubs) that provide cover, nesting and brooding areas, and that produce seeds, nectar and other vegetative parts beneficial to wildlife and beneficial insects such as ladybugs and butterflies.

Control/prevent soil erosion and sedimentation during construction using conservation practices commonly known as Best Management Practices

Plant beneficial plants that serve different environmental functions

If you do irrigate, use rainwater, especially during the summer, apply water either late in day or early in the morning to reduce evaporation losses.

If you must buy an irrigation system, soaker hose and drip irrigation systems are the most efficient means to deliver any needed water to your flowers, prized trees, shrubs and vegetable gardens.

Use environmentally safe ways of controlling weeds and pests

If you install a septic tank system for waste disposal, make sure it is properly sized along with an adequate drain field in order to prevent problems.

Inside your home

Save water, maintain the plumbing in your home.

Dispose of/Recycle pet waste by burying it under mulch in your flower beds

Install a duel flush toilet or flush once a day

Recycle/properly dispose of all un-needed solvents, cleaners and other household chemicals

Recycle all food and drink containers, packaging, card-board and grocery bags

Limit the amount of recyclable materials you need to deal with in the first place by using non-disposable shopping bags and baskets and by selecting/purchasing products with minimal packaging

Retrofit your home with florescent and Light-Emitting Diode (LEDs) type lights as alternatives to conventional incandescent lights and energy consuming halogen lights

Conserve energy in your home by turning off lights when not needed

If you use cordless tools, kitchen gadgets, and other gizmos, then use those equipped with the newly marketed nickel-metal hydride (NiMH) rechargeable batteries instead of nickel-cadmium (Ni-Cad) batteries

Save draft print-outs from home computer work

In your community

Don’t litter, but when you see some, then “Pick it up, don’t just leave it there”

Recycle damaged/expired cell phones, computers, televisions, radios, power tools, used/empty computer printer ink cartridges

Purchase and use recycled paper, cardboard and other recycled products

Drive less by consolidating trips, carpooling, taking the bus, biking, walking or rollerblading

Choose high-mileage vehicles over gas guzzlers

Respect burn restrictions and laws. Open fires at the wrong time of the year, or the wrong time of day even, can result in catastrophic wildfires

At Play

Prevent trail damage by staying on recreation trails

Practice “leave no trace” camping

Don’t feed wild animals in the wild, e.g., in our national parks and wildlife refuges

Teach our children how to live lives that lessen the damaging effects of our daily lives on the earth’s life support systems

Organize and/or participate in workdays to clean-up community trails, roadsides, parks, lakes and other common areas

While walking the dog in public areas, carry plastic bags to collect their fecal waste, then dispose of it properly by burying it under mulch in your flower beds

Pick up litter whenever and wherever you find it and teach your children not to litter in the first place

Plant trees where ever possible and replant trees when lost due to storms, vehicle impacts, disease, termites

Establish sidewalk recycling in your community for all recyclable materials

Provide guidance regarding the feeding of wildlife

Promote green-space, natural corridors and wildlife sanctuaries; pedestrian and bike trails, and recreational facilities of all sorts

Promote screens to block noise, pollution and unsightly views from major highways

At Work

Encourage adoption of recycling programs in your work place

Encourage the purchasing of recycled paper and other recycled products for use in your work place.

Encourage the purchase and use of low emission vehicles such as hybrid cars and buses

Work to minimize the number and amount of paper copies distributed via emails, reports, and file copies

Encourage your office park owners/managers to incorporate Low Impact Development practices into the local landscape

#thinkglobalactlocal #ecoaudit #greenconsultant #greenyourlife