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Here’s some good news as the holidays end: Many New Year’s resolutions people have already made — eating healthy, saving money, getting organized — double as climate-friendly habits.
Whether you want to spend less, declutter or eat right, here are some choices that can make a difference for you and the climate. Bonus: They’re all low-effort and low-cost.
If you want to save money, start at home. Electronics and appliances can continue to draw power even when turned off. You can cut down on phantom energy use by unplugging items you’re not using, such as chargers and entertainment systems or using power strips with on-off switches.
Adjusting your thermostat a few degrees when you’re not home can reduce energy use and save money. The U.S. Department of Energy says adjusting your thermostat 7-10 degrees Fahrenheit for eight hours a day can save up to 10% per year on heating and cooling.
Another simple tip: Washing your clothes on a cold setting and air-drying them when possible can help reduce energy use and utility costs. Matthew Gonzales, vice president of the National Hispanic Energy Council, which advocates for affordable energy for communities of color, said heating water is the single largest energy consumer in laundry, and clothes dryers are among the most energy-guzzling home appliances. This can also reduce wear and tear of clothes.
Gonzales said other simple swaps include switching to LED bulbs, sealing worn-out windows and replacing dirty air filters so heating and cooling systems run more efficiently. They also suggested using natural light during the day, strategically opening or closing curtains and windows to combat the heat, and turning off lights when not needed.
Savings vary widely depending on where a person lives, how old their home is and local energy prices. But he said families in high-cost states could see meaningful savings from small changes over time.
“Don’t let perfect be the enemy of good,” Gonzales said.
Reducing food waste can benefit your wallet, your diet, and the environment, too.
According to the Environmental Protection Agency, food waste costs American consumers $728 each year, and it produces annual planet-warming greenhouse gases equivalent to 42 coal-fired power plants.
Cookbook author Anne-Marie Bonneau said one way to get started is to use whatever you have in your pantry before going to the grocery store.
“If you have fat and an onion and some random vegetables — or even a random vegetable or some leftover cooked protein or grain — that’ll help you make a soup,” Bonneau said. “If you’ve cleaned up so much food that you don’t even have an onion and fat left, it’s probably time to go shopping.”
She also recommends preserving food before it spoils, including fermenting vegetables, which, she says, is easier than it sounds. For example, you can make sauerkraut with just cabbage, salt, and a glass jar. You can also make sauces from seasonal vegetables like tomatoes and freeze them for use later in the year.
Using a multicooker to make things like applesauce, yogurt, stew, and beans can also help with meal preparation while reducing energy use.
As a general rule, eating less ultra-processed foods — such as sugary cereals, hot dogs, chicken nuggets and TV dinners — can benefit both your health and the environment, Bonneau said. Those foods are often heavily packaged in plastic, which can get into the food and contribute to pollution.
“You’ll improve your diet, you’ll reduce your waste and your food will be less exposed to plastic,” she said.
Getting organized doesn’t have to mean buying storage bins or throwing things out. Often, it starts with using things you already have.
Spending even an hour organizing your space, detecting duplicates and rediscovering forgotten items will help people understand what they really use, reducing impulsive spending, said Katrina Caspelich, communications director for Remake, an advocacy group for human rights and climate justice in fashion.
She said the “one-in, one-out” rule – where you can only buy a new thing if it replaces an old thing – can be effective because it keeps wardrobes from growing and helps prevent clutter by encouraging more deliberate shopping.
Unsubscribing from brand emails and sales alerts can also help. “Most impulse purchases are triggered by a notification, not a need,” Kaspelich said. Waiting 24 hours before buying something new often turns into a “must have” pass, he said.
For a more structured reset, you could try the no-buy challenge, holding off on new purchases for 30 or 90 days while reusing, repairing, swapping with friends, or, if you can’t commit to buying nothing, shopping secondhand instead of new. “The key is flexibility,” she said. “Framing it as an experiment rather than a strict rule makes it feel empowering rather than restrictive.”
Remake estimates that a person who participates in a 90-day challenge of not wearing new clothes can save approximately 3,900 liters of water, avoid approximately 300 kilograms of carbon dioxide emissions, and keep approximately 9 kilograms of clothing waste out of landfills, while saving an average of approximately $300 by stopping new purchases.
Zoom out and the scale becomes clear: According to the Environmental Protection Agency, Americans generated about 17 million tons of textile waste in 2018, most of it clothing.
For anyone overwhelmed with advice, the takeaway is simple: You don’t have to do everything, and you don’t have to do it perfectly. Starting with one habit you actually adopt can make a difference to your budget, your daily routine, and the climate.
The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from several private foundations. Solely responsible for all content. Find the standards for working with philanthropy on .org, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas.
This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without any modifications to the text.
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