Here, at Grounded.com, we’re always highlighting how the Earth can nourish and heal us. Now, we’re switching things up and sharing our favorite ways to return the favor. Whether it’s Valentine’s Day, Earth Day or even your birthday, every day is an optimal day to love and respect this beautiful planet we all call home.

How do we show Mother Earth some love? Here are some small, but impactful, ways:

1. Start composting food waste. Rather than automatically toss unwanted food in the trash, why not return it back to nature in the form of compost? Doing so not only reduces the amount of garbage in landfills, but makes for more nutritious soil. So you’ll also indirectly help others grow food! If you have a yard, you can DIY - here are some tips for composting at home.

If maintaining a compost pile is not your thing, check to see if your town has a program. If it doesn’t, you could try a private pick-up service (like Black Earth Compost, which services parts of MA, RI and NH). Alternately, you may be able to drop your compost off at a local farm, possibly for free. Farmer’s markets can be great places to find takers for your food waste!

2. Ask yourself, “do I really need plastic baggies, straws and utensils when eating away from home? Consider instead packing lunches in containers you can wash numerous times and reuse. You may also want to invest in a few stainless steel straws and carry them, along with a set of silverware, in your purse or bag if you often eat take-out or quick-service food.

3. Ditch store-bought water in plastic bottles, and get a stainless steel or glass bottle that you can endlessly refill with filtered water. You could also reuse the plastic bottle numerous times, but plastic contains endocrine-disrupting BPA. Glass and stainless steel bottles are better longer-term options for your body, the planet, and eventually your wallet!

4. Keep grocery bags in your car and reuse them over and over, rather than just recycling them (more on how to recycle plastic bags below). Many stores now sell bags that are more durable, instead of providing the usual flimsy paper and plastic options. Not to mention, they’re often easier to carry and come in more colorful and playful designs.

5. Practice mindful (the best kind of) consumerism and support businesses that practice sustainable measures, such as recycling or use of compostable plates, bowls, cups, utensils, straws, etc. Such establishments generally pay more for compostable products, demonstrating that their priorities include sustaining environmental purity. When it comes to retail, buy items made with recycled or biodegradable materials - shoes, bags, etc. (Some of our recommended grounding shoe brands are known for this!).

Whenever you spend money, you’re casting a vote for how you want things done. Supporting businesses that demonstrate environmentally friendly practices helps create consumer demand for sustainability.

6. Take a plastic bag or even a garbage bag with you on your next beach or field walk and pick up trash along the way. You’d be surprised at how fast your bag fills! Then recycle what you can and dispose of the rest in a garbage can to help protect wildlife and the natural environment. Plus, isn’t it just a better vibe when you’re not surrounded by litter?

7. Recycle as much as you can. If you can’t recycle glass, plastic or aluminum bottles via a town program, perhaps your local supermarket collects them. Many supermarkets also collect plastic bags and films that you can’t put in your curbside bin.

8. Reuse or recycle your textiles - clothes, bedding, curtains, towels, etc. If they are gently used, donate them to a non-profit like The Salvation Army, Goodwill or the Epilepsy Foundation so they can be resold. If they are too torn, stained or worn to donate, tear what you can into rags and use them to clean your home or car. Learn more: how to find textile recycling near you.

9. While you’re at it, why not buy some of your clothing used via consignment or thrift stores? You never know what treasures you’ll find! In a similar vein, some cities now offer clothing rental subscription services for those who like keeping their wardrobe ultra fresh (and temporary).

10. Beautify your indoor and outdoor living space with flowers and greenery. Plant a tree or several trees if you have land on which to do so. Indoor plants help purify your air, giving you an appreciation for their role in nature. Flowers lift our senses and spirits, and (for the pensive) serve as reminders of how fleeting and beautiful life can be.

11. Plant a garden with flowers and veggies - it will attract pollinators while possibly furthering your appreciation for Earth’s nurturing qualities and ecosystem balance. Gardening with bare hands or feet is also an awesome opportunity to ground while communing with nature.

12. If you use pesticides/herbicides on your lawn or garden - STOP! Many people apply chemical treatments to their lawns simply because that’s what they grew up watching their parents do or “it’s just a part of lawn care.” It’s time to ask WHY? Dumping chemicals all over our lawns doesn’t have to, and shouldn’t, be the norm. Pesticides damage pollinators and other wildlife, and ultimately end up in our ground water. If an au natural lawn doesn’t resonate with your need to “keep up with the Jones’,” go with green, organic lawn care instead.

13. Same thing with tick and mosquito spraying of your lawn - go with the most organic, natural option you can secure.

14. Read sunscreen labels and avoid those with chemical ingredients you can’t pronounce - use mineral-based protection instead. Some sunscreens are known for damaging coral reefs and harming wildlife. Such is why Hawaii, in 2018, banned the use of certain sunscreen ingredients. And if such ingredients hurt animals, they can’t be good for you either, right? Check out Environmental Working Group’s Guide to safer sunscreens to find one right for you.

15. Same with household cleaners - buy or DIY as natural as possible. If your home has a septic system, chemical cleaners end up in leaching into your land. Not to mention, when you absorb toxic cleaning agents through your skin or breathe them in, you place yourself at greater risk of chronic illness and disease.

16. Use compostable, instead of plastic, bags when cleaning up after your pooch.

17. If you’re not vegan, support farmers and ranchers who use organic and humane production methods which are better for the land and water supply as well as the livestock and wildlife. Food produced without toxic shortcuts is usually more expensive, but consider the dollars you spend as votes cast for healthier and kinder production methods. Support environmental protection and animal welfare by choosing brands or producers who do what’s best for the environment. Farmers’ markets are a great place to ask about local production methods!

18. Reiki the Earth! Whether you’re level one or a master, if you practice reiki, you’ll know what I mean! If reiki is not in your wheelhouse, meditating on or even praying for the Earth’s healing can lead to a more holistic understanding of our relationship to this amazing planet. Or just keep it more tangible, and hug those trees!

19. Swim (without chemical sunscreen) in rivers, lakes and the ocean to develop a greater appreciation for Earth’s natural water sources and the need to keep them pristine. As a bonus, YOU’RE GROUNDED!

20. On a similar note, GROUND OUTDOORS as much as possible to cultivate same appreciation for Earth’s “heartbeat” which is an all-natural anti-inflammatory. Walk barefoot on the beach, sit in the grass, place your hands on a tree and soak up Earth’s healing energy. Spend more time in nature or “forest bathing” - not just to boost mental and physical health, but for spiritual connection too.

21. Walk, bike or use public transportation whenever you can to reduce your individual share of carbon monoxide emissions.

22. Cook with stainless steel or cast iron, NOT Teflon cookware - PFOAs, aka ”forever chemicals” end up in our environment, in part, due to Teflon. PFOAs and PFAS are toxic, and linked to the development of cancers as well as diminished immunity. It may take time to get used to stainless steel and you’ll need a good abrasive sponge!

23. If you eat fish, choose locally-caught fish from smaller fishing boats, not fish gained through bottom trawling, which destroys oceanic habitats, especially coral and sponge ecosystems. Trawling also contributes to plastic accumulation in our oceans.

24. Avoid buying and using plastic products, which take forever to degrade and often don’t get recycled. This can be difficult, especially if you have small children, so weigh needs carefully. With food and beverages, opt instead for products encased in glass, which is recyclable and BPA-free.

25. Love and respect your body with whole foods and beverages that are as close to nature as possible, clean air and healthy, natural skin products. You know the saying, “you can’t really love someone else until you love yourself?” Well, same goes for loving the environment. By keeping toxins out of your body, you attune with the need to do the same for the Earth.

As stewards of Earth, it’s up to us to preserve the integrity of this amazing planet that sustains us…with loving intentions.

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