7 Ways In 7 Days: A simple, user friendly approach to making a positive difference to your carbon footprint and impact on Earth. Go natural and bring it back to neutral!—By Claire Bevilacqua, TransWorld SURF’s resident expert on environmental issues, women’s surfing, and the battle of the surfing sexes.

The following is as it was written on surf.transworld.net blog:

1. Recycle And Re-Use
Separating your trash is simple, it is all about re-training yourself and turning old patterns of irreversible pollution into taking responsibility for your consumption. The once doomed object now sustains another chance of life and use. Most packaging has a recycle symbol on it and can be born again at a recycle plant.

Think about all the different things you can do with a glass jar. For example, use it as a cup, vase, or food container. Bring back already old worn clothes, cut and stitch them to your heart’s content and always remember that fashion comes and goes but style lasts forever.

2. Power Off
You wouldn’t believe the power you can save by switching off unused plugs and turning off the lights when you leave a room. Leaving the city lights behind for the stars and trading a campfire for the stove can be challenging and rewarding. The options are unlimited when you rely on what nature provides.

Be conscious of the energy you demand from Mother Earth and replace expectation with appreciation for its origins. Sealing and insulating your house can significantly drop energy costs, it’s as easy as getting a fake pet door snake.

3. Trade
Trading is recession-proof. One person’s trash is another person’s treasure. Farmers markets are popping up more often every year offering local produce and good old fashioned bartering. Don’t have a garden? Plant and grow food at a friend’s house. Exercise outside such as paddleboarding, walking the dog, playing games outside with your family members, inventing a circuit routine at your local park rather then sweating it out at the gym with a bunch of stinky strangers.

Do instead of watch! It’s all about expanding your mind and trying new things—repetition can lead to boredom and lack of motivation, which then decreases results. What do you currently do with your spare time that could be replaced with something more substantial and environmentally beneficial?

4. Tell A Friend
Spread the love and the power of your words, this is what it all comes down to in the end. Listen and learn from your elders who have already lived through some massive world changes. Organic doesn’t have to be an expensive word, from your clothes to dairy to fruits and vegetables; this purest form of consumption enhances health and environmental benefits. Avoid antibiotic treated animals, pesticide and herbicide riddled foods and enjoy a better quality of life.

Spread the word of eating ethical local foods, support your surrounding community, make less of a carbon foot print by cutting back on transport costs and reap the health benefits from eating fresh produce.

5. Plant Or Nurture Something
Whether it’s for a hobby, relaxation, decoration, growing food, or just for fun, the whole world can benefit from this practice. If I’m in the tropics climbing a coconut tree for hydration or collecting grapes off a vine at a friends Perth city home to make my own wine. You can’t loose eating fresh from a living organism.

Plants encourage creativity and herbs contain more concentrated nutrition then any other foods. Also try to Grow plants that don’t need a lot of water to survive such as cactus. And always use mulch to retain moister around the roots and stalk.

6. Ride, Walk, Swim, Roll
A basic way to make life better, all you need is some energy. Get a workout and get around. Bike instead of drive, save money on gas, spend less time in traffic and pollute the air less. You can’t deny a sense of accomplishment after your mission is achieved at the end of the day and you have gone out of your way to make an enhancing change.

Riding, running or walking to the surf can help warm you up, appreciate your surroundings and bring back those feelings of stoke you had in your youth when you couldn’t wait to feel the oceans touch. As Sector 9 says, “Push more, drive less!”

7. Save The Water
Forget gold and oil, water is our most important and precious resource. Remember the term “If it’s yellow, it’s mellow. If it’s brown, flush it down.” You can’t hide the fact that toilets consume the most amount of water in the house. We’re taking and using more than is naturally produced by the Earth.

Here are a few ideas for easy water management—every drop counts!
•Use energy efficient washing machines and dishwashers.
•Take short showers or share one with a friend with a water saving showerhead.
•Consume less dairy and meat.
•Water plants only at dawn and sunset.
•Wear clothes more then once—this does not apply to underwear or socks.
•Fix leaking taps and make sure your plumbing system is working properly.
•Your average newspaper uses 300 liters—read ‘em online.