BUY LOCALLY

Buying locally, as well as being good for the local economy, it will save energy because products haven't traveled across the globe to get to you and you are supporting the local producers.

Shop at your local farmers' market (www.farmersmarkets.net). Though the offerings can sometimes be more expensive, you can generally count on a higher quality product—and the entire purchase price goes directly to the farmer. Buying any goods produced locally saves energy by reducing the fossil fuels needed to transport food and other items across the country and around the globe.

Buy products that come from farming and manufacture techniques that you approve of. For example, don't buy battery eggs if you can afford it. It's an appalling form of farming. Don't buy clothes that are manufactured in sweatshops across the globe. For more, check out the Ethical Consumer magazine.

Try growing your own fruit and vegetables. Allotments are very cheap, the food is far tastier, you get fresh air and exercise, and it's satisfying.

Try not to buy goods with excess packaging. You pay for what you throw away.

BUY PRODUCTS IN THE LARGEST SIZE YOU CAN USE; AVOID EXCESS PACKAGING

A family of four can save +- £1,000 a year in the supermarket by choosing large sizes instead of individual serving sizes. Remember,one tenth of your money is used to pay for packaging.

Small sizes use more packaging for each pound of product than larger sizes. So, if you buy large sizes, you save money, reduce waste, and help the environment. Here are a few examples, look for others the next time you shop.

- Buy cereal in a large box instead of in individual serving sizes.

- Buy juice in concentrates and use reuseable containers instead of single serving packages.

- Save money by buying bottled water in a large plastic jug instead of six packs of 16 ounce bottles. Reuse plastic water bottles.

- Buy large packages of sugar and flour.

- Avoid the small boxes of raisins and buy the larger box.

BUY PRODUCTS IN CONTAINERS THAT YOU KNOW YOU WILL BE ABLE TO RECYCLE

It is important to familiarise yourself with what types of containers and items can be recycled in your local recycling program.

Once you know what you can recycle, look for products that come in the containers that you know you will be able to recycle when the products are all used up. Examples are products in commonly recycled containers made from auminium, steel, #1 and #2 plastic, and glass. Check your local RECYCLING listings to see what types of containers/packaging you should look for in your community.

BUY REUSABLE AND LONG LASTING ITEMS

Stop buying disposable products.

Using cotton handkerchiefs instead of tissues, toothbrushes with replaceable heads, kitchen cloths instead of paper-towels, mooncups instead of tampons or sanitary towels, terry nappies instead of disposable nappies etc can all help slash the amount of waste going into your rubbish bin every week.

It is better to reuse materials than to recycle them. This applies to all sorts - glass, tins, paper, plastic, foil, clothes….even shoes.

Goods that are designed to last a long time are also cheaper in the long run than those that wear out quickly. A family can save considerably by buying reusable and long lasting products.

Use rechargeable batteries in toys, torches, radios.

Use a real camera instead of disposable ones.

Use washable plates, cups, and silverware for parties and picnics instead of disposable products. Good friends will not mind helping you clean up.

Use an electric razor or hand razor with replaceable blades instead of disposable razors.

Buy high quality/long life tyres. They cost less per mile traveled and reduce the problem of disposing of used tires.

Use a washable commuter mug for your morning coffee and eliminate a Styrofoam or plastic cup every day.

Bring your own bags to the market, either cloth ones or your old paper and plastic ones. When buying only an item that will fit in your handbag, don't accept a plastic bag.

PAPER

Buy recycled paper whenever possible or look for paper with the FSC logo, which guarantees the paper comes from a sustainable source. Simply choosing 100 percent post- consumer recycled paper can save 5 pounds of carbon dioxide per ream.

Always use both sides of a piece of paper.

Recycle your old magazines and waste paper.

Send an e-card instead of a paper card.

Stick a "NO JUNK MAIL PLEASE" on your door and see much less junk through your letterbox.

MOBILE PHONES

Every time you upgrade your old mobile phone, why not take the old one to a mobile phone shop for recycling? This way you're saving on natural resources and reducing the carbon dioxide used to produce new phones.

Don't leave your phone charging all night:95% of the energy used by the UK's mobile phone chargers is wasted energy? Only 5% is actually used to charge phones, the rest is used when the charger is plugged into the wall but not switched off at the socket.

CDs

CDs are made from non-renewable plastics that usually end up in landfills. Send your CDs to one of the recycling firms that re-uses CDs and turn them into something else.

Packaging on CDs is wasteful - don't go for the CDs in long boxes, just buy CDs with jewel cases.

Sell your old music and buy second hand CDs and shop online to save resources.

Buy and download your music from the internet