There’s no doubt that awareness of the problems posed by global warming and pollution is on the rise. If you’re keen to lower your carbon footprint and be kinder to the planet, keep reading.

In its recent ‘Socially Responsible Me’ eBook, environmental and safety product supplier Glasdon offered simple but effective steps you can take to be more eco-friendly. Here are some of its suggestions.

Be less wasteful at home

One of the points uk.glasdon.com raised was the importance of keeping waste in the home to a minimum. For example, when you’re doing household shopping, make sure you only buy the food you need. Also, if you have leftovers after a meal, freeze them if you can rather than tipping them into the bin.

You can lower your energy usage by turning down your thermostat and adding an extra clothing layer to keep you toasty during the winter and get into the habit of switching appliances and lights off when they’re not in use. Another eco-friendly tip is to dry clothes, towels and sheets on the line outside rather than in the tumble dryer whenever the weather allows.

Take simple steps at work

There are lots of actions you can take at work to boost your green credentials. For example, if you can, why not go paperless in your office? As digital communications and technology continue to advance, the need for printing paper documents is reducing – and by getting out of the routine of automatically creating hard copies of documents, you can significantly reduce your waste.

Make sure you recycle where you can too, and it may help to carry out a waste audit to see which resources you can use less of.

Take care in the community

Whether you’re heading on a family day trip or going shopping, it helps to be mindful of the environment when you’re out and about in the community. For example, instead of discarding waste in regular bins, make sure you use recycling bins whenever appropriate. There are more and more of these containers available and you can find them on the street, in supermarket car parks and in a range of other locations.

If you don’t already have one, think about getting a reusable drinks bottle or cup for when you want refreshment on the go. This will mean you don’t have to rely on single-use cups that are bad news for the planet. Also, instead of filling up on shop-bought, plastic-wrapped salads, sandwiches and other snacks, try to plan ahead and make your own at home in advance.

By taking simple but effective measures like these, you can significantly reduce the harm you do to the environment.