September 15 - 21 is National Pollution Prevention Week in the USA. The theme this year is "Where Sustainable Practices Begin".

While recycling is great, this year's theme reminds us of the 3R's of a greener lifestyle, which are in order of importance:

Reduce
Reuse
Recycle

Reduce - by not giving into hyperconsumption, we don't use up resources, whatever they might be; it's the greenest choice of all. This could be not buying a gadget we don't really need or turning off a light that doesn't need to be on.

Reuse - this includes activities such as reusing the plastic bags we do end up with or repurposing items; turning something that's no longer useful in its current state into something that is.

Recycle - for items that we can't reuse, to give them to another organization so more of the same sorts of products can be made. While recycling does consume resources, there are huge energy savings.

reminds us that preventing pollution is at the heart of sustainability. It's great to recycle and treat waste, but preventing pollution in the first place saves money and protects the environment.

Each state in the USA will have special activities throughout the week, so try a search on Google using these terms:

National Pollution Prevention Week (state)

... where (state) is the name of your home state.

While many of us are already trying to do our bit, National Pollution Prevention Week gives us a good excuse to try and do a little more; perhaps learn a new sustainability skill, get your kids more involved with fun activities, or to make an effort to switch someone else onto "going green". If you're stuck for ideas, peruse the article categories on GreenLivingTips.com - with over 250 articles containing tips, you're sure to find something new you can try!

Have a great week!

Related:

Reuse vs. Recycle