This simple guide is written to help you lead a life that is good for you, your community, and the earth. Most of these tips will cost you nothing to implement and many of them will save you money. They will help you to increase your health and happiness and that of the people, animals, and environment that you interact with.

But Beware! People will think you are awesome. You will be flooded with compliments, love, and appreciation. People will want to talk to you and be around you. Your life will have purpose and you will be passionate to be alive.

1. Grow your own food and eat a whole food plant based diet which means more veggies, fruits, grains, and nuts and less animal products. Try to buy organic and unpackaged food as well.

2. Start riding a bike, walking and using public transportation and minimize your time in cars.

3. Go local. Eat local, shop local, play local.

4. Reduce- Reuse- Recycle and in that order. Recycling comes last and is a very energy intensive process. Much of the trash we create takes 100’s of years to biodegrade so try to cut back on the amount you make. Compost your food waste, repair items, and find new uses for old stuff.

5. Share! Share your stuff and share others stuff. Be a part of the sharing economy.

6. Buy less stuff and purchase used items when you can. When thinking of purchasing something ask yourself if you really need it. This will leave you money to buy the things that you really need and want.

7. Conserve water and electricity. Just be conscious of your usage. There are 100’s of ways to cut back and you will start to see them if you pay attention.

8. Use products that are reusable and avoid using disposable items such as bags, take out containers, bottled water, straws, dishes, and paper towels. There is an earth friendly alternative to almost any disposable item.

9. Practice Positive consumerism. Buy from businesses who practice corporate social responsibly. Businesses have a responsibility to people and the planet as well as profit. Support responsible companies and boycott companies who only care about profit.

10. Simplify. The less you need the easier it is to be friendly to our earth. And the less money you need the more time you will have to do what you love doing.

11. Be conscious. When you make decisions take into account where things come from and how they were produced. Take responsibility for your own decisions. Find out where the things you use come from and if you don’t like what you find then seek out an alternative.

12. Live beyond yourself. How do your actions affect other humans, animals, and the earth? Make your decisions based on the wellbeing of everyone and everything, not just you.

13. Be good to others. Good creates good. Smiles create smiles. If you want to be happy just make others happy.

14. Set your priorities. Is eating healthy more important than getting drinks at a bar or eating out? If so spend your money on the former rather than the latter.

Start small. Choose what will be easiest for you and do that first. Your confidence will build over time and each step will become easier as you progress in living a life that is good for everyone involved. Over time you’ll find yourself happier and healthier and you will likely feel liberated from the things that were holding you back. Your positivity and health will likely rub off on others and you’ll find yourself creating a more vibrant world around you.

Live Happy. Live Healthy. Live Free. Live beyond yourself.

This article (14 Ways to Live an Awesome Earth Friendly Lifestyle!) is free and open source. You have permission to republish this article under a Creative Commons license with attribution to the author and TrueActivist.com.