In another thread here, we are talking about if green is worth the cost. I personally don't think it's much more expensive to live green, I actually think that it saves money. I know that some green products cost more, but when you get down to it, it's like any other lifestyle - we all make choices that are either expensive or not.
In any case, I've been able to mostly afford green stuff I want (organic food, more sustainable clothing, etc) for years AND that's been mostly as a single mama (no child support) and I pay for private school for my son. I've been doing this on a writer's salary for years. I guess I always think if I can manage that it's harder for me to swallow when people say green living costs too much.
With that in mind here are some tips about how I actually afford the green things we want:
We buy less all the time. After spending the initial money for goods you also need to consider that buying more, more, more means you need a bigger house to store it in, more time to shop (and time is money to many of us), and things like moving cost more too. Having less allows you to focus on more important stuff to like green living and family time. We have one car, one TV, no cable, no magazine subscriptions, necessary but not excessive clothing, and we rarely buy junk like soda or chips. We make choices. AND we even sometimes make choices not based on necessity; just not a lot.
I realize that kids want time not stuff: Kids are happier when you spend more time, not money on them. Also I think it's important to discuss green issues with kids from early on. My son, like other kids does want totally obnoxious stuff at times, but often, if we talk about why it's a bad green choice he won't want it anymore.
We buy reusable and long lasting stuff: When we buy goods we rarely buy something with a short life span - i.e. plastic snack baggies or paper napkins. We buy reusable versions of stuff which means spending less in the long run. We haven't bought paper towels for years, we don't buy tons of snack sized food items or juice boxes. Reusable and bulk both saves money.
We make a lot of stuff - homemade cleaners, homemade ice pops in reusable molds, homemade sugar body scrubs, and all this stuff saves a lot of cash and is greener in the long run.
We eat mostly vegetarian and cook a lot - instead of meat or packaged foods we go with more homemade. Organic meat is expensive, so cutting it out for the most part saves a lot.
We buy used - clothing, books, toys, and so on. OR we borrow. Used keeps stuff out of landfills and is cheaper.
We save resources - by trying to use less energy and water we're being green and saving money.
In any case, I've been able to mostly afford green stuff I want (organic food, more sustainable clothing, etc) for years AND that's been mostly as a single mama (no child support) and I pay for private school for my son. I've been doing this on a writer's salary for years. I guess I always think if I can manage that it's harder for me to swallow when people say green living costs too much.
With that in mind here are some tips about how I actually afford the green things we want:
We buy less all the time. After spending the initial money for goods you also need to consider that buying more, more, more means you need a bigger house to store it in, more time to shop (and time is money to many of us), and things like moving cost more too. Having less allows you to focus on more important stuff to like green living and family time. We have one car, one TV, no cable, no magazine subscriptions, necessary but not excessive clothing, and we rarely buy junk like soda or chips. We make choices. AND we even sometimes make choices not based on necessity; just not a lot.
I realize that kids want time not stuff: Kids are happier when you spend more time, not money on them. Also I think it's important to discuss green issues with kids from early on. My son, like other kids does want totally obnoxious stuff at times, but often, if we talk about why it's a bad green choice he won't want it anymore.
We buy reusable and long lasting stuff: When we buy goods we rarely buy something with a short life span - i.e. plastic snack baggies or paper napkins. We buy reusable versions of stuff which means spending less in the long run. We haven't bought paper towels for years, we don't buy tons of snack sized food items or juice boxes. Reusable and bulk both saves money.
We make a lot of stuff - homemade cleaners, homemade ice pops in reusable molds, homemade sugar body scrubs, and all this stuff saves a lot of cash and is greener in the long run.
We eat mostly vegetarian and cook a lot - instead of meat or packaged foods we go with more homemade. Organic meat is expensive, so cutting it out for the most part saves a lot.
We buy used - clothing, books, toys, and so on. OR we borrow. Used keeps stuff out of landfills and is cheaper.
We save resources - by trying to use less energy and water we're being green and saving money.
By doing all of the above we can more easily afford the green goods and organic foods we actually want when we want them. I think green living gets a bad rap when it comes to cost, but really it's been a much less expensive lifestyle for us. I guess my one complaint would be that organic textiles and clothing cost more, but still, by saving in the other areas above I think that most families can afford it. It's all about choices.
How do you and/or your family afford green?
How do you and/or your family afford green?
