I haven’t posted on my blog since December – this is the longest I have ever gone without writing a post. Even though it’s been difficult finding time to write something, it reminded me of how environmental conservation is an ongoing effort, not just once-a-month activity. Therefore, I have come up with a list of easy things to do to help protect the environment when you are crunched for time. 

Avoid the use of AI – Even though it is very useful, AI uses billions of tons of water to cool the data centers that are producing information. In 2025, AI companies used around 82.5 to 202 billion gallons of water. That’saround 136,363 Olympic sized swimming pools. During a time when water is growing scarce, it’s unaffordable to use so much water on such an unnecessary scale. 

Watch what brands you buy from – Fast fashion contributes to global warming in multiple detrimental ways – excessive carbon dioxide production, water pollution, microplastic creation, waste dumping and landfill use. According to the Environmental Innovations Initiative at the University of Pennsylvania, the fast fashion industry produces more carbon dioxide than airplane and shipping admissions when looked at together. Instead of fast fashion shopping, we can find other cheap options through thrift stores or saving up our money to buy something that doesn’t pollute the environment so much. 

Buy a tree/plant from your local plant nursery (Weston Nurseries, Spillane Nurseries) – Biodiversity is rapidly declining across the world, and this is a large contributing factor to the collapse of certain species and the warming of our planet. By purchasing and planting a tree, you are reducing your carbon footprint and supporting the biodiversity of your local ecosystems.  

Recycle your water bottle or bring a metal water bottle – Although it doesn’t seem like much, plastic pollution is something that has devastated ecosystems for generations. If we bring a metal bottle to lunch just two days in a row, that is already saving eight plastic bottles from polluting the earth a month. Now imagine if we did this every day, or even every month.  

It doesn’t matter if you have ample time or just a few free minutes a day – any small action can make a world of difference.  

Image: ITO, MIO. Field of flowers photo. 2019. Unsplash, https://unsplash.com/photos/field-of-flowers-tYNLwRxFsQc.