Maddison's Musings

Listen up bitches the planet is dying and it's all our fault. Humans are the the worst, but don't despair!! There are still ways we can try and help the environment. Seeing as we only have 12 years until the effects of climate change are irreversible, (read more about that HERE) we better step the fuck up.

Also, before we get started I want to let you know that none of this is sponsored in any way, and I'm not even using affiliate links. I really just want to showcase things that work for me and items that I personally use!

Now, I'm not saying that you have to go straight up vegan right off the bat, but even having one day a week where you don't eat meat is super beneficial! I've been trying to eat less meat, and it's not that bad so far. Although I still have yet to find a tofu recipe I actually like, I have found a few staple vegan/vegetarian meals that I absolutely love. My all time favorite recipe that I've tried is this Simple Veggie Curry by Tasty. Not only is it super simple, but it's delicious as well. Another favorite vegetarian recipe I've been loving is my Quick and Easy Vegetarian Chili that you can just throw in the slow cooker and enjoy a cheap af but tasty meal. There's so many great meals out there that don't require meat, and they're pretty delicious. See why this is the biggest thing you can do to reduce your environmental impact HERE.


I found out about these back when school started this last semester, and I absolutely love them. Not only do you feel good knowing that you're using less plastic, but they're so fucking cute. I bought THESE two mini snack sized bags on Etsy for just under $10, and I also found a set of three London themed bags on Etsy as well for around $15. I've been using them for about a month or two and they work so well. I was really surprised when they held up to being water resistant on the inside, as when I wash them out, I'll fill the inside with water and it doesn't soak through. I have no idea how it works, but I love it. I think it's definitely worth the investment.

When I started trying to become more environmentally friendly, I felt so bad about how I would clean up my cat's litter box. I would clean it out and put the waste in a full sized plastic grocery bag. Not anymore! I bought a pack of THESE eco-friendly pet waste bags back in July, and I'm still not out yet. They're great because the handles tie together easily to close up the bag. No messes here.

Not only are bamboo toothbrushes cute, but they're fully biodegradable! I bought THIS pack back in July and my brothers even started to use them. Thankfully for everyone, each brush is numbered 1-4, so everyone knows which brush is theirs.

This is such an easy hack because not only are you saving money when you don't buy plastic water bottles, but it's also so much more convenient to have a reusable one. If you have a water filter, one of those fancy bottles that keep your drinks warm or cold for like 12+ hours are great. I got one at my campus bookstore nearly two years ago, and it still works great. It's definitely worth the price (I think mine was around $30 when I got it, but I still use it every single day) in my opinion. If you don't want to shell out the money on a fancy water bottle, any reusable bottle is great. Also, if you don't have a water filtration system, or if you're travelling and don't know if you'll have access to filtered water, I bought THIS Brita water bottle before I went to California last summer, and I loved it. I used it the whole time I was in California and then I used it the next month when I visited family in Seattle.

This is something I only started doing once I got to college and realized that I didn't want to buy new notebooks each semester when they were hardly full. Not only does it save money, but it also can save the environment. I go more into detail on how I reuse my notebooks in my back to school post HERE.

Similarly to using reusable shopping bags, reusable produce bags help cut down on all the plastic that ends up in landfills. More information can be found in this blog post by "Treading My Own Path" HERE.

Products that are local didn't have to travel too far to get to you which means that they didn't use as much gas/fuel, thus making them greener. Plus, I love farmers markets. They're just so much fun and they have a magical energy to them. Read THIS post about what happens when you shop local by Independent We Stand.

Gardening is fun, and if you can keep a plant alive that grows food, then who wouldn't want to do that? Plus, growing plants help bring oxygen back into the atmosphere, which is important if you want to be able to breathe and fight off pollution. Read THIS blog post by The Green City for more information on why gardening is important.

The less cars on the road the better. I know this isn't an option for a lot of people, especially if you live in a suburban neighborhood, but if you live in a city with good public transportation options, or you can carpool to school/work/an event with someone, then try it out. I know I definitely can't use this option, since I live in a suburban neighborhood, have to commute to school, and there isn't any public transportation around me, but I know that once I live in a big city like London, New York, or Seattle, I'm going to try my hardest to use public transport (plus it means no driving for me, which is great because I hate driving lol). You can read THIS article by the National Transit Express on nine benefits of public transport.

Keep things out of landfills and instead fill the land with nutrients (do you like what I did there please say yes I thought it was clever). Check out THIS HuffPost article about composting and why we should try it.

These are just a few simple starter tips to becoming more environmentally friendly, and definitely not an extensive list, but a start is a start. Let me know in the comments below if you have any eco-friendly tips, and/or if you already do some of the things mentioned in this post!