Four Tiers of Eco Friendly Commitment

Tier 2:

Summon up your motivation! It gets harder from here on out
Go 70% vegan. Some people can handle going full vegan or vegetarian and if that's you, great, but be careful. Don't make any rash or hasty decisions here since either of these lifestyle choices, if poorly done, can seriously harm your health.
Halt all addictions. These include internet addiction (oof), sugar addiction, soda addiction, fast food addiction, caffeine addiction, drug addictions, etc. All that stuff wastes money and is in general very bad for the environment. Cigarette smoking and drinking seem like the worst in that respect given all the broken beer bottles and cigarette butts you see in public places. However, the worst addiction for the environment and everything else is probably toxic relationships. Disconnect from toxic friends, family, and partners. I know that sounds weird but if you're wasting so much energy on any toxic relationship you will not have time or energy for much else.
Invest in your mental health. Happy, mentally well people generally don't overconsume resources.
Develop frugal habits to conserve resources as much as possible. Reduce consumption by for instance turning off the lights, unplugging everything before you go to sleep, taking shorter showers, getting rid of your lawn in favor of either vegetables or some permaculture that doesn't require watering, and so on. There are so many different ways to reduce consumption I can't list them all here, but in general if it reduces a bill, it's a good idea. Here are as many examples as I could come up with: use only the minimum amount of electricity by keeping the thermostat low in winter and high in summer; don't fall for the power strip lie because those are energy vamps too so just unplug everything when you're done with it, learn to wash dishes with minimal water, don't leave the water running, adjust lawnmower blades higher so they don't chop off the grass too short and so your lawn is healthier & doesn't require as much maintenance, do only full loads of laundry, don't waste food, wash your car using rainwater when it rains, collect rainwater in buckets to water your garden with, put out potted plants beneath the open sky when it rains (they grow better that way btw), upcycle things as much as possible, buy very little.
Start going zero waste. Get into composting, recycling, donating, selling stuff on eBay, and even using things like Freecycle. Craigslist's "Free" section is also fantastic here - you can have stuff on the curb and gone within two days. Start upcycling things if you can. Get you a compost bin, donation box (or boxes), fabric scraps bag, a "to-upcycle" area, and some recycling bins. Start "zero waste upgrades" in your life, such as taking a packed lunch, packing a water bottle to go with you, using furoshiki instead of giftwrap, using beeswax wraps instead of plastic wrap, and DIYing things at home instead of buying them in wasteful packaging. It is very possible to overdo it here so take small steps that you can sustain over time.
Start getting your friends and family involved. Have potlucks, gardener's swap meets for cuttings and seeds, swap meets for trading your junk for better junk, have tree planting gatherings and #trashtag meets, have gardener's meets and caring-for-trees meets. Start having multi-family garage sales if you have stuff to get rid of. Whenever you go on a big shopping trip, invite your friends and family along. Discuss what you can do together to help the environment.
Stop burning things except candles and incense. No more grilling. No more bonfires. I HATE this one.
Start saving up for major eco-friendly investments. Things like attic insulation, solar panels, rain barrels, drip irrigation, garden land on the outskirts of town, and electric vehicles are good to save up for. BOY WILL THESE SAVE YOU MONEY IN THE LONG RUN. It also makes sense to have a savings fund for eco-friendly stuff that people haven't yet invented. If nothing else it can go to your savings if that doesn't pan out.

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