Steps to Lightening Up

It was because of lightweight backpacking that I adopted the mantra "lighter is better and less is more," into the rest of my life. And, interestingly, the steps in transitioning from conventional backpacking to lightweight backpacking offered me excellent parallels for trying to lead a lightweight lifestyle too.

To learn how to lighten your pack, read "How to Lighten Up: Seven Steps," from GoLite. To learn how you can lighten up your life, read on...

How to Live Lightly: Six Steps

Measure your impact. You need a baseline, something from which you can develop a plan and measure progress. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) offers several Carbon Calculators" to help you. If your children will be assigned a science project, this could be an informative and rewarding family activity.
Get educated. Save time and money by doing it right the first time, seeing where you can make the greatest gains for the least cost, financial or otherwise. Websites like FightGobalWarming.com and Treehugger.com are excellent resources; the Sierra Club has compiled an online library of tips in "The Green Life" section; and the TV show, "Living with Ed," can contains great ideas while also providing great entertainment.
Use less. Going light does not involve resorting to caveman standards of living, but it does require that we more frequently ask ourselves questions about what we "need." Lights in unoccupied rooms and offices can be turned off, electrical appliances can be unplugged when not in use, cars do not need to idle in the driveway for 20 minutes on winter mornings, and by adding or removing a layer of clothing you can use less energy to warm or cool your home. Carpool, take mass transit, or bike to where you need to go; personally, I find it incredibly rewarding to roll into my driveway on a Friday afternoon and see that my car has sat in the same place all week while I have biked over 100 miles. If you are willing to make significant changes, you might consider moving into a smaller house that is closer to work, shopping areas, and after-school activities, which gives you the opportunity to walk or bike instead of taking the car too. If you are still young and unsettled (like me), your goal might be to fit all of your worldly possessions in a car (or a backpack) -- you get bonus points if you do not have an SUV.
Maximize energy efficiency. Most of us need to commute to work, have a roof over our head, and eat -- but we do not need to have such a negative impact in the process. Fuel efficient vehicles, compact fluorescent light bulbs, high-efficiency washers and driers, and local and organic foods are some of the alternatives. These decisions are sometimes more expensive initially, but they have higher long-term payoffs, including lower energy and utility costs, and lower risk for bad diet-induced health issues. Even with high-efficiency items, it is difficult to eliminate your impact, so consider purchasing carbon offsets for the rest of your footprint through an organization like Native Energy or Carbon Fund.
Avoid single-use and disposable items. The checkout clerk might look at your funny, but really it is okay to use neither paper nor plastic -- instead, use your commute bag or a canvas sack (or sacks) that you keep in your car. Avoid using disposable plastic cups by carrying a Platypus 1-liter bottle with you -- it weighs .9 oz and collapses to the size of an energy bar; likewise, avoid throwaway plates and cutlery at informal affairs and cookouts. Recycle everything you can, and use recycled products whenever you can. Compost most of the rest. Read the newspaper online and cancel your print edition, especially if a tree's worth of newsprint frequently piles up in your driveway. When you check into a hotel, instead of taking a paper key holder, just remember your room number. All of these little things really do add up.
Continually assess how you can further reduce your impact. Your efforts to lighten up will encounter a rate of diminishing returns, and they will also begin bumping up against your preferences, standards, responsibilities, and resources. But there are always more thing you can do if you are committed, like passing on your wisdom or petitioning government and companies for greater change.