Do This NOW

From the Dec. 2006 issue of Self magazine:

Help our planet by simply modifying a few basic habits. You'd be stupid not to take action when it's this easy! (Ok I added that part...)

What you can do AT HOME

Switch to compact fluorescent bulbs. They consume less energy and last 10 times longer. If every family changed five bulbs, it would be like taking 8 million cars off the road.

Unplug chargers. Devices that are "on" even when off waste energy and account for 10 percent of your electric bill. Put chargers on a power strip; turn it off when at work.

Buy energy-efficient appliances. A fridge with an Energy Star label uses 40 percent less power than an older model.

Purchase only recycled paper products. If every household replaced one roll of virgin toilet paper with one recycled post-consumer-waste roll, 424,000 trees would be saved.

Cancel catalogs and shop online. Asking to be taken off a mailing list takes less time than ordering something.

Stop drinking individual bottles of water. The annual amount of oil expended to produce plastic bottles sold in the United States is enough to fuel 100,000 cars for an entire year.

Make your next car a fuel-efficient one. A car that gets 40 miles per gallon emits half the CO2 (carbon dioxide) of one that gets 20 mpg.

Conserve in other small ways. Don't prerinse dishes in the dishwasher, and run the machine only when full.

What you can do IN YOUR COMMUNITY

Join Laurie David's Virtual March (she's comedian Larry David's wife, the dude from Curb Your Enthusiasm and Seinfeld!). Log on to StopGlobalWarming.org and pledge to help fight the problem.

Start a no-idling rule. You can cut down on emissions and save 10 percent on fuel if you turn off the ignition when running errands and picking up kids from school.

Ban leaf blowers. A blower generates as much emissions in one hour as driving a car 350 miles. Tell your neighbors. (WHO KNEW!?!)

Encourage others to use less packaging. Ask fellow parents at your child's school to buy in bulk and utilize reusable containers instead of individually wrapped snacks.

Recycle. Pass on your old issues of magazines to a friend or donate them to a library.

Vote GREEN. Support politicians who are committed to reducing carbon emissions. (Find out who is at LCV.org.)

Reuse bags. It takes as much petroleum to make 14 plastic bags as it does to drive a car 1 mile.

Launch a mug movement. Encourage coworkers to drink from reusable mugs rather than polystyrene cups.

Reward do-gooders. Talk to your boss about incentives for carpoolers and premium parking spaces for hybrid drivers.

EVERY LITTLE BIT COUNTS. These are easy easy EASY little things you can do every day that add up. Ya hear me knockin? LET ME IN! Seriously.