Action Ideas
BE WATER WISE (AND SAVE GRIZZLY BEARS AND WHOOPING CRANES)
Conserving water helps prolong the lifespan of lakes and rivers that are crucial to the health of ecosystems around the world. Just turning off the faucet when you brush your teeth can save five gallons of water a day! Use less water when you flush by placing containers full of water in your toilet tank. Install low water shower heads and limit your showers to five minutes. Install a rain barrel and use the collected water for your flowers and garden.
DON’T BUY IVORY, CORAL, OR ANYTHING MADE FROM ENDANGERED SPECIES (AND SAVE ELEPHANTS, RHINOS AND SHARKS)
End the trade in illegal jewelry and products made from wild animals, like ivory, coral, rhino horn and shark fin. More than 35,000 African Elephants were killed last year for their ivory, and only three (!) Southern White Rhinos remain in the world.
REPLACE INCANDESCENT LIGHT BULBS WITH COMPACT FLUORESCENT BULBS (AND SAVE WILD SALMON)
CFLs last 10x longer, use up to 75% less energy, and save you money on your electric bill. According to Energy Star, if each household in the U.S. replaced just one incandescent bulb with a CFL bulb, the country could eliminate greenhouse gas emissions equal to 800,000 cars, reducing wildlife impacts like acid rain and ocean acidification.
USE REFILLABLE WATER BOTTLES & FILTERED TAP WATER (AND SAVE WHALES AND DOLPHINS)
Every year, over 17 million barrels of oil are used to make disposable plastic bottles, and more than 40 billion of those end up in landfills, taking hundreds of years to decompose. A lot of bottled water sold in stores is nothing more than filtered tap water that is often rerouted from its sources, destroying wetlands and rivers in the process.
DITCH THE DISPOSABLE LIFESTYLE – REUSE AND RECYCLE (AND SAVE SEALS AND SEA LIONS)
Stop wasting money on petroleum-based items for lunch (food containers, bags, utensils, cups, plates, etc.), which can add up to 67 pounds of garbage per person a year! Go reusable and recycle whenever possible. More than 180 species of animals have been documented to ingest plastic debris, including birds, fish, turtles and marine mammals.
EAT LESS MEAT (AND SAVE BONOBOS AND GIANT PANDAS)
Farm animals emit methane, a potent greenhouse gas that contributes to global warming. Raising animals for food also requires much more land and water than growing food crops. Every time you eat a plant-based meal vs. an animal-based one, you save about 280 gallons of water and protect 12 to 50 square feet of land from deforestation, overgrazing, and pesticide and fertilizer pollution.
USE REUSABLE BAGS (AND SAVE SEA TURTLES)
A plastic bag can take 15 to 1,000 years to break down. One million birds, 100,000 turtles, and many other sea animals die each year from eating plastic or after becoming tangled in plastic waste.
CHOOSE PRODUCTS WITHOUT PALM OIL (AND SAVE ORANGUTANS)
Read ingredients labels and don’t buy products if they contain palm oil. In the last two decades, the effects of deforestation to convert land to palm oil production has killed over 50,000 orangutans and countless other species.
EAT LOCALLY GROWN FOOD OR GROW YOUR OWN (AND SAVE FARMS AND HEIRLOOM FOODS)
The average meal travels 1500 miles to get to your plate. Reduce fuel use, air pollution and greenhouse gases by eating local and supports farmers and businesses in your own community. Growing your own food, especially heirloom varieties, helps preserve biodiversity.
TRIM DOWN TRASH, COMPOST YOUR GARBAGE & DON’T LITTER (AND SAVE STEELHEAD TROUT AND PLOVERS)
Reduce your family’s throwaway habits. Over 60% of solid household waste is fit for the compost pile, heap or bin. Use compost for your garden. The less waste headed to landfills means less chance that it is subsidizing the diets of scavengers and opportunistic predators like crows, bears, coyotes and seagulls and contributing to the decline of threatened and endangered species. Don’t leave out trash. Participate in beach or waterway clean ups to help stop the flow of trash into rivers and the ocean.
DON’T EAT FROG LEGS (AND SAVE LEOPARD FROGS AND GARTER SNAKES)
Found on every continent except Antarctica, frogs are a keystone species that keep the ecosystem in balance. While they are vulnerable to climate change and environmental pollutants, frog’s biggest threat is human. We are eating them to death – over 1 billion each year according to researchers – and the majority of those are wild. Farm-raised frogs are no better, spreading infectious diseases and unleashing alien species like bullfrogs into environments with no natural predators, helping destroy wild populations and other native species.
REDUCE FERTILIZER & HOUSEHOLD CHEMICAL USE (AND SAVE CLAMS, MUSSELS AND OYSTERS)
Anything that goes into the soil or down the drain eventually makes its way into our oceans and rivers. Fertilizers (including manure) and household chemicals can cause harmful algae blooms that disrupt the ocean's natural balance. For example, run-off from nearby farms and fields flows into the Mississippi River and causes a large, annual dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico with so little oxygen that sea life cannot survive there. Keep our oceans and waterways healthy by reducing your family’s chemical use inside and out. Better yet, find natural alternatives and grow plants suited to local conditions so you don’t need chemicals for them to grow.
POWER DOWN (AND SAVE OUR AIR)
The U.S. consumes more than 4.5x the amount of energy per capita than the world average. Oil and gas emissions from wells, tanks and pipelines are a threat to the air we breathe. Making little changes in the way we live can go a long way to reducing energy use, carbon emissions, and preserving wildlife habitats. Try drying laundry on a clothesline or rack instead of in the dryer. Walk, bike, take the bus, or carpool to work or school. Turn off lights when you don’t need them.
CHOOSE SUSTAINABLE SEAFOOD (AND SAVE BLUEFIN TUNA)
Scientists estimate up to 90% of the large predatory fish that end up on our dinner plates have disappeared since humans began commercial fishing. Marine animals are also caught and sold for aquariums and as souvenirs. Make ocean-friendly choices by downloading a sustainable seafood guide like this one. www.seafoodwatch.org/seafood-recommendations/consumer-guides
TAKE JUST ONE PAPER NAPKIN OR USE CLOTH NAPKINS (AND SAVE TREES)
The U.S. alone uses 160 billion paper napkins annually, contributing to the destruction of 34 million trees per year. Choose organic cotton, hemp or linen napkins instead, use them until they are dirty, then throw them in the to wash with the rest of your laundry.
KEEP CATS INDOORS (AND SAVE MEADOWLARKS AND SANDPIPERS)
Domestic cats are born with a natural hunting instinct. One of the top threats to the global ecosystem, cats have contributed to the extinction of over 33 species and are recognized as one of the world’s worst non-native invasive species. In the U.S. alone, cats kill over 2.4 million birds every year. Birds who build their nests on the ground and baby birds are especially at risk. Keeping your cat inside is not only safer for them, but can give them a longer, healthier life.
DON’T RELEASE BALLOONS INTO THE SKY (AND SAVE BIGHORN SHEEP AND EAGLES)
Balloons and balloon pieces found on beaches have seen a 3x increase in the last decade. They cause harm to both marine species like dolphins, whales and turtles as well as land mammals like cows, sheep and birds. Ingested balloons can block the digestive tract and starve animals to death, and animals can also become tangled in balloon strings making them unable to move or eat. Balloons travel long distances and can pollute even the remotest areas and take so long to break down that their litter will be around for a long time.
MAKE YOUR WINDOWS BIRD-FRIENDLY (AND SAVE SPARROWS AND HUMMINGBIRDS)
Over one million birds die from window strikes in the U.S. each year. Prevent collisions by painting the outside of your windows with a pattern or artwork using tempera paint or soap, or use decals, stickers, or special bird tape. Install shades, curtains, or shutters to cover windows and close lights at night to block reflections and to help birds see better. This is especially important if you live in a condo or apartment high-rise apartment building.
PLANT MILKWEED AND OTHER NATIVE SPECIES (AND SAVE MONARCH BUTTERFLIES AND HONEYBEES)
Grassland destruction, commercial agriculture, pesticides, and even conventional gardening have made certain wildflowers like milkweed increasingly scarce. Without milkweed monarch butterflies can’t survive, and their populations in North America have declined over 90% in the last twenty years. Planting milkweed and other native plant species is key to getting monarch and honeybee populations back on track.
DON’T KILL GROUND SQUIRRELS (AND SAVE BURROWING OWLS AND TIGER SALAMANDERS)
A keystone species of the American West, ground squirrels are the food that predators like golden eagles, coyotes, badgers, and rattlesnakes feed on, and the extensive tunnel systems they dig provide shelter for all kinds of animals from burrowing owls to frogs and salamanders. Burrowing owl populations in particular have plummeted because ground squirrel numbers have decreased due to development.
BE PET STORE SAVVY & DON’T RELEASE PETS TO THE WILD (AND SAVE THE FLORIDA PANTHER AND WOOD STORK)
Skip the pet store and adopt from a local rescue organization. Don’t support the pet trade of any wild animals. If you do buy from a pet store, make sure your animal is captive bred, and never release pets to the wild. Snakes, frogs, fish, lizards, and others that don't belong can crowd out the local animals and disrupt the ecosystem, like the Burmese Python is doing in the Florida Everglades. Return your pet to the pet shop for resale or trade. Better yet, give it to a friend, or donate it to a public institution, such as a school, nursing home or hospital.
START A SCHOOL OR HOME AQUAPONICS SYSTEM (AND SAVE A RIVER)
Counteract the effects of deforestation, water waste and pollution by using an aquaponic system to grow food. Aquaponics combines raising fish with the soil-less growing of plants. The fish waste provides organic food for the plants and the plants naturally filter the water for the fish. An aquaponic system uses about 1/10 of the water used to grow vegetables in the ground. Find out more information about how to bring aquaponics to your school by clicking here.
DON’T USE POISON TO KILL RODENTS (AND SAVE FOXES, HAWKS, AND MORE)
Use traps instead. Poison not only kills rodents, but any animal that may come into contact with them, especially mammals and birds that are their natural predators. In California, rodent poison has been found in 78% of mountain lions, 84% of San Joaquin kit foxes, and in San Diego County, 92% of raptors.
MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD. VOTE. (AND SAVE THE PLANET)
Now more than ever, it is important to back candidates, officials and policies that promote conservation and support the issues you care about. You are never too young to make your voice heard, but if you are too young to vote, get your parents out to the polls.
LEARN MORE AND SHARE YOUR KNOWLEDGE (AND SAVE_______?)
Research endangered species and pick at least one to protect. Then let everyone know how they can help. Together, we can do great things!