Here on Greenopolis, we all want to live our lives greener. I'm thrilled with all of the progress that we’ve made. But living green can be daunting sometimes, even for me!

That's why I made a list of ten really simple things that you can do today to help reduce your impact on the environment. You may already be doing some of these things daily. If so, great! If not, my hope is that you'll find these easy enough to start doing right away. Some of these changes may seem small, but if everyone did them together, they would add up to great change. The first five tips are below, with the next five coming next week. Good luck!

Try to trim down your shower time tomorrow morning. Don't feel like you have to be in and out in 90 seconds (though if you can do this, go for it!), but consider trimming your usual ten minute shower to six. Since the average shower head puts out 2.5 gallons per minute, this would equal a savings of 10 gallons of water PLUS the energy required to heat it.

Don't leave your computer on if you won't be using it for an extended period of time. Do turn your office computer off when you head home, and your home computer off when you head to bed. If you won't be using your computer for an hour or two, put it into a low power mode (such as sleep mode) to save some juice.

When you're driving, slower speeds equal better gas mileage. This can really make a big difference. Driving at 55 mph rather than 65 mph can improve your gas mileage by 15%. Also, don't accelerate quickly, as this uses gas very inefficiently. More gradual starts and slightly lower overall speeds can reduce your carbon footprint -- and stretch your gas dollar.

Turn your thermostat one or two degrees lower than you normally would. Can you really tell the difference between 66 and 68 F? Your heating bill certainly can. A one degree difference can yield a significant savings in electricity, oil, or whatever heating source you use. In the summer, turn the A/C one degree higher for the same results.

Take your recycling with you. You've just finished a refreshing water or juice, but you can't find a recycling bin to put your bottle in. Don't throw it in the trash instead. If possible, take your recycling home with you or hold on to it until you can recycle it. One bottle may not seem important, but how many trash cans would a million bottles fill? A hundred million?

More to come next week...

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