Environment Friendly Blogging: 5 Practical Tips

The Blog Action Day has finally arrived, and it looks like it will be the first of many, given the buzz it managed to generate. Today we’ll have almost 15,000 bloggers writing about the same topic: the environment. If that was not enough the project was also backed by mainstream companies and organizations like Google and the United Nations.

We are also going to talk about the environment today, but more specifically about how you can make your blogging activities more environment friendly! Below you’ll find 5 tips for that purpose, check it out:

1. Turn off the lights when you leave the room.

By now I have probably wasted thousands of watts lightening my room while I wasn’t there. I am getting better though, especially after having my girlfriend yelling at me for a couple of months. If you work on a home office, this habit is not only bad for the environment, but also for your pocket.

2. Turn off the computer when possible

Don’t get me wrong, there is no need to turn the computer off every time you go to the bathroom. If you know that you will be away for four hours or more, however, turning it off could result in significant savings over the long run.

3. Print only when necessary

Sure, reading on paper might be more comfortable, but you should avoid printing those two-lines emails every single time. Read it on the screen and print only necessary documents. Remember also to use both sides of the sheet.

4. Use fluorescent lamps

Incandescent light bulbs use five times more energy than fluorescent ones and last ten times less. The fluorescent lamps cost more on the stores, but within one you should have already recovered the investment.

5. Use “Energy Star” electronic gadgets

Energy Star is a governmental program started by the United States to promote consumer products that use energy efficiently. Check for computers, peripherals and electronic gadgets that already come with this certification.

Daniel Scocco on October 15, 2007 Subscribe to our RSS Feed

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29 Responses to “Environment Friendly Blogging: 5 Practical Tips”

James on October 15th, 2007 4:32 am

Hi, those tips are the same one would use to save money, so being environment friendly isn’t that hard to teach to people. But lazyness is often stronger than the desire to save money.
Daniel on October 15th, 2007 4:35 am

James, indeed!

People have a hard time changing, that is the big deal. There is a nice book by Alan Deutschman titled “Change or Die!,” check it out if you can.
Mike Pedersen Golf on October 15th, 2007 4:57 am

Great post! Concise, helpful and to the point! Just perfect for us busy bloggers :)!!
Sam Nova on October 15th, 2007 5:26 am

I’m still shocked about point 2, well, mainly how many people who DON’T turn the computer off when they leave work.
I mean, whats the point!!! Oh, sure they avoid the time it takes to start it in the morning…
I don’t know how often I see people on ICQ that are marked as ‘away’ or ‘n/a’ and I just know they are home and have left their PC on.
Do they also leave things on at home when they go to work, such as radio, tv, lights…
I just don’t get it
Jacob Share on October 15th, 2007 6:09 am

Sam, there are still many people who believe that turning off & on a computer is somehow bad for the hard drive. Of course, that makes no sense.

Good tips, Daniel. I covered some of the same and others here:

http://jobmob.co.il/blog/the-o.....b-hunting/
Patrick Algrim on October 15th, 2007 6:15 am

Thanks for participating in Blog Action Day!

For anyone interested in BAD, we are offering SURPRISE SEEDS! Head over to hellyeahdude.com to contribute more to Blog Action Day (BAD)

Great Job!
Judi on October 15th, 2007 7:13 am

Great list…
Corinne Edwards on October 15th, 2007 7:33 am

Great ideas - especially the one about turning off the computer! None of us do that.

A friend sent me this Youtube short and terrifying video over the weekend. I put it on my site today. The only thing I put on as it says it all!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bDsIFspVzfI
James on October 15th, 2007 7:39 am

indeed! I hereby am joining the thousands to write on the blog action day too.
60 in 3 on October 15th, 2007 8:17 am

Don’t just turn off the computer, switch off the surge protector (plug strip, power center, whatever you want to call it!) that the computer, monitor and all your other office electronics are attached to. Even when off, your computer and monitor are still drawing electricity. Turning off the source of that electricity or just unplugging stuff, saves even more power.

Gal
Deanna Belle on October 15th, 2007 9:28 am

And don’t forget to turn your OFFICE lights off as well! I see so many people leave their office lights on overnight… one flip of the switch can help so much!
Simon on October 15th, 2007 11:24 am

Another way for bloggers do to their part in saving our earth is to switch to an environmental friendly web host.

You can find an up-to-date list over green web hosts at http://green-blog.org/green-web-host-list/
Jeremy Steele on October 15th, 2007 11:29 am

One thing you should never do is turn off your lights all the time. Florescent (and even incandescent) bulbs work much better when left on and they last much longer (I’d say turn them off if you walk out for more than 20 mins). It’s a bit like with computers. People say to put them in sleep mode after a few minutes but that will kill your hard drive years sooner than it normally should have.

Just a thought to keep in mind. There’s a fine line between directly saving energy and indirectly wasting it.
Kristina Richardson on October 15th, 2007 12:41 pm

Everyone can make a difference! If you are passionate about stopping global warming and the environment you should check out this website http://www.nvisioncfl.com . Changing to CFLs is a great way for individual people to really make a difference! You should also check out this site http://www.youtube.com/user/helpourworld for more ideas on how to help our world!
Bill on October 15th, 2007 4:00 pm

Hey there, first of all, don’t get me wrong, DBT is a great resource of blogging tips. I’m not that sarcastic all the time, but I honestly can’t understand why there are such comments as “great tips”, “helpful tips”, “great post” and so on. I’d agree with the first part of James’ post. The article’s remarks are very similar to if not exactly common sense! If you live alone, you’re paying your own bills, buddy; you obviously want to save some money by turning off the comp and lights for the night, long hours or whatever. Great tip! http://www.ConEd.com. Welcome to New York. Of course you wouldn’t print a 2-line message on a separate sheet of paper, unless you’re working at a non-profit organization, HR dept most likely; you’re originally from Manhattan, are a graphic designer, and/or/so you couldn’t care less about the amount of paper you use as long as you get your point across and so on. Nevertheless, I have to admit that I found out more info about the fluorescent lamps solely thanks to this post.
So, yeah, thanks. Good work, overall.
blogr on October 15th, 2007 9:25 pm

the tips u told should be done by themselves and on the advise of others. people should know what they are doing and try to save our planet earth so that coming generations will also live happily.

- blogrtools
http://blogrtools.blogspot.com
darren on October 15th, 2007 11:09 pm

Great tips!!!
Jamaipanese on October 16th, 2007 5:03 am

great tips, I participated in Blog Action Day as well
lindsey on March 14th, 2008 10:35 am

Here is another cool idea to make use of all the wasted printouts sitting around your office. Reuse them and create cool notebooks.

Here is a video that shows you how.

http://www.ehow.com/video_2242.....ebook.html

You just need a comb binder and paper cutter which will run you about $250-$300. You could also use a padding press ( $50 - $100) to glue into notepads. Check out at http://ishopbinding.com/tasks/make-a-notepad
Bernt on June 17th, 2008 9:23 am

Excellent tips! I have also gathered a list of tips to make your everyday greener! It includes a few things that was not in the lists I’ve seen here. Have a look if you’re interested!
http://www.yourinfocentral.com/environmentsaving/
SEO Genius on June 22nd, 2008 7:04 pm

Strange article definitely something i should really consider, i do feel that being environmentally friendly is a big issue each of us needs to undertake however i can not fight strongly for a cause in which i do not currently live with. I tend to turn my computer on in the morning and its on all day, i do however turn lights of when i can.