Finding A Support Group To Help You Go Green

by Richard Adams
(EcoLivingAdvice.com)

We all appreciate the importance of going green but like so many things actually implementing lifestyle changes to become more eco friendly is generally harder to actually put into practice than you might expect.

We are, after all, surrounded by temptation. Highly packaged products. Non-organic food. The ease of driving rather than walking or taking public transport. The time issues of sorting out your trash into recyclable and non-recyclable goods. And so on. In short, going green, like losing weight, requires a degree of effort and hard work - at least initially - if you're going to introduce new beneficial habits to your life.

And this is where a "support group" of like-minded people can come is useful. By having a group of friends around you who are also environmentally-aware and trying to make a positive impact on their carbon footprint you will have others to inspire and motivate you. You'll also have people to hold you accountable if you waver in your new mission. And lastly you'll have access to a wide range of experience and knowledge that you can use to make informed decisions about your lifestyle changes.

But where do you find these people so you can start to build your own personal eco friendly support group?

Ask Around At Work

If you work in a decent-sized workplace you will be surrounded by a wide diversity of people each with their own interests and passions. As green living is growing in popularity all the time the odds are good that at least a few people at your workplace will be interested in the topic. They may vary from people who have a gentle interest right up to full-blown eco-warriors but asking around can quickly let you make connections with other people. Not only is this an opportunity to make new friends but also friends who you can rely on in your journey to a more eco friendly lifestyle.

Volunteer At An Environmental Charity

By definition virtually anyone who either volunteers or does paid work for an environmental charity will have at least a passing interest in the environment. Whether the charity in question monitors wildlife, carries out habitat restoration, encourages organic gardening principles or whatever giving even just a few hours a week to help further their cause can not only make you feel good that you're doing something positive with your free time but of course every person you meet can quickly become an important part of your support group.

Look For Local Talks And Groups

There are numerous eco-conscious clubs, societies and talks going on across the country each week and once again you can feel certain that everyone present has an interest in living a more eco friendly lifestyle. Excellent places to start your networking include looking in your local newspaper at the "events" section, researching nationwide charities to see if they have local groups and/or taking a look at MeetUp.com which allows people to list any events coming soon. If you struggle to find any you can even place a free advert on the site yourself inviting other people to an informal drink and chat about green living.

Search Twitter

The last idea is perhaps a little more unusual but can still work well. There are now over 200 million people with Twitter accounts and Twitter allows you to search for people based on their interests and their location. This means that you can use it to quickly find people in your local area interested in the environment whereupon you can contact them via Twitter to try and build up a relationship with them. Best of all you can do all this from the comfort of your own home so it's ideal for anyone with very limited time available to them.