More Ideas for Going Paperless 
Anyone with a concern for the environment is constantly looking for little things they can do to make a positive change by minimizing negative impact. There are tons of good ideas out there, but it seems like the same ones are often repeated and while repetition is sometimes necessary for change there are times when it makes sense to look for new ideas too. Paper waste is one of those things where the same few ideas seem to be the only ones that get a lot of attention so I decided to look for some new ways to reduce the use of paper in our everyday lives.
Daily planners and calendars are part of managing a busy schedule, but end up being a big waste of paper. These days almost everyone has a cell phone and on most cell phones are calendars and events reminders that are usually fairly easy to use. This saves you from carrying one more thing around with you every day, and you can even have your schedule forwarded from your phone to your email so you always have access.
A lot of the time we take for granted that photographs are printed on paper. Most of us have a few photo albums or a photo box filled with pictures that we rarely ever look at. For the amount of paper used to print photos it would make more sense to keep them stored on the computer where they are easy to access. Make backup files on the internet to avoid losing any precious memories.
Another way to save on photo paper is to use digital photo frames instead of printing off pictures to hang on your wall. You can upload the frame with many different photos that work on a loop so you never get bored with the picture. Just make sure to turn it off when you are not around for a while and use rechargeable batteries instead of disposable ones.
Bulk stores are known for their low prices and lack of over-packaging. Consider purchasing re-usable containers and purchasing things like cereal, pasta, flour and baking goods, and things that are often otherwise packaged in paper or cardboard, at the bulk store to cut down on even more paper.
Tissue products are a big source of paper usage and waste and most of us use toilet paper every day, but there are other ways to keep clean like using a bidet, a cup of water, or a sprayer installed near the toilet for easy use.
Things like maps and phonebooks are both found very easily online these days and don’t need to be printed in physical form. How many pages do any of us actually need to use in a phonebook?
Instruction manuals are often too long and printed in several other languages than the one you actually speak. Fortunately most instruction manuals can also be found online and if you are ordering from a store or catalogue you can sometimes request no instruction manual or a cd-rom based one.
Postcards from loved ones on vacation are always nice to get, but a more thoughtful keepsake without the wasted paper might be to collect a vial of sand from the beach or a seashell or pretty rock and bring it back as a gift for your friend or family member.
Try thinking about every time you use paper for the rest of the week or even the day and think about how much of it is truly necessary and how much is waste and then try to cut down on using paper when you don’t need to or buying products packaged in paper that you could do without. Coming up with new ways to reduce the use of paper or anything else for that matter requires some conscious thought and a little imagination.
Original Post by aboutmyplanet.com.
