“Everyone is a stakeholder as we are all inhabitants of the one and only mother Earth, so please take care of it.”

• Forests are home to 80% of the world’s terrestrial biodiversity.
• The livelihoods of 1.6 billion people depend on forests.
• More than a quarter of modern medicines originate from tropical forest plants.
• Three – quarters of the world’s population rely on wood as their main source of energy.
• A single edition of a daily newspaper uses the wood from approximately 5,000 trees to make the paper.
• One tonne of recycled paper saves approximately 15 trees and their habitat.
• Trees are the longest living organisms on earth.
• The largest area of forest in the tropics remains the Amazon Basin, amounting to 81.5 million acres.
• Trees cut down noise pollution by acting as sound barriers.
• The death of one 70-year old tree would return over three tons of carbon to the atmosphere.
• Destruction of forests creates numerous environmental catastrophes, including altering local rainfall patterns, accelerating soil erosion, causing the flooding of rivers, and threatening millions of species of plants, animals and insects with extinction.

Reduce Reuse and Recycle

REDUCE CONSUMPTION

• The first step to reducing your impact on the environment is reducing the amounts of resources you consume and use.
• Think twice before you buy or use anything. By reducing your consumption you will also decrease the amount of waste you produce.

REDUCE WASTE

• ƒThink before you print or photocopy! Print and copy only if necessary.
• ƒEdit on screen, not on paper.
• ƒUse e – mail to minimize paper use.
• ƒSend and store documents like necessarydocuments and business proposals electronically instead of paper.
• ƒWhen you must print or copy, do it double – sided.
• ƒCirculate documents instead of making an individual copy for everyone.
• ƒChange the margins on your Word documents. The default margins on the documents you print are 1.25 inches on all sides. Simply changing the margins to 0.75 inches will reduce the amount of paper you use by almost 5 percent.

REDUCE ENERGY CONSUMPTION

• ƒTurn off lights when you don’t need them.
• ƒUse natural lighting instead of electric lighting whenever possible.
• ƒIf you have a desk lamp, make sure it uses fluorescent bulbs (instead of incandescent bulbs).
• ƒSelect cold water for washing clothes.
• ƒKeep windows and doors closed in heated and air-conditioned areas.
• ƒTurn off computers when they are not in use.
• ƒTurn off printers, unless printing.
• ƒMove your refrigerator. Leaving space between your refrigerator and the wall increases
• air circulation around the condenser coils, allowing the fridge to operate more efficiently.
• ƒReduce your carbon footprint! Leaving your car at home twice a week can cut greenhouse
• gas emissions considerably.

REUSE

• ƒReuse envelopes by placing a new label over the old address.
• ƒDesignate a box for scrap paper and use it for printing all drafts or unofficial documents.
• Reuse plasticbags orbetter get reusable canvasbags.
• ƒPlastic containers can become food storage, used newspaper can become wrapping paper.

RECYCLE

• ƒWhen buying any type of product, see if it is available with post consumer recycled content.
• ƒWrap presents in gift bags. Once you tear the wrapping paper off a gift, it ends up in the recycle bin, but gift bags can be used over and over again.
• ƒProduction of recycled paper uses only half the water and 3/4 of the energy than new paper ƒProduction of recycled paper uses only half the water and 3/4 of the energy than new paper.
• ƒEvery ton of recycled paper saves almost 400 gallons of oil, three cubic yards of landfill space and seventeen trees.
  ƒIf you recycle soda cans, the energy used and air pollution created, is 95 percent less than if the cans were produced from rawmaterials.
• ƒYou could operate a TV set for an estimated three hours with the energy saved by recycling just one aluminum can.

MORE GREEN TIPS………
Adopt as many eco-friendly lifestyle choices as you can and make them into  habits!

• Allow hot food to cool before placing it in the fridge.
• Try and park your car in shade wherever possible.
• An easy way to save money and precious water is by simply cutting your shower time by 1 to 1/2 minutes per day. You’ll save an average of 150 gallons each month.
• Close windows while driving at high speeds to reduce aerodynamic drag.
• Use cloth napkins instead of paper ones.
• Do not use the remote to switch off the TV or stereo as leaving the appliance on stand – by mode still uses up electricity.
• Don’t boil a full kettle – or even a half full kettle – for one cup of tea. Unless all of the water you boil is used, the energy it takes to heat that water is wasted.
• Buy rechargeable batteries for devices used frequently.
• Clean or replace air filters on your air conditioning unit at least once a quarter.
• Unplug any chargers when not being used.
• Use public transportation, carpool, walk, or bike whenever possible to reduce air pollution and save on fuel costs.
• Turning the water off while you lather the soap can save as many as 5 gallons of water each time you wash.
• Plant a sapling for every occasion you celebrate, for it grows to remind you of the happy times again!