How can you actually store sustainably online and order as environmentally friendly as possible? Of course, the most sustainable product is the one you don't buy in the first place. And before buying a new product, you should repair the old one and keep it as long as possible. reuse. However, online purchases cannot always be avoided. Sometimes there's not enough time, you're in poor health, or you simply don't feel like making the trip to the nearest store. Whether consciously or unconsciously - in the end, CO2 emitted that the global warming tightened.
To ensure that your purchases are still as environmentally friendly as possible despite being delivered by mail, here are a bunch of tips for sustainable shopping on the Internet. Let's go!
10 tips for sustainable online shopping
In the days of our grandparents, orders were only possible with an extra form from a fat catalog. Today, it's all much easier - and that brings problems for the environment. In addition to the deliveries of goods, electricity for one's own computer and for the servers that ensure the maintenance of data on the Internet is of course also very energy-intensive.
1. buy from sustainable online stores
A nice example for one of meanwhile many sustainable online stores is AvocadoStore*! The Hamburgers pay particular attention to packaging that is as plastic-free as possible, environmentally friendly shipping and fair products. The latter range from sustainable clothingfrom kitchen utensils to sports equipment. There's really everything. And the entire company philosophy is focused on sustainability.
Tips: If you like to use a search engine for your search for suitable products, you should get a sustainable search engine that you will use in the future. With searches at Ecosia.org for example, trees are planted and cool projects are promoted.
2. buy only things that you really need
Live minimalistdoes not mean giving up everything. It means giving up the things you don't need. That's a good thing, don't you think? Finally you save money sustainably.
So if you want to store sustainably online, that also means, to question your shopping cart again before clicking the "order now" button. Do I really need this? Or is it more of an impulse buy that doesn't really enrich me? An honest answer to this question often leads to saving money for really nice things in life.
3. avoid plastic packaging
Everyone knows them: the orders on the Internet that arrive at home in much too large boxes with far too much Styrofoam and air cushion pads. Then there's a brief grumble and then the same mistake is made again and again.
To avoid future orders with too much Avoid plastic waste, you can, for example, make collective orders and not order each smallest product individually week after week. This is also part of sustainable shopping on the Internet. In addition, there are more and more suppliers who deliberately ship their sales plastic-free and as waste-free as possible.
Tip: If you got a cardboard box, I try to reuse if possible. If you don't need it anymore, dispose of it folded in the blue garbage can. (see Separate waste correctly)
4. avoid returns already in advance
In the German online retail sector, a total of 487 million items This means huge amounts of double journeys and unnecessarily used packaging material. But double CO2 emissions in particular are anything but appropriate in times of climate change.
So if you want to shop sustainably online, you should consciously prevent returns. For example, when you store for clothes, measure them and read the information about sizes. Clothing items often come in different sizes and are therefore often returned. Don't be afraid to ask the online store before you send off your order.
You can get even more tips in the detailed post called Avoid returns.
5. have delivered to packing station or parcel store
If you want to order sustainably on the Internet, then it's also worthwhile to deliver to a parcel store near your home. Since parcel service providers can drop off many shipments there at once, they save themselves the trip to each individual address. This allows them to work more efficiently and in a more climate-friendly way.
Positive side effect: It's also good for all the motorists on your street, because there won't be vans with flashing warning lights in the second row all the time.
6. one large order instead of many small ones
As already indicated, it is worthwhile for our environment if you make collective orders. That means: Collect a few things you need before you order them all individually. That way, as many of them as possible can find their way to you in one box and in just one delivery.
Likewise, it also makes sense to order bulk packs. Whether online or in your local store, if you know you need more oatmeal anyway and you don't want it to go bad quickly, you can order a larger package.
Tip: In a separate post, you'll get countless tips to get your To make food last longer!
7. refrain from Amazon orders if possible
When people think of online shopping, they usually think directly of Amazon. Of course, this is not sustainable online shopping for such a global e-commerce giant. After all, many small bookstores and other stores can't compete with it.
If you want to order there, you should at least use the URL smile.amazon.com go to the store. The company will then donate at least 0.5 percent of your purchase amount to a charity of your choice.
8. buy items used on the internet
To avoid wasting natural resources on your online purchases, in many cases you can simply buy them used. This works very well for books, for example - and even discarded but still intact clothing can put a smile on the faces of others. (see also Slow Fashion)
A good place to go for used items is, for example, the online store of rebuy*. And for garments is suitable app Kleiderkreisel!
9. make sure the delivery is CO2 neutral
Many delivery services already operate CO2-neutral - but the online store of your choice has to play along and cooperate with them. DPD, for example, delivers goods in a climate-neutral manner without charging a surcharge. DHL also delivers in an environmentally friendly way - so when you place your order, make sure that the online store cooperates with DHL GoGreen, for example.
Also, do not choose express shipping for your online orders, unless it is absolutely necessary. This is because larger orders are often divided into several and this leads to several and above all not totally utilized courier trips.
Tip: To avoid unnecessarily long transport routes, you should also make sure that your orders come from the region. Then they can possibly reach you by courier bikes. (see also buy regionally)
10. if new purchase - then durable products
With your purchases on the Internet, please do not support the Fast fashion industrywhich causes massive suffering and extreme environmental pollution. Instead, make sure that you only order goods on the Internet that are really durable. A T-shirt for 5 euros cannot be sustainable, because someone has to sew it together for a few cents! And usually the shirt is washed out after a few weeks, so you have to buy a new one. So when ordering online, go for quality - no matter if it's clothes, sports equipment, or Wooden toothbrushes.
Do you have other tips for sustainable online ordering? Then just write me a comment with your ideas.
Sustainable ordering on the Internet is possible
I hope you were able to take away some ideas and tips to store sustainably online in the future. At least more sustainably. Because as I said, the most sustainable product is the one you don't buy in the first place. Just try to take the tips to heart for your next online orders. Because they are really simple and can be implemented directly.
Do you have questions or your own experiences with sustainable online shopping? Then I look forward to your comment.
Stay sustainable,
PS.: Look you with pleasure still something in the Consumption Blog around! There you will learn for example a few Know superfluous things that no one needs nowadays.
References:
₁ German Council for Sustainable Development (RNE): Avoiding returns, available at https://www.nachhaltiger-warenkorb.de/themen/retouren-vermeiden.[22.01.2020].
