Global warming is one of the most serious challenge we face today. Consumer choices have huge impacts on our collective carbon footprint, or the amount of greenhouse gases we release into the atmosphere.
Change begins by examining daily habits—what you buy, or don't buy, and how you dispose of what is no longer useful. The Center for a New American Dream has some great ideas for reducing your impact on the environment. Start by tackling one task— the mountain of junk mail that's been piling up, or those plastic grocery bags that seem to multiply under the sink. Being a carbon conscious consumer means choosing wisely to reduce your stamp on the atmosphere. After all, the goal is to “tread lightly”… not “walk on air.” 
Big changes start with small steps! Phase I of the Carbon Conscious Consumer campaign promoted six climate-friendly daily habits for individuals.
In Phase II, Carbon Conscious Communities is developing tailored plans for focused carbon reductions on the institutional and individual levels.
Turn the Tide is an innovative program that Americans are using to make a difference for our environment. Turn the Tide offers nine simple actions almost anyone can take and then instantly shows the positive impact of each reported action. Participants can track the personal and collective impact these steps make upon the environment.
Get off the lists! More than 100 million trees’ worth of bulk mail circulates through U.S. mailboxes every year. The production and disposal of direct mail consumes more energy than 3 million cars in order to create 5.8 million tons of catalogs and other direct mailings that end up as 450,000 garbage trucks worth of waste. Find out how to opt out of the cycle of waste.
From its extraction through sale, use and disposal, all the stuff in our lives affects communities at home and abroad, yet most of this is hidden from view. The Story of Stuff is a 20-minute, fast-paced, fact-filled DVD about the underside of our production and consumption patterns.
