5 Apps Every Sustainable Consumer Needs In Their Life
Making the transition into a sustainable lifestyle can be challenging. There are many aspects of your life you must change drastically and although there are degrees to living sustainably, most people know their goal is to be 100% sustainable or as close as they can get. Lucky for us, we live in a society booming with technological advance that can help us be more sustainable in ways we never imagined. Think about it, we literally hold small computers in our hands with the knowledge of the world, and these smartphones can be used to improve your life in any way. Blow are just some of the great ways developers have created apps for those who commit themselves to being sustainable. To ensure they are user friendly, we even tested and reviewed them ourselves and only included apps that can be downloaded for iOS and android.
Think Dirty
Think Dirty® app is the easiest way to learn about the potentially toxic ingredients in your cosmetics and personal care products. Just scan the product barcode and Think Dirty will give you easy-to-understand info on the product, its ingredients, and shop cleaner options!
Why we love it:
Think Dirty is super easy to use, instantly letting you know how toxic your product really is. Not only that, but they also show you which ingredients you should stay away from and even suggest healthier/ cleaner alternatives. Although they might not have all beauty products, you can submit brands and products for them review. They help pull back the curtain on companies who don’t emphasize how dangerous their products can really be to your health and the environment.
iHuerting
iHuerting will help you take care of the plants of your garden in your terrace or garden in a simple and entertaining way. Your smartphone or tablet will remind you of the tasks you must perform in each plant at the right time.
Why we love it:
This app is rough around the edges and comes in a paid or free version. However, it offers easy solutions for anyone who is starting to garden and has no idea what they are doing. It helps you keep track of different plants, gives advice on your plant if it gets sick, and even suggests recipes based on what you have grown. It is a starting point for anyone looking to reduce their food waste.
Bikemap
Bikemap will help you find more than 3.4M bike routes in 80+ countries worldwide. You can discover beautiful cycling regions for your next bike trip - whether in your home country or abroad. This app will give useful information, such as route length and an interactive elevation profile, for every cycling route. Thousands of exciting new bicycle routes are added by our active community every day.
Why we love it:
As cities become more crowded, more people find alternative ways to commute and transport themselves around their areas. But here in the United States, bikes don’t really have definitive a place among our streets or sidewalks. That is why we believe this app is extremely helpful when it comes to planning a safe bike trip.
JouleBug
JouleBug is the easy way to make your everyday habits more sustainable, at home, work, and play. Discover how you and your friends can use resources—without using them up. It is a fun and interactive way to see how you save and progress in your sustainable lifestyle every day.
Why we love it:
This app isn’t meant to be enjoyed alone, it is meant to encourage and utilize healthy competition to shape our daily habits. By competing against your friends, you can see how your collective efforts shape the world. It is very interactive and easy to implement into your daily life.
PaperKarma
Empty your recycling bin for good(!) and stop unsolicited postal mail with the PaperKarma junk mail app. Simply take a picture to unsubscribe from bulky catalogs, credit card offers, and unwanted paper mail delivered to your home address. Take a step toward protecting your privacy while also protecting the environment
Why we love it:
While recycling is a sustainable act, the best approach would be not to eliminate it from the source. Most of us have obtained junk mail or magazines we didn’t subscribe to and because the United States Postal Service can’t divert or stop junk mail, this app offers a unique way to reduce your paper waste. With three easy steps you can eliminate your need to recycled paper at the source.
Sources:
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/eve-turow/5-apps-to-help-you-live-a_b_5849740.html
https://www.activesustainability.com/sustainable-life/top-10-apps-for-sustainable-living/
https://en.reset.org/act/nine-simple-apps-could-help-you-live-more-sustainable-life-04112017