Urban self sustainability in a post covid world!

If the pandemic that the world has all been in together has taught anyone anything, it should be that as the human race dependency on others and what they do for us is taken for granted. Covid basically swooped in and took over the whole world, leaving many in a mass panic.

The panic and fear that reached everyone from all corners of the world, brought up the same questions. How are we going to survive? What are we going to do for money? How is it going to be possible to support my family?

With many countries on a mass look down, it has given many people the chance to think about what to do once a post covid world is in full swing. If you hadn’t questioned yourself about being self sufficient and how to maintain self sustainability before, you probably have now.

Being able to manage self sustainability post covid, is now not only a financial issue but also a way to be able to maintain a lifestyle. Ensuring that you can provide basic necessities like usable water and food for your family.

Usable water is a complete must, using it for drinking, showers, or simply flushing your toilet is needed in our homes, so installing a rainwater tank can be so beneficial in being able to do so comfortably, having access to rainwater can help with toilet flushing, washing cars and watering the garden https://rainwatertanksdirect.com.au/slimline-tanks/

Why should you help yourself?

Helping yourself is important in a post covid situation, sustainability is a way in which you can assure that your family will be able to keep healthy and this can even benefit your neighbors.

It doesn’t matter where you live, living in an urban area is just as good as living in a rural area if you have the right knowledge.

With the correct knowledge, you will be able to help your family and yourself in maintaining a certain standard of living. Living does not mean simply existing with the bare minimum that your funds can stretch to. With the post covid situation still affecting many families, this may be the quickest way that you will see a change in your lifestyle situation. 

Looking at maybe a financial outlay at first this is something that you will be looking at maintaining and keeping on top of. After the first initial outlays or getting started money should not play a big part in keeping your sustainable lifestyle going.

Being sustainable should be a lifestyle, not an expense that you dread, it should be an enjoyable way of life that holds key factors in helping the environment and holding health values for your whole family.

How can you get started in maintaining sustainability?

Firstly the area in which you live will not affect everything however it can limit how much you can do and to what extent it can be done. An example of this will be something like if you live in an urban area without lots of outside space, maybe raising pigs is something you will have to pass on. 

Starting small with things like using reusable material bags may seem like a silly idea, however, with many places in the world charging 5p a bag this is something that will be added to your shopping bill every single shop. Investing in reusable bags will make sure you always have one to hand and will ensure there are no added costs to your shop. 

Returning plastic and cans for money is available in some countries so why not set aside a few boxes and store the empties as you go. This is a good way to save a few extra pennies without noticing. Not all countries do this but if this is unavailable you can recycle instead. Re-using bottles for storing extra water in or bottles of juice for the children is a good way of not having to purchase drinks on outings or trips to the shop on a hot day.

Waste in cooking is something that nearly everyone experiences, figure out a good portion size. Instead of throwing waste away, use this for freezing for another day. You will be amazed at how many spare freezer inners you will end up with. If it isn’t enough for a dinner, maybe the spare veg can be added to pasta, or potato to bulk dinner up the next day.

Waste is important.

Lots of people do not see waste as a problem but believe it or not it is. Look at what is wasted in your home, do you see things that you didn’t realize that got wasted? No? look closely. 

How many times a day is your toilet flushed? And how many of those were a justified flush? This simple thing that most of the people in the world take for granted, wastes gallons of water and is not needed. Countries that do not have ready access to tap water or wells, do a few things once they have the allowance of water they are allowed or can carry.

Keeping a filled water bucket next to the toilet to use for flushing is a good way to save water, this helps save water and also this water can be collected from the garden, therefore, saving money as well as water. This form of toilet flushing is used in many places and is still available when the toilets may have been updated and flushing is now available.

Places that use this way of toilet flushing, would include countries like Thailand, Laos, or India. This isn’t just used in poor provinces, this is also used in big cities with big hotels with different ways of sewage being disposed of, the drains are not always able to cope with over usage of water. Look into the different ways other countries use rainwater and what it is used for, this will make you think before unnecessarily flushing your toilet again.

How can you collect rainwater in the country you live in? There are several ways to do this, the most effective way in doing so is to install a rainwater tank. This is good for many reasons, it will add value to your home if installed by a reputable company in the correct style to match the premises. There are many different styles, different colors to fit the property style. When it comes to selling your home this is a positive.

Why you do not need a farm to sustain food 

Growing fruit and vegetables were starting to become a fashionable thing, many people have become vegans but in a post covid society it’s become a real and upcoming issue in the forefront of people’s minds. Popping to the shops picking up your shopping became not only a chore to get done in extreme measures, but it also became a massive financial issue for lots of people. 

When looking at growing fruit or veg there are things that people assumed, it couldn’t be done unless they had a huge amount of land to grow in or acres of land to grow fruit trees. All you need is some sunlight access to water (rain would be good!) some pots and seeds. Listed below is a list of some things, that may help you get started:

  • Look into using recycled pots or planters that people no longer want these may be going for free! or a small fee
  • Seeds preferably organic using local garden centers or farms
  • Small cuttings can be acquired from friends, family, neighbors, and for free
  • Accessing work in return for produce ( some places will swap a few hours work for a basket of veg or fruit)
  • If you want to grow veg or fruit then look at what can be grown in hanging baskets if you are short on space (many things can be grown in a basket)
  • Swap with friends or family if you grow too much of one thing 
  • Freeze what you don’t or can’t use 
  • Be creative in your cooking experiment with what you have 
  • Sweet treats, pies, yogurts, ice creams, lollies or candies
  • Savoury, curries, casseroles, one-pot, fillings for sandwiches or salads with a twist
  • There are many different ways to use up your produce, you have spent time and effort in growing this so do not waste it. Using fruit and vegetables does not have to be boring!!

Conclusion

There are lots of ways you can maintain self sustainability post covid, if anything this should have spurned you on to do the best you can for your brood indoors. Being self sustainable doesn’t have to be boring it can be a lot of fun. If possible get the whole family involved.

Look into encouraging friends to give it ago. This can be done in silly fun ways,  saving glass jars and turning them into presents. Making homemade sweets to jars with homemade lids can be a great personalized present that someone will recognize the effort you took in giving them such a well thought about gift. 

What will bring the value of your home up? as well as helping you do your bit for your finances. Finance is a big thing. It has hit people hard in this pandemic, so if you do happen to have spare money that you were saving, then now may be the time to invest. 

Research is always a good thing to do when investing, so researching ways to help yourself if another pandemic situation ever arises is only ever going to help you. The future has seemed very uncertain in the troubled times people have been dealing with. Panic is an emotion many experienced in the last year. Not knowing where the next meal was coming from or how to pay the water rates.

So in a post covid situation, it’s time to start getting organized and look at ways in sustaining your lifestyle in a comfortable affordable way that will be helpful in any future situations that could occur.