Mounting scientific evidence shows that human activity is having a tremendous impact on the Earth’s natural systems. From global climate change, toxic chemical pollution, loss of biodiversity, and depletion of natural resources, the signs are everywhere. The effects of this stress are evident in human systems in the forms of warfare, disease, poverty, famine, and overpopulation. Many scientists, even such sober figures as Cal Tech physicist and author of The End of the Age of Oil, Dr. David Goodstein, are predicting an end to civilization as we know it within the next century.

As an individual, trying to tackle these problems can seem overwhelming. But there are many things we can do in our daily lives that can make a big difference. Everything we do (or don’t do), whether it’s picking up our trash, switching off the lights, using alternative forms of transportation, or buying environmentally friendly products, determines our impact on the environment.

Unfortunately, many consumers are unaware of where the products they buy come from, how they are made, or where they go when they throw them away. Answering these questions can be a daunting task for every purchase you make, but there are some simple steps you can take to start answering these questions which are discussed in more detail in “How to be a green consumers.”

Another important way to protect the environment and improve our local community is being careful not only of what we buy, but where we buy it. When people shop at chain stores, much of the money they spend leaves the local economy to pay salaries and dividends to people who do not live in the community. However, every time a dollar is spent at a local business, the dollar is recycled several times throughout the local community, creating several more dollars worth of employment. For example, if someone spends a dollar at a local hardware store, the money gets funneled back into the local economy when that store’s employees go to lunch at a local restaurant. The employees of this restaurant then spend the money at another local business and so on. By supporting locally owned businesses, consumers improve the quality of life and economic strength of their local community.

Supporting local businesses, especially locally made products, also has important environmental benefits. The difference has to do with the way in mass produced products are made versus locally produced products. Locally produced products rely on “inefficient” means of production requiring lots of labor costs. Mass production lowers labor costs by relying on mechanized production. For example, think about the production of a loaf of bread. When someone buys a mass produced loaf from a chain store, they are paying primarily for energy costs associated with running machinery to make the bread and transport it from the centralized production facility. But if someone buys a locally produced loaf of bread, they are paying primarily for the cost of labor to make the bread. The environmental cost of the locally made bread is significantly lower because, according to Barbara Ward, author of Progress for a Small Planet, locally owned businesses are less capital intensive and use natural resources more efficiently. The same is true of virtually every other product and business.

So when you’re shopping, be conscious not only of what you buy but where you buy it. Many people feel like they cannot do anything about the environmental problems facing our society because they are just one person. Unfortunately, our political leaders often do not do much to help the situation. However, our ability to solve these problems is not limited to once every four years, because we vote every day with our pocket books.