Reusing household items is a great way to save money while being more environmentally friendly. Here are some easy tips you can use in your own household:

• Carry a refillable mug. Whether it’s your morning stop at Starbucks or your several trips to the coffee maker at work, you can use a refillable, dishwasher-safe mug and reduce the waste of Styrofoam and paper cups.

• Use cotton towels in the kitchen instead of paper towels for cleaning and wiping up. Simple, flour-sack style towels are cheap and very absorbent. If you keep a stock on hand and include them in your laundry, you’ll use and buy less paper towels.

• Bring your own cloth carriers when buying groceries, or reuse the plastic or paper bags grocery stores give you.

• Buy a digital camera and you will no longer need to buy film or disposable cameras. You can also only print out photos you want, using the ability to preview what you’ve snapped to avoid printing unnecessary prints.

• Bring your lunch to work or school using a washable cloth sack or lunch box. Instead of plastic bags, seal food in washable, reusable plastic containers. You can give paper or plastic bags given to you in retail stores a second life as a lunch bag.

• Return spent printer cartridges. Printer cartridge manufacturers often include recycling information and there are many organizations that accept cartridges for recycling for free.

• When buying a new cell phone, donate your old one to a reuse program.

(Source: Green Living, by the editors of E/The Environmental Magazine, Plume, 2005.)