How Living in a Retirement Community Is Environmentally Friendly
People of all ages are looking to reduce their negative impact on the environment. Whether they want to help preserve the planet’s natural beauty for future generations or are realizing a more environmentally friendly lifestyle also comes with several financial benefits, people are looking for more ways to live greener. Today’s older adults, who are responsible for starting some of the current eco-friendly policies and sustainability programs, continue to look for ways to reduce their carbon footprint and have discovered how sustainable moving to a retirement community can be.
How The Little Things Add Up
Think about your current home and how much of its space you use. If there are rooms you don’t even go into, downsizing to a retirement community like Regency Oaks can ensure you’re using all the space you have. Here are some eco-friendly benefits of retirement living that will help make your life even better:
Save time. A maintenance-free retirement community gives you more time to pursue your passions, whether that’s volunteering for an environmental cause, learning how to paint or playing pickleball.
Energy savings. A smaller space is easier and cheaper to cool and heat (on those rare times it gets colder than usual) – multiply that across all a community’s residences and common spaces and those seemingly small efficiencies can start to have a big impact.
Responsible downsizing. Moving from a larger living space to a smaller one means you’re more than likely going to need to part with some of your possessions. Rather than throwing it out, the more sustainable option is to pass on treasured heirlooms to family and friends. Plus, you can donate vintage clothes, furniture and collectibles to thrift stores or have a sale. You’ll put less in the landfill and give your items a second life.
More responsible dining. Cooking for one or two people can result in a lot of leftover food. Not only do community dining programs try to use more locally sourced items, but their menus and portion sizes are designed to reduce food waste.
Green construction. With advancements in technology and materials, buildings are more energy efficient than ever. Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) has different certifications for building that meet their framework for health, efficiencies and cost-saving standards.
Reduced carbon footprint. Living close to everything you need (dining, fitness, classes and socializing) means less driving. If you do need to run errands, most communities offer scheduled transportation for shopping, doctor appointments and other outings. Curious about your carbon footprint? Figure it out here.
Smaller community footprint. Most communities are like a little town with all the services and amenities you could ever need right outside your door. That saves space and reduces the resources needed to clean, maintain and upkeep the community. It also ensures more of the community’s offerings get used more frequently.
A Lifestyle That’s More Green Can Also Be More Engaging
It’s the little things we do every day that can make the biggest impact. To learn more about our eco-friendly philosophy or how moving to a retirement community like Regency Oaks can help reduce your carbon footprint, use our Community Assistant chat feature or contact us.
