It's time to give up buying packages of disposable paper napkins for good. Even paper napkins made from recycled paper have the strong possibility of having the chemical BPA in them; the culprit is thermal receipts (which accounts for almost all receipts you get from the store) that end up in the paper recycling stream. But even non-recycled paper napkins are wasteful and contribute to a loss of nearly 1 million trees every year. Opt for reusable napkins, dishtowels and even bandanas as an eco-friendly and nicer alternative to throwaways.

If you have a cat who spends time outdoors, consider bringing him inside instead. Cats kill about 3.7 billion birds and nearly 20 billion small mammals -- like rabbits and voles -- in the United States every year. Outdoor cats also live shorter lives. To transition your cat from an outdoor dweller to an indoor one, install several scratching posts and open cardboard boxes throughout the house. This will make indoor living less dull and slowly acclimate him to his new lifestyle.

Restaurants and commercial kitchens throw away tons of food every year -- it's considered excess inventory, even though it could be given to food banks or hunger charities. One of the problems of getting the excess food to the charities is that often there isn't enough manpower to take the food to the shelter. Contact your local food bank or hunger charity and ask if it needs any volunteer "food runners." You literally donate time to pick up excess food (that's been properly packaged by the commercial kitchen) and bring it to the charity. It's one easy step to stop waste and alleviate hunger.