Transitioning to a sustainable lifestyle can be a challenge without the right resources or knowledge.

Although we should reduce our use of technology in order to save energy and reduce e-waste, it can also work to our advantage.

Did you know there are apps you can download directly to your phone to keep you on track on your sustainable journey? Here are a few ideas to get you started.

6 Apps to Help you live Sustainably

ShareWaste: Crowdsource composting

ShareWaste connects you with people in your area to either share your food waste with them or be the receiver of food waste for your own compost. You can designate if you want to be the composter and list what you will and will not accept or be the compostee,. There is a map for users to view who locally is using the app and find people to start sharing with.

Philly Food Rescue

It’s a sad reality that good food often gets tossed in the trash even when there’s a mouth it could have fed. Philly Food Rescue receives fresh, healthy, and viable food from wholesalers, food retailers, restaurants, and other food providers. Volunteers can pick up the food from the donors and send them to those facing food insecurity. You can sign up to be a volunteer and get notified about scheduled pick ups through the app.   

LiveGreen Daily Carbon Tracker

Have you ever wondered what your carbon footprint looks like? LiveGreen helps you track how many pounds of carbon are you emitting each day. Check in and log your meals, transportation, purchases, and monthly utilities. Aside from just tracking how much you are emitting each day, you can set goals to encourage yourself to keep your emissions as low as possible.

You can also view how you rank in a week compared to other users on the app.

If you want to offset your carbon emissions, you also have the option of planting trees through the app!

Random of Acts of Green

Sometimes when we want to change our lifestyle, we could use some form of incentive.  Random Acts of Green gives you actions to work towards your goal of going green. These acts can fall under numerous areas such as transportation, energy, and food.

Every time you complete an activity, you can earn points to be later redeemed as discount codes for green products. The end goal is to encourage us to behave in ways that benefit the environment rather than harm it.

thredUp

thredUP is the largest consignment and secondhand marketplace, easily accessible on your phone. You can browse through over 35,000 brands and buy for less than their original retail cost.

If you’re looking to clean out your closets and find a place to sell your clothes, you can sell them to thredUp and earn some cash.

Other apps you can use to buy and resell clothing are Depop or Poshmark. Get started with our 5 easy Poshmark tips here!

DoneGood

One way we can make an impact on this plant is to be a conscientious consumer. With DoneGood, you can find products from brands based on issues that matter to you such as being vegan, cruelty-free, upcycled, or green. You can search their database for products that fall into these categories, find new businesses, and earn discount codes along the way!

Readers, what apps have you found? Tell us in the comments.

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Siani Colón is a Philly-based journalist, born and raised in the city, focused on community-based reporting. In her free time, she volunteers with the Tacony Creek Park. View all posts by Siani Colon