It's hard to deny the world is in an environmental crisis. Just confronting all the issues is more than most of us can deal with. When we look at all the environmental concerns it's hard to imagine that our individual efforts could make any difference.

We would like to suggest otherwise

Every day we all make choices about how we live our lives; what we buy, what we consume, what we support. These cumulative individual choices have an impact. That impact is something we all have control over. Each one of us has the power to contribute in countless ways if we choose to. As we band together and make changes, things get better.

Here are a few of many simple changes we can make.

Turn off the extra Lights: Simply getting in the habit of turning off the lights in unused rooms will make a big difference. Regardless of whether its in your house, your office or your hotel room, turning off the extra lights is probably the easiest habit we can get into to help the planet.

Change your lightbulbs: One of the simplest things we can do to reduce our power consumption is to switch over to compact fluorescent lightbulbs (CFL). A typical CFL costs three to five times as much as a conventional incandescent bulb but uses only about one-quarter of the electricity and last several years longer.

Rethink your commute: Transportation accounts for over 30% of the CO² emissions in the U.S. The ever increasing price of fuel is forcing more people to take a serious look at their driving habits. The U.S. is a car society. We use our cars and trucks to represent how we see ourselves to the world.

As fuel prices continue to rise the public will become more aware of their options. Public transportation and carpooling will become more common. If you're allowed, is the best option.

Have an energy audit done on your home: Most utility companies will either do this for you free of charge or provide you with a guide to do it yourself. Most families can reduce their CO² emissions by 1000lbs. a year with some simple fix-ups.

Clean or replace filters on your furnace and air conditioner: Cleaning a dirty air filter can save 350 pounds of carbon dioxide a year.

Open the windows: Most of the 25 tons of CO² the average American produces comes from the home. Here are some easy ways to reduce that number:

• Open a window instead of running the AC. Turn the thermostat up a couple of degrees warmer in the summer and a couple of degrees cooler in the winter.
• Caulk and weatherstrip your windows and doors. If your budget allows you might consider replacing your windows with newer, more efficient units.
• Only run the dishwasher when its full.
• Install low-flow shower heads.
• Wash your clothes in cold water.
• If its appropriate for your neighborhood, put up a clothesline and dry your clothes outside.
• Wrap your water heater in an insulated jacket and check the heat setting. Turning the temperature down from 140° to 120° won't make much difference in the shower but it'll reduce your power consumption.