We have an interesting challenge in a world that is being massively consumed.
 Ironically, it has the bizarre ability to sustain life while being devoured at such a rate.
 The tragedy is that it doesn't have the ability to sustain all life.
 The weak are weeded out while the strong survive.
There is a sense of tragedy in that assertion.
 The strong aren't necessarily the best choice to preserve this world.
 Survivors have the uncanny obsession with only looking out for themselves.
 They will only allow others to follow as long as those who do stay out of the way and don't become a burden.
 So, it is an implicit characteristic of survivors that they don't make the best choices for all who are involved, even though woven in their very fabric is the beautiful trait of preservation.
That is definitely a debate for another day.
 But, it is the spark of an issue that leads us to understand why it is our responsibility to care for this world so that it can in turn take care of us.
 Finding an ecological balance between consumption and replacement is something we can control and we should look at all angles so that we are doing our best to preserve our world for those generations who have yet to come.
We consume far more than we should and we spew waste out at the other end like there will always be more.
 Our view of the world is commonly just our small portion of it and it's hard to see the entire world in one view unless we are at a very far distance, which would mean we wouldn't be able to see the minute details of local issues that need solving.
 So it is a problem we face that we can't immediately see the effects we are having on our world when we make changes, good or bad.
The dilemma is that on an individual and local level, we have trouble seeing the negative impact we have on our environment.
 Our actions may not produce immediate consequences and when those consequences do finally surface, they may not be large enough at first to warrant our attention.
 Conversely, when we make changes that produce positive outcomes we also may not see those results immediately and they also may not be large enough to motivate us to continue.
But if you heard some of the numbers, it would be staggering.
 Therein lies the crutch.
 A quick search for answers produces 2005 results and popular assumptions.
 Those assumptions though aren't hard to believe.
 Let's begin with a common consensus that the average person uses about 2 pounds of paper a day.
 The funny thing is that most people may not quite use their 2 pounds, but it averages out because huge companies use more than their share.
 This resulted in paper usage across America, just America, as reported by the EPA at 100 million tons way back in 2005.
  Have we changed drastically since then? I would hope that paperless solutions have curbed our appetite for the use of paper.
 But, fast food restaurants wrap our foods and keep us fed.
 Newspapers keep us informed.
 Large department store franchises send out massive advertisements almost daily.
 Paperless solutions may not have made a dent in light of all these other factors.
 But if we step up our recycling efforts, we don't necessarily have to curb our printing behaviors as long as we do make changes on what we are printing.
So starting small right where you are, let's look at what you can do that makes sense.
 You've heard about recycling paper.
 But, it does have a two-fold purpose.
 The second of which, you may not have considered.
 One, we get to use the same material over and over while only calling into service those resources that zero balance the gap between supply and demand.
 Two, recycling keeps our landfills from over-filling.
 Those are two very important reasons to consider sorting your trash and doing the right thing.
  If for every street in our world, there was one person who would sweep.
 Place the paper products in a recycling bin.
 The landfills would go untouched for a day, the street out in front of your house would look great and we could probably recycle enough paper to give us supply for another month.
That's a small thing to do.
 I once swept the street in front of my house.
 Within five minutes, I had two kids helping and a lady following me with her trashcan.
 In a short hour, we were finished.
 When I picked up the trashcan, I felt an incredible amount of weight.
 Probably upwards of 20 pounds full of material that could be recycled.
 So, I did what was right and the street didn't need another cleaning for about a week.
But, recycling paper is only one invaluable resource.
 Recycle metals rather than let them degrade into unusable eyesores.
 Recycle organic materials into compost and other useful resources rather than let them rot and only be able to return to nature only a portion of their potential.
  You may not think that such recycling focus can fit into your daily lifestyle, but you would be amazed how easy it would be if you just adjusted your life a little bit.
 The one thing you will feel immediately is the pure enjoyment you get out of cleaning up your portion of the environment where you live.
 Your home, your neighborhood and your inner-self will have peace and tranquility for a small moment.
 Once you feel that, it's something to work toward every day.