Celebrating Earth Day with Eco-Friendly Finances

As Earth Day came around again, many people were looking for ways to make their lives more eco-friendly all year long. While many people think of ways to improve the environmental impact of their shopping choices or homes, they oftentimes forget that their finances could also benefit from this trend.

· Go Paperless: You can help save a tree and still keep track of all your finances with paperless billing and credit monitoring. Many credit card and utility companies will allow you to sign up to receive your bills via email. You can also look into credit monitoring services, which send emails and alerts to help you stay on top of your credit information.

· Pay Online: In addition to receiving all of your bills online, you should also be paying online. You'll save on paper, postage and the fuel required in transporting your check and envelope to its location. Paying online can also help protect against identity theft, wherein thieves could get access to your outgoing and incoming mail – including sensitive bills.

· Get Rid of Junk: Tired of getting junk mail? Who isn't? Instead of just promptly throwing all of your junk mail into the trash or recycling bin, take the time to opt out of receiving these messages. In the end, you'll be saving the environment and reducing your risk of identity theft.

· Affiliate Environmentally: When opening new lines of credit, consider signing up for environmental group affiliate cards, so that each time you use the card, your group will receive a percentage of your purchase.

· Eco-Reward: Similar to affiliate cards, some reward cards allow you to convert your earned points into donations for environmental groups.

It's time to start making the world a better place -- one less piece of paper at a time. And at the same time, do a better job managing your finances and protecting against identity theft!