Eliminate the need to recycle something, to throw it away, to find a new home for it by not buying that new thing to begin with. So often it's easy to think we need the newest latest whatever, but it's really just something that took energy to create, to get shipped somewhere, get packaged and might need to be recycled (which also takes energy):

Writing for AT, it can be tempting to want all the cool new decor items, to want to switch out those drapes, to change a color scheme (and therefore need new plates) to get new pillows, etc. But something has to happen to the stuff we already have so we really try to take a moment before letting anything through our doors to make sure it's something that's worth bringing home. When we put the apartment on a diet we even stopped buying vintage pieces because it all was taking up so much room we were gonna need to rent a storage space, and that kinda went against small space living (mom's garage is one thing, a storage space is another).So we seek to be happy with what we have, instead of indulging the grass is always greener feeling.

That, for us, is keeping it simple.

[image from GiltGood's Flickr]

Related Reads:
5 Things Cluttering Up the Bathroom
When Things Begin Possessing You
The But I Might Need It Syndrome