Who says saving the world has to happen on your own time?

Meet the Green Team at the New Hampshire Community Loan Fund (www.theloanfund.org), a nonprofit that helps low-income people gain long-term economic stability: Its Green Team members have helped bring about a lot of changes at work, both big and small. Here are just a few of their recent victories:

* Employees recycle.

* They print on double-sided paper when possible

* The organization’s outside lighting is on a timer.

* Copiers shut down between 5 p.m. and 7 a.m.

• Replace leaky faucets. One leaking faucet can waste approximately 4,000 gallons of water per month.
• Showers use three times less water than a bath. Install a low-flow showerhead, which will cut water use to 3 gallons a minute without affecting the flow.
• Turn off the water to brush teeth, shave and soap up in the shower. Filling the sink to shave uses only one gallon, while letting the water run can use 10 gallons per shave or more. Turning off the water when you brush your teeth can save four gallons of water each time.

According to the Earth Policy Institute (www.earth-policy.org/): “Annual consumption in the United States in 1976 was less than 2 gallons for every man, woman, and child; some 30 years later, Americans on average each now drink about 30 gallons of bottled water a year.”

According to the institute, compared with tap water, which is delivered through an energy-efficient infrastructure, bottled water is an “incredibly wasteful” product.

To open drains the nontoxic way, use a plunger or mechanical snake, or pour a half-cup baking soda into drain, then pour two cups boiling water into drain. Or, our personal favorite, flush drain weekly with boiling water. (It’s easy to do this if you make tea regularly: Just pour the rest of the water down a drain, and voila.)