We live in a world where mantras like “Waste Not, Want Not” and “Go Green” get tossed about , however (unfortunately ) actually living them out isn’t usually as simple as we’d like. My family has tried to reduce its carbon footprint several times (turning lights and appliances off when we’re not using them, recycling, etc) – just about everything we hear about that will let us “go green,” we try. Most of it requires a lot more work than we might like . one example? Our compost pile in our backyard and the neighborhood critters who enjoy digging through it and strewing the contents across our yard.

But once in a while , something comes along that makes it easy to go green . And, in the most recent example , that something is our Garmin GPS. Who would have thought ?

I realize you’re likely to have a mildly amused , mildly disbelieving smirk on your face right now, but stick with me.

Gas prices are higher than ever , and it doesn’t seem like that’s going to be changing anytime soon . With four kids and an impossibly rigid routine of taking them back and forth to school, every sport practice imaginable , piano lessons, friends’ homes and a slew of other  commitments , frankly, I’m shocked we haven’t shelled out as much on our gas bill as we do on the mortgage or our other bills . But, because of the Garmin GPS device we received for Christmas from my in-laws (well, two – one for each car ), we haven’t been shelling out quite so much .

I discovered that most Garmin GPS devices in the Garmin nuvi line already come equipped with this amazing little feature called ecoRoute. (You can also download it for use with compatible devices at no cost from the Garmin website). Remember how your GPS used to determine the shortest routes or the quickest routes? Now, it can figure out the most fuel efficient way to go . The programdisplays fuel and mileage data that shows your fuel consumption and conservation data, fuel efficiency and your carbon footprint. It also accounts for things like routes without as many hills and curves, fewer traffic lights and lighter traffic patterns – which means you use less gas . And let’s just say it , conserving gas money each time we drive is definitely worth it nowadays .

Garmin can’t guarantee the exact amount you’ll save using ecoRoute because they don’t know your local terrain or driving patterns , but in the past few months our family has reduced our gas usage by almost 15%. Not bad for an automotive GPS device – and equally, and possibly more importantly, not so bad for the Earth either.