What shade are you?

Dark green
(i.e., getting into it)

Illustration: Wendy Plovmand

If you’re really committed to Gaia pride, be prepared to make some major changes, whether you’re overhauling your body, your kitchen or your wardrobe (put down that artificial spandex!).

What to do: Join the chain gang

What you get out of it:  According to bike advocacy group Transportation Alternatives, 40,000 New Yorkers are riding their bikes to work each day—and that doesn’t include pedicabs. Besides shortening your commute—the average cyclist rides 30 minutes each way, 15 minutes less than straphangers—you’ll also save money. The operating cost per mile for a bike is 9.75 cents compared with 15.1 cents for a car, and that’s in addition to the cash you’ll save on a gym membership, since cyclists burn an average of 440 calories a day riding to and from work.

What the environment gets out of it: “Commuting by bike results in zero carbon emissions,” Vance Wagner of Transportation Alternatives says. “This is one area in which people have direct control over their carbon footprint.” In comparison, each person riding the subway creates 750 pounds of CO2 emissions per year, and bigwigs riding around in SUVs create 4,000 pounds. Think about that while hitting one of Metro Bicycles’ six Manhattan locations (metrobicycles.com); there, you can score a Trek hybrid for around $300.

What to do: Reduce, reuse, renovate

What you get out of it:  In a town where everyone’s a foodie, it’s important to have a top-of-the-line kitchen—even if you never cook. You’ve got to keep the leftovers from Vegetarian’s Paradise 2 (144 W 4th St between Sixth Ave and MacDougal St, 212-260-7130) somewhere, right? Buy your kitchen materials at Build It Green! (3-17 26th Ave between 3rd and 4th Sts, Astoria, Queens; 718-777-0132, bignyc.org). Offering overstock materials donated by builders, BIG sells items like Viking stoves, Sub-Zero refrigerators, cabinetry, office furniture and lumber at 50–75 percent off their regular prices. “It’s an opportunity to do the right thing and to save money,” says program director Justin Green (yes, really, that’s his name!).

What the environment gets out of it: By putting these wares back in the market, Build It Green! keeps them out of landfills, which produce that aforementioned methane gas. In the two years they’ve been operating, Build It Green! has prevented more than 500 tons of material from going into landfills, and Green figures that installing a reused kitchen will reduce your greenhouse emissions by almost one ton. Additionally, all profits are donated to SolarOne, an environmental education program.

What to do: Get some green in your closet.

What you get out of it: Eco-chic has come a long way. Stop by Kaight (83 Orchard St between Broome and Grand Sts; 212-680-5630, kaightnyc.com), which opened last year on the Lower East Side, and you’ll find hip and hemp with fashion-forward green lines. The store’s owner, Kate McGregor, says that by buying green clothing, “You’re not wearing toxins; you’re doing something healthy for yourself.” For more green fashions, see Seek, page 52.

What the environment gets out of it: Approximately 25 percent of the world’s insecticides and 10 percent of pesticides are consumed by cotton production, according to the Organic Cotton Exchange. By supporting designers who use organic materials, you lessen the use of these chemicals. And wouldn’t you love a pair of summer sandals for that newly slim carbon footprint?—Adam Rathe

Your Live Impact score 178

If you’re two people living in a two-bedroom, average $50 a month in electricity, use energy-efficient CFL lighting, never drive, take the subway and bus, rarely fly, recycle and turn off your computer monitor (and lights) at night, your score is a 178, with an annual carbon output of two tons.