The New York Times last week, Oprah the week before that. Now, even NPR is talking couponing now! There is no bright spot to our global economic situation, but all of this attention has to be good for bargain hunters. The more people looking for and using coupons, the more a company is likely to put them out there. Right?

Clearly, the economic situation has filtered down into the green consciousness, and quickly. None of us want to part with our natural lifestyle choices, if it can be avoided. Treehugger discusses our collective belt-tightening and what it means for the ability to buy organic foods, nontoxic cleaners, and the like. Of course, sage is here to argue that you might be able to find a way to have it all (or at least find a coupon to help…). And I’m not the only one. Divine Caroline shares Smart Organic Choices for Limited Budgets. Eco Child’s Play has posted 4 articles in a series (so far, perhaps more are coming) on Being Green in a Tight Economy (Part I, II, III, IV).

What changes have I made?

• Continuing to drive less and combine errands, even when gas prices feel like a bargain. As a bargain nut, it’s easy to say, “$2.33? Fill ‘er up!” The truth is, prices will stabilize sooner than the economy does, and the impact on the climate hasn’t changed one iota.
• Tightening our “extra expenditures” budget. When I hit the ATM, I take out half as much money as I used to, to see how long I can make it last. In addition, we slide a lump sum into an ING account that I have a debit card for, to cover all of our household expenses besides bills and grocery shopping for the entire month. This is the shoes and cloth diapers and eBay fund, which I augment with anything I get via PayPal. So far, I’ve never exceeded the ING budget, and I try to spend as little of it as possible.
• Making my own cleaners as store-bought ones run out. I’ve been a slave to method and Seventh Generation in places where borax and baking soda would do.

I guess mostly I feel like I know how to make smarter choices, by keeping this site I’ve linked to so many easy, important ideas, so now it’s time to put my money and my efforts where my mouth is!

How about you? What small changes have you made, maybe without giving them too much thought, that you hope will impact your bottom line? Inspire me