Guest Post: Regardless of Your School Colors, Go Green!

Your college years are going to stick out in your mind for the rest of your life. It’s the only time where you’ll be on your own with limited responsibilities, outside of your grades of course. You’re going to meet new people from all over the world and perhaps travel the globe yourself. You’ll be living away from your family and will make your own decisions about pretty much everything in your daily life. One decision that you should make is caring about the environment and actually doing something about it. Here are four ways you can go green while in college:

1. Be careful about what you throw away. If you drive by a college dorm at the end of a semester you’re going to see mounds of “trash” that is definitely reusable and sometimes in really good condition. Couches, beds, mattresses, lamps, printers and countless other items are usually tossed out because college students don’t want to lug them to their new residence or don’t want to bring them home for the summer. These items are just going to wind up in a landfill, when they can be used by other students or families. Go to Craigslist and post your items for reuse. Hey, you can make a quick buck too!
2. Leave your car at home. Campuses are designed for the walker. If your campus is huge in your estimation then take public transportation to the library or to your class on the other side of the quad. If you absolutely need your car then leave it in a student lot and use it only when you absolutely must. You’re in college; do you have money to throw away on gas that’s wasted on pointless driving?
3. Put some green in your diet. The dining hall is no longer a wasteland for food choices. Most colleges have listened to their students and offer a wider variety of healthier options. Some even support local growers and buy fruits and vegetables from local farms. Eating non-processed foods will help you also keep off the “freshman 15.”
4. Recycle whenever possible. Colleges are leading advocates for saving the environment and have made it easier for their students to pitch in by recycling. In your dorm’s trash area there will be clearly marked sections for you to deposit recyclable items. Make it easier on yourself by having two receptacles in your place: one for trash and another for recycling. It’s a great habit to get into at a young age.

This article was contributed by Heather Johnson, who is a regular writer on the subject of Concord Law School Reviews. She welcomes your questions, comments and writing job opportunities at heatherjohnson2323[at]gmail[dot]com.

EC SIFE welcomes guest submission of articles for our blog. Feel free to contact us on our website, http://www.etown.edu/sife.

Sife Sense - Going Green (Extended Edition)

Authors Note: This is an extended edition of the Going Green article that appeared in the Etownian, it contains additional ideas and ways to be friendly to the environment and save some money.

In today’s world of complex electronics and disposable products, being environmentally friendly can seem a challenging and expensive task. Yet there are many things that an ordinary college student can do to save the environment, and save some money at the same time.

There are always the simple things you can do to save some green (both the natural and the monetary kind). First, when you go to bed at night, turn off your computer; it doesn’t need to be on while you sleep, and if someone has an important message to leave you, they can always send an email. Another simple computer tip is to set your monitor to go into power-save when you haven’t used your computer in a while, this saves both energy and makes your screen last longer. Lastly, you probably didn’t grow up in a barn, so turn off your lights when you leave a room. Right now you may be thinking to yourself, why does this matter, the college pays my electric bill. You’re right, they do pay the bill, and you also need to remember that you pay their bills every year. Why not save a little bit of power, and maybe keep that tuition increase a bit smaller next year?

Want to be a bit healthier and save some cash, do something that you do every day, walk. At well over $2 a gallon, gasoline is expensive and pollutes. Walking, or riding a bike, is a good way to save some money and the environment. Have to head to the quads? Walk there, or ride your bike, there is no reason to drive. Even a walking trip from campus to the grocery store is entirely plausible on a nice day. Those short trips are also the most damaging to your vehicle, reducing performance and driving up repair bills. Also, watch your speed while driving home for the weekend or on a break. For every 5 mph over 60 mph you drive, it can waste up to 10 cents per gallon.

At the end of the semester or the year, don’t throw out all those things in your room that you don’t want to take home. As the adage goes, one person’s trash is another person’s treasure. Have an old shelf you don’t need any more, or perhaps a slightly used futon? Put it in the campus classifieds, or if its small, put it on eBay. Selling things on eBay is easier than you think, and if you sell it for a few dollars, it’s better than making nothing. At the same time, you are reducing the amount of trash that is hauled off to landfills. If you can’t sell it, try to recycle it, or give it away for free to someone who can use it. When looking for new furniture, or almost anything, check out sites like Freecycle (www.freecycle.org) or Craigslist (www.craigslist.org), for bargains in the local area. Items can cost significantly less, and you prevent them from going to a landfill.

If you buy bottled water, consider purchasing a water filter pitcher, or one that mounts on a sink. Most bottled water is just filtered tap water, and is expensive and wasteful. The energy used to pump, transport, disinfect, and bottle water is more than you may think. Unless the bottle is recycled, it also adds to landfill space. Using a water filter can pay for itself quicker than you may think, at over a dollar per bottle, the cost of the most plentiful resource on earth adds up fast.

Here are some other items to consider. Buy and sell used textbooks; they are cheaper and avoid wasting paper. Avoid printing unnecessary pages, only print what you need. Don’t take more food than you are going to eat in the Marketplace or at a buffet, you can always go back for more. Reuse what you can, recycle what you cannot.

Going green can be done without any really hard work, just a few simple changes in your everyday tasks. Remember that every little bit helps, and that being friendly to the environment can save you some green in the bank as well.

Portions of this article appeared in the September 20th edition of the Etownian.

Sife Sense - Going Green

In today’s world of complex electronics and disposable products, being environmentally friendly can seem a challenging and expensive task. Yet there are many things that an ordinary college student can do to save the environment, and save some money at the same time.

There are always simple things you can do to save some green (natural and monetary). When you go to bed at night, turn off your computer. Another simple tip, set your monitor to go into power-save when you haven’t used your computer in a while, this saves energy and your screen. Lastly, you probably didn’t grow up in a barn, so turn off the lights when you leave a room. You may be thinking, who cares, the college pays my electric bill. You’re right, but you pay their bills every semester. Save some electricity, and keep that tuition increase a bit smaller next year.

At well over $2 a gallon, gasoline is expensive and pollutes. Walking or riding a bike is a good way to save some money and the environment. Have to head to the quads, downtown, or the grocery store? There’s no need to drive. Those short trips are also the most damaging to your vehicle, reducing performance and driving up repair bills. Also, watch your speed while driving home for the weekend or a break. For every 5 mph over 60 mph you drive, it can waste up to 10 cents per gallon.

At the end of the year, don’t throw out those things you don’t want to take home. Have some old stuff you don’t need anymore? Put it in the campus classifieds, or sell it on eBay. Selling things on online is easier than you think, and an easy way to make some cash and reduce trash. If you can’t sell it, recycle it or give it away for free. When looking for new furniture, check out sites like Freecycle (www.freecycle.org) or Craigslist (www.craigslist.org) for bargains in the area.

If you drink bottled water, consider purchasing a water filter. Most bottled water is just expensive filtered tap water. The energy used to pump, transport, disinfect, and bottle water is more than you may think, and most water bottles are never recycled. According to the Sierra Club, the cost for filtered water is approximately $.13/gallon and for bottled water at minimum $1.27 per gallon (or much more in smaller bottles). A filter clearly is an easy and inexpensive way to get water.

Going green can be done easily, just a few simple changes in your everyday tasks. Remember, going green can save the environment, and your wallet at the same time.

Published in the Etownian, September 20th, 2007.