College students are known for many things. One is your busy schedules, regardless of your majors. Another is how stressed you can get given your workloads, especially come finals week. Given these, it’s no surprise that your parents expect you to give your studies your full attention.
Still, even as students, you have a responsibility to our deteriorating earth. All of us should do our parts. If enough people do something, we can make a significant change. Here are ways to save the environment as college students.
Recycle
The simplest way you can lessen your environmental impact is by recycling. Start by segregating your trash and keeping away recyclable materials from perishables and other non-recyclables. If you’re staying at a dorm, inquire if there’s a program in place for recycled materials. If there isn’t any, check out local disposal companies since most of them have it in place.
This doesn’t only apply to your waste, but other things you use daily, as well. Vegetable oil is one. Recycling oil means having it cool down before transferring it into a leak-proof container. Once full, you can take it to a local disposal area that recycles oil. It’s time to bring your vegetable oil recycling to the future.
Produce Less Waste
Many have gone zero-waste in the past few years, but it’s understandable if some people can’t bring down their waste to zero. Still, it’s good to adopt the habit of lessening the waste you produce. This can be done in many ways, the most popular of which is by using reusable items.
Bags and water bottles are some, to name a few. When you’re out buying groceries, keep an eco-bag handy so that your local grocer doesn’t have to supply you with a plastic or brown bag. When it comes to hydrating, which is always important, invest in a decent water bottle that you can refill time and time again. This is the cheaper alternative to purchasing plastic bottles of water every time you’re thirsty.
Drive Less
Cars and other vehicles that aren’t electric cause significant damage to the environment. A way to combat this is by encouraging people, like yourself, to lessen the time you spend on these vehicles.
If possible, cycle or walk when going around your campus, especially if it’s only a short distance. Doing either helps the environment as well as your body, which needs physical activity to stay healthy. If a car is required to go long distances, see if you can pool with others. This saves you gas money, too, since everyone can pitch in. It’s also much better to fit at least four people into a car instead of having one or two go on separate vehicles.
Saving the environment is a group effort. Our nation’s leaders are already trying to lessen the damage by our country as a whole, so we also have to do something. It doesn’t have to be a grand display, or something expensive or widespread. Making changes to your daily routine and lifestyle is enough of an effort. Encouraging others to do the same is beneficial, too.