We are committed to both taking personal steps and doing everything in our power to push the Wesleyan Administration and community in general to adopt sustainable practices, values, and ideals in everything that the University does day to day.
The Wesleyan Administration is loath to undertake any environmentally responsible project on campus that doesn't have a return on investment of less than 5 years. But the environmental challenges that the world faces in the coming decades are too serious for Wesleyan, as a socially aware institution of higher learning, to simply write off. As Wesleyan's primary funders, we need to let the administration know that eliminating our carbon footprint and becoming environmentally sustainable is a top priority.
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Tips for living more sustainably at Wesleyan:
1. Don't drive a car around campus. Walk or bike whenever possible.
2. Turn your lights off *every* time you leave your room (or any room). According to Wesleyan's Utilities Manager Peter Staye, wasted energy consumption accounts for about 20% of the energy on campus.
3. Bring plastic bags you've already purchased (or a backpack) to Weshop so you don't have to get a new one (and save 10¢ by doing so). Also, bring a mug to Pi Cafe and Red and Black and be rewarded similarly.
4. Recycle everything that can possibly be recycled. If it's something more obscure like styrofoam, cardboard, or batteries, make a pile of it somewhere and take a trip to one of the appropriate dumpsters (or the "unique" recycling shelves in the science center) on campus. See http://www.wesleyan.edu/recycling for details.
5. When going to or from campus, try to take public transportation and carpool as much as possible. Use the ride board to find other people who are offering/need rides.
6. Don't buy bottled water. The state of Connecticut puts millions of dollars into maintaining healthy tap water, and bottled water requires transportation energy (sometimes all the way from Fiji!) and energy to create the bottle (not to mention that plastic bottles are petroleum-based products and help perpetuate our foreign oil dependence). Fill a bottle you've already used with tap water.
7. Replace all the incandescent (standard, pear-shaped) light bulbs in your room with compact fluorescents (twirly-shaped). This saves 75% of the energy your lamps are consuming. Free light bulbs are available at the Cardinal Technology Center in Usdan!
8. Compost your food waste. Email compost@wesleyan.edu for details about how to get a compost bucket for your house/hall and have your bucket emptied on a regular basis.
9. Wash your clothes in cold water ("Bright Colors" setting on campus machines). This uses far less energy than warm water.
10. When possible, dry your clothes on a drying rack instead of using a drying machine.
11. Turn off your computer every single night. The power it consumes each night, even when in sleep mode, adds up to huge amounts of energy.
12. Unplug cell phone, iPod, and laptop chargers whenever the devices are not plugged in. When possible, put surge protectors into "off" mode to avoid needless electricity drainage.
13. Buy used books instead of new ones. If the bookstore is out of used books, try to buy your books from other students, or online.
14. If you can avoid it, don't print out documents that are on E-Reserve. Read them on your computer to save paper.
15. Buy food produced locally to reduce the impact of shipping foodstuffs around the world. Try to avoid buying food that is only grown in faraway places (mangoes, bananas, etc.).
16. If you need to drive, drive more slowly than you normally do. This increases your gasoline efficiency and decreases the number of times you need to fill up.
17. Close all windows when buildings are being heated or cooled.
18. Report to Physical Plant (work_order@wesleyan.edu) any inefficiencies in your Wesleyan residence, office, or workplace (such as dripping faucets, cracks in windows, overheating, etc.).
19. Conserve water by taking shorter showers and turn off water while brushing your teeth, washing your face, shaving, or washing dishes.
20. Support local and national politicians who are committed to the environment and addressing climate change, and write letters to politicians who aren't.
21. Avoid throwing things away whenever possible. Reuse before you recycle. If it can't be recycled, try to think of some other practical use for it, or consider if someone else could use it (Goodwill? Freecycle?).
22. Try to think about the consequences of all your actions in terms of energy consumption and environmental impact. Be conscious of these issues when buying products at Weshop, doing laundry, moving around campus and beyond campus, and everything else you do on a day-to-day basis.
23. Talk to your friends, professors, and family about all these issues. The only way for real change to occur is for everyone to think about their actions in an entirely new way.
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