Deb1216
Registered: December 2008
City/Town/Province: Seattle
Posts: 1
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“Be the change you wish to see in the world” ~Gandhi. From the day I moved into Alpha Xi Delta as a freshman at University of Washington, I knew I had to make a change. I immediately created an AXiD Go Green project. With dedication and persistence, through a unanimous vote, I was soon elected to the newly formed Go Green Chair of my house.
My mind was continuously overwhelmed with the countless of ideas I wanted to execute in reducing my chapter’s carbon footprint. However, I knew I had to think a bit rationally. I had critically noticed the countless number of little things my house could be environmentally conscious of. My project essentially consisted of pinpointing these little things, finding a solution and educating the 70-some members of my house while keeping in mind to enforce the idea that making new habits take time and commitment, all of which truly do make differences on a global scale.
Our study room had no recycling bin. People would print on one side of a sheet and throw it away if they messed up. Thus, in an effort to kill two birds with one stone, I set up a simple Go Green system by putting a box in the room with the words written “Recycle/Scratch Paper” on it. People could not only recycle paper, but also find one-sided papers to print their “unimportant” documents on or use to do some math problems on. Every week, I would filter through the box, recycling any unusable papers. Of course, I had to take into account the fact that many often forget to do these green things, so I typed up some reminders and stuck them right in front of everyone’s work station.
After a few days, almost everyone was not only aware of the new system, but was doing their part by reducing, reusing, and recycling. It made me so incredibly happy to see the difference that one box (and a bit of effort) had. One member came up to me and told me how she turned in her paper on the backside of someone else's old paper. Her teacher was confused and concluded that she had plagiarized and cheated so she had to inform her teacher that our house is making an effort to conserve paper to get her well deserved grade. This anecdote is not only relevant in that she saved 3-4 sheets of paper, but that this she was Sara S, a woman grown up to have no remorse when tossing a soda can. Sara told me her parents have always made fun of sustainability. It has made me ecstatic to see the change I have made in her. She is even now enforcing the same rules to her parents!
Moving on from forest conservation, I was equally eager to decrease the water and electric bill. In doing so, I created short and sweet Go Green Tip of the Weeks. Each Tip of the Week stared out with the bold change, for example – “Take Shorter Showers.” I followed each with a brief statement on the impact it would have – “Beat those timers! Take it a step further and turn the water off while scrubbing. We would all love to take a 30-minute hot shower, but that’s just selfish. Not only do showers waste water, they waste energy: 17% of the energy used in homes is to heat water (EIA).” I concluded each with an inspirational quote – “Making new habits take time and commitment. ‘We never know the worth of water till the well is dry.’ ~Thomas Fuller, Gnomologia, 1732.” I had already typed them all up, but the real concern was where to put them. Where would be a place where everyone would see it, see it often, see it often and actually read it? After thoughtful consideration, I came up with the perfect location: the bathroom stalls. There were three stalls located on each of the two bedroom floors. Members would come across it at least two or three times a week for seven days until the next tip appeared. Whether or not they proceeded to do change was beyond my control, but I certainly urged and agitated everyone to do so any chance I got.
I know I made an impact on the house when one told me this story. She had just finished the last of the tea box, and apparently was not thinking and threw it away. At least five or six others occupied the kitchen at the time. All of them yelled at her to recycle the box, even the chef! One person mentioned, “What would Debbie do if she saw you do that!”
Everyday people, especially the average American, take for granted the readily available resources – water, energy, trees, etc. According to NPR, only about 23% of bottles are recycled. Recycling is just about the easiest thing to do in achieving a sustainable environment. If I can get 70 people to recycle their bottles, they can get 70 more people to as well. It is important to conserve our precious resources, and save some for our children. It is important for all to acknowledge that is everyone’s responsibility to care for our earth, as there is only one and only one.
This project is far from completion. It is the beginning of a much bigger project. The Apprentice Ecologist Initiate has opened my mind to endless opportunities. It gave me an extra push in reaching my goals. I am sure it has done the same to hundreds of other students. If so, I am thankful for it. Setting up recycling programs, cleaning up a river, are all great local contributions people often overlook. As Vincent Van Gogh said, "Great things are done by a series of small things brought together.”
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the toilet stall idea was great!
