KEEP IT GREEN: SIMPLE STEPS TO BEING MORE SUSTAINABLE

Good evening, visitors!
I am a member of the Green Navigators; a group of students at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth who educate the community on how to be more sustainable. 
Some of you may be asking, “what is sustainability” and “why should we care”?
Let me break it down for you!

 
Sustainability Basics
 
As defined by Dictionary.com, Sustainability is “Environmental Science. the quality of not being harmful to the environment or depleting natural resources, and thereby supporting long-term ecological balance”.
 
So what does that mean?
Essentially, we’re living on a finite planet with finite resources. We’re consuming our resources at a deadly rate. We are growing too quickly in population and our resources cannot keep up. Therefore, we need to make our resources last.
 
So, how do you be more sustainable?
Most people think being sustainable is an enormous lifestyle change, but small steps can lead to a bigger, better impact and YOU being more sustainable! Here are some helpful and fun tips directly from the Green Navigators to help you make better and greener choices. 
 
Slash the Trash
Plastic water bottles aren't the only thing you can recycle! Paper, plastic, cardboard, Aluminum and even glass can be recycled. Find the recycling bins among your community and choose to reduce, reuse, and recycle. An example of this is the company Thread. Thread takes plastic bottles and repurposes them into fabric which can be used as sustainable fashion.
Why is recycling important?
 
Do you know of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch? In the ocean, there is a GIANT patch of plastic and chemical waste floating. Debris combined with the currents formed this wasteland. Marine life is found dead with plastic and waste in their bellies due to consumption of said plastic, whether from the patch or from coastal pollution. Recycling can help limit the pollution and reuse materials such as plastic for good, rather than harm.
 
 
Limit Your Minutes
Clean water is a finite resource. Showering and washing your hands can lead to gallons of water wasted. When brushing your teeth, don’t let the water run in between. Shut it off and use when necessary. When showering, play music on your phone or radio or sing to time your shower length in order to not waste water. 
 
You heard it here, singing in the shower can help you be more sustainable! So sing at the top of your lungs, you shower superstar.
 
 
Be Bold, Go Cold
Washing your clothes can be a waste of energy and water. Using the "Brights" setting washes your clothes in cold water which uses less energy than washing in another setting. Hot water takes more energy and resources when washing and the bright setting is a more sustainable choice.
Don’t forget; choose to wash full loads in order to be more sustainable! And, it’s better for your pocket; mostly if you’re a college kid who pays for laundry! 
 
 
Reduce the Juice
Reduce your energy use! Often times, we leave phone chargers in the wall when we leave, DVD players on even though we haven’t put a DVD in for months, and lights on when the sun is shining.
Turn off or unplug electronics and devices you're not using. When you leave your home, unplug and shut off electronics, too. This simple task helps us to not waste energy!
 
The Wrap Up
As previously stated, we live on a finite planet. WE won’t live forever, but, we will have ancestors that will be forced to face the devastating effects of a planet with a lack of resources if we don’t put in effort now.
 
I hope this blog post has sparked your interest in sustainability and has educated you on the quick and easy ways to make your life more sustainability.
 
Keep it Green!
 
Samantha Gottlich