It’s that time again, Fayetteville! The traffic is picking up, Dickson street is bustling, and the dorms are officially full. The first week of classes are already behind us as students are settling in and reestablishing routines. We love watching the town come to life around this time each year, and we can’t wait to discover what this group of students will contribute to our community here in Northwest Arkansas. Each semester, we are so impressed with the caliber of students we meet and how much they care about the same issues that drive us—issues like sustainability and the environment.
We know how overwhelming school can be, especially when you’re trying to keep a healthy balance between studying, eating, sleeping, friends, and everything else you care about. Trying to be more sustainable might seem like a lot of extra effort sometimes, but don’t worry! Adventure Subaru is here to help. We came up with a list of 9 simple steps you can take to be a more sustainable student this year. Check them out below!
Takes notes on your computer or tablet.
Even in this digital era, paper is one of the biggest issues when it comes to sustainability and college students. Fortunately, there’s a pretty simple fix: don’t use paper when you don’t absolutely have to. These days, taking notes electronically on a computer or tablet is more than just possible—it’s easy, and even expected. If you nix the paper and start recording everything on your laptop, you’ll end up helping the environment and saving a lot of money. If you need a little help keeping everything organized, try using an app like Evernote or Google Keep.
Get a refillable water bottle.
We all know by now that water bottles are not the best thing for the environment. Most of them never get recycled, and U.S. landfills are overflowing with 2 million tons of discarded water bottles alone. Buying a reusable bottle will end up costing you much less in the long run, so there’s really no reason not to do it. Plus, let’s be real here… you’ll look so much cooler with a Nalgene, anyway.
Turn off & unplug.
Shut it down! Every time you leave a room, take an extra few seconds to turn off lights and unplug electronics. Even when you are in a room, there’s no reason to leave things plugged in and turned on that you’re not using. If you live in a dorm with utilities included, things like this might be harder to remember. But just because you don’t see it in your bill doesn’t mean it’s not making a significant difference. The environment will thank you whether you’re saving money or not!
Borrow & buy used.
It’s so easy to overbuy, especially if you’re an incoming freshman and you’re still figuring out how everything works. Take it from us, though. Your professors do not care whether your textbook is new or used or borrowed, as long as you can get the work done. Your peers don’t care if your clothes are new or thrifted or handed down, either. There aren’t this many thrift stores in the area for nothing! Seriously though, do not buy new textbooks. You are almost guaranteed to regret it. Not only is it a waste of paper and energy, but it’s a huge waste of money. Buying them used, renting them or borrowing them is a great way to recycle and it’s a lot cheaper.
Walk, bike or bus.
It’s time to rethink transportation! Driving is another major contributor to student carbon footprints, and most of the time it’s not actually necessary. If you live in the dorms, chances are you’re already walking to all your classes. But you can do that if you live off-campus, too! Wouldn’t you rather avoid the agony of on-campus parking, anyway? If you’re a little too far to walk, try riding your bike. Fayetteville is an extremely bike-friendly place, with trail systems and even free bike repair stations throughout the city and on campus. If your commute just doesn’t allow for that, take advantage of the U of A’s bus system. The buses go just about everywhere in town, so you should be able to find a stop somewhere close by.
Waste less water.
First, we want to be clear. When we talk about wasting less water, we don’t mean drinking less of it. Staying hydrated is very important to a person’s health, mood, energy level, etc. There are plenty of things you can do to help save water without limiting your drinking habits. For one thing, you can take shorter showers. Did you know that for every minute the shower is running, you’re using half a gallon of water? That means cutting out just one minute per day can save 180 gallons of water each year. Don’t let the water run until you’re ready to get in, and turn off the faucet while you’re brushing your teeth and shaving. You can also wash your clothes on cold to save energy. A huge chunk of energy used by washing machines goes into heating up the water, so using the cold setting can make a big difference.
Waste less food.
This one should be a no-brainer, but we’ll re-enforce it anyway. Don’t take food that you’re not going to eat. Always take a to-go box. Stop throwing away so much! Studies show that food is actually the second largest component of our landfills. That means people are throwing away more food than nearly anything else. The only way to make a change is for all of us to work together toward wasting less and eating more sustainably. If you want to go the extra mile, eat less meat and fewer animal products in general. The meat industry produces a lot of harmful greenhouse gases, so cutting meat out of even one meal per day can make a positive difference.
Reduce, reuse, recycle.
Recycling is such an important step in reducing waste, whether it’s paper or plastic or aluminum. Fortunately, it’s a very easy thing to do for U of A students. You can find recycling receptacles in every building on campus. They’re even designated for paper, cans and plastics—so there’s no reason not to use them. If you can’t or don’t want to take digital notes for every class, you can still cut down on your paper waste by simply recycling it when you’re done. If you don’t live on campus, don’t worry. You can still recycle and keep your bottles, cans and paper out of the landfill. In Fayetteville, curbside recycling is available for homes, apartment recycling is available for apartments, commercial recycling is available for businesses and organizations, event recycling is available for local activities, and if all else fails, recycling drop-off locations are available for anyone in the community who doesn’t have another way to recycle.
Buy a Subaru.
You might walk or take the bus to class, but that doesn’t mean you won’t need a vehicle to drive around town, go visit your family with or take on adventures. If you want a vehicle that is both sustainable and fit for Northwest Arkansas culture, consider a Subaru. Manufacturing cars requires a huge amount of energy and resources. Subaru believes that reducing the environmental impact while manufacturing vehicles is the sole responsibility of vehicle manufacturers. That’s why they recover useful materials from used vehicles for use in new vehicles. That’s also why Subaru puts a focus on clean factories for green vehicle production, where waste generated during the production process is reduced to zero.
If you’re interested in learning more about Subaru and the vehicles we have on the lot, stop by and see us at Adventure Subaru in Fayetteville. You can fill out our contact form here.
