Q: What would you recommend a family give their college-going children, besides bikes and goods made of recycled materials, to be ready to live in a sustainable manner at college?
Asked by Cris Gutierrez, ’77, MA ’88, Santa Monica, Calif.
Preparing your kids with reusable gear, a bike and a green cookbook is one thing. But teaching them sustainable behavior goes even further. And since this is most likely the first time they’ll truly be on their own, it’s a great opportunity for them to develop healthy-environment habits. 'A Student’s Guide to Sustainable Living at Stanford' tells students what steps they can take and the resources available on our campus to help them be more sustainable. Here are some of the ideas I think make the most sense—with lots of links to previous SAGE columns, so you can dig into the details.
Being students, they’re likely to use a lot of paper. And I mean a lot. Between lecture notes, homework problems, and term papers, I can’t even face trying to calculate how many trees a student goes through in four years. Printing double sided whenever you can will reduce that paper use substantially—and getting in the habit of not printing at all unless you really have to will reduce it even more. (SAGE assignments are all submitted and shared electronically.) Tablet laptops have touch screens and come with a “pen,” so students can take notes directly on their computer screen and significantly reduce the paper requirements for note-taking.
Studying is now your kid’s full-time job. Using natural daylight to help study will eliminate the need for electric lights. There were days when I would sit by the window to work on an assignment for a few hours, and when I finally took a break, I would turn around and realize the rest of my room (except right by the window) was very dark. My all-time favorite place to study was the local Starbucks. On a nice day, I’d grab a coffee (in my reusable mug), sit outside with my book and highlighter, and read for a couple hours. I think I was more productive this way than being cooped up in my room or in a library—and I know I was happier.
Depending on the school location and the dorm building, your kid might be able to reduce their footprint by avoiding the use of heaters or air conditioners. I went to college in Boston, where the weather really couldn’t be more extreme. In mid-August the days were hot and humid, and in January, it was freezing. I opened my windows to cool down, or would throw on an extra sweatshirt and shuffle along in my slippers to keep warm as the conditions required. The windows in my room were very leaky. The heater would have to run constantly to make up for the heat loss. You can buy plastic coverings to put on the windows to reseal them, but I know I never would have had time for a full low-tech retrofit. Instead, I decided to just get used to the cold rather than continue a losing battle against it.
Sometimes, it isn’t what you give your kid, but what you don’t give them. Many students take a mini-fridge with them to campus, but chances are they won’t really need it. Plenty of college dorms have communal kitchen areas where everyone can store things, with much more efficient fridges. Even if they don’t, roommates or friends can share one fridge rather than having two—and make sure they get an efficient, new model.
What goes into the fridge or cupboard can also have a significant impact on the environment. Your new college student might not have the time—or even know how—to cook a healthy meal, so the inclination is to eat a lot of processed junk food or microwavable meals. Replacing even a few of those meals or snacks with fresh fruit and veggies from local farmer’s markets will be healthier and better for the environment.
The last major category where college students can aim to be more sustainable is hygiene. No one wants to sit next to the smelly kid in lecture, so eliminating water use by not showering or doing laundry probably isn’t going to cut it. Taking shorter showers will reduce water use, and eco-friendly products such as phosphate-free laundry detergent or organic, plant-based soaps and shampoos are readily available. I love The Good Guide, which rates products based on their environmental, social, and health impacts. You can find a longer discussion of healthy, sustainable personal care products in this previous SAGE column.
My roommate of the past five years, Sara, is one of the most sustainable college students I know. She takes her reusable coffee mug, water bottle and shopping bags everywhere. I asked her why she thought it was important for college students to live sustainably. “College students are exposed to people in their peer groups, which gives them an opportunity to share ideas and foster a sense of community sustainability, which is an opportunity an older person living on their own doesn’t have.”
Funny she should say that, because it was largely her influence that encouraged me to buy all my reusable gear and become a vegetarian (which is also a great thing to do for the environment). Sara and I both joined several campus sustainability groups that aimed to make campus more environmentally friendly, which are great networks to be involved in if your kid is really passionate about sustainability.
It can be hard to watch your kids go off to college to live on their own. At least you can rest easy knowing that you did your best to prep them to make good decisions and to live sustainably.
Samantha Fox received her master’s degree in environmental engineering and science in 2011.
