5 Ways To Go Green At Uni

With levels of plastic in the ocean set to overtake the amount of sea life by 2050, there has never been such a public push to ‘go green’. Going green means ditching non-reusable plastic, cutting your carbon footprint and being generally environmentally friendly. Leading a greener life benefits all life on our planet, so here are 5 ideas to help you do it at uni.

Stay put

It can be very tempting to crawl back home for a roast dinner and some fresh laundry at the weekend. But the issue is you wouldn’t be crawling; you would be driving or getting some form of public transport. The average small car releases 10kg of CO₂ for every 50 miles it travels, so the toxic emissions of a journey home from uni and back can really add up. Instead, make the most of your weekends at uni by spending time with your housemates and exploring the local area.

Go digital

Around 80,000 acres of rainforest are destroyed every day. Many of the trees felled are transformed into paper. You can help to limit the rate of logging by bringing a laptop to lectures and using it to make notes. This should also improve your organisation as you won’t have any loose papers to lose.

Reuse your coffee cup

Students are famed for their excessive coffee consumption. How else are you supposed to make it through a 9am lecture without dozing off? Most take away coffee cups are non-recyclable and are hence destined for landfill. You could negate the need for these wasteful cups by bringing a flask of homemade coffee to the lecture, saving both money and the environment. Or, if you crave the sweet taste of a caramel macchiato, invest in a reusable coffee cup for only £1 at Starbucks – that’s less than a hot drink!

Meat-free Mondays

The rearing of livestock is responsible for a colossal 51% of all the greenhouse gasses we release into the atmosphere. Help to lower the demand by reducing the amount of meat you consume. A good way to start is by taking part in the Meat-free Mondays campaign, where supporters go vegetarian one day a week. You could even encourage your housemates to join you and cook a meal together on a Monday night.

Layer up

A major cause of household disputes at university revolve around the thermostat. With all of you contributing to the heating bill, you need to agree when it’s okay to turn the heating on. Perhaps instead of upping the thermostat, you could opt for a jumper. Invest in blankets, hot water bottles and thermal under layers to battle the cold and resist the temptation to turn the heating on.

There are 2.32 million students in the UK alone. If every student made these small adjustments, it would have a huge positive effect on the future of our planet.

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