How to be More Eco-Friendly as a College Student

With college starting up soon and many students anticipating new dorms to live in or apartments to furnish, here are some ideas to make the transition more environmentally-friendly. Good luck this semester to all of our fellow earthlings heading back to school!

1. Avoid trends

Avoiding trends is one of the biggest favors you can do for the planet when heading off to college! You don’t need to have a perfectly color-coordinated room, a new bedspread, trunk, decor, lamps, decorative pillows, etc. Obviously, never feel like you can’t treat yourself to some nice things! But avoiding over consumption of goods is vital to reducing the amount of natural resources we consume and the amount of waste we produce. As stated by the UN’s International Resource Panel, “extraction of the earth’s natural resources tripled in the past five decades,” and if we continue to deplete them at this rate, the damage will be irreversible.

The bedspread you own now has the potential to serve you well for years to come, and there are so many cute, second hand items you can discover at vintage boutiques and thrift stores that would make your room unique!

2. Command strip alternatives

I remember the endless command strips I used in college and the hundreds of little plastic strips that fluttered around my dorm room as I hung different pictures. While convenient for me, the plastic strips were producing so much more waste than necessary! While many dorm rooms and on-campus living arrangements have strict rules about what you can and can’t use to hang pictures on your walls, there are other eco-options available. One I’ve never heard talked about (that's also super cute) is washi tape! It’s an adhesive option made entirely from paper that won’t strip paint from the walls and comes with countless different patterns and designs.

3. Reusables at meal time

So much waste is produced in college cafeterias. Whether through take-out containers, plastic utensils, or napkins, meal times produce a lot of waste! To help reduce potential trash, you can always bring along a cloth napkin or two in your backpack along with a spare fork and knife. It might be worth investing in a travel utensil pack, or you can just snag a lone fork from the thrift store (or your parents house!). If you know you’ll be grabbing take-out or don’t think you’ll finish your food, bring along a reusable tupperware container to save any leftovers, as college students on average waste 142 pounds of food per student every year.

4. Clothing exchange parties

Because most college students don’t have the money for shopping sprees, this idea is one that is not only eco-friendly, but very budget-friendly as well. Planning mini mixers where friends and peers can bring unwanted clothes gives everyone an opportunity to revamp their closets with secondhand options! Anything to prevent further waste from the fast fashion industry helps, as it is responsible for discharging 90% of the toxic dyes used during manufacturing directly into waterways.

5. Upperclassmen hand-me-downs

One rule of thumb if you’re looking for a certain piece of furniture or appliance is to ask upperclassmen if they’re looking to sell! Many colleges will have forum pages to post questions like this. Not only will there be a chance of you finding a free/cheap microwave or mini-fridge, but you’ll also be saving this item from becoming one of the 2 million small appliances that end up in the U.S. landfills each year. 

If you have any more ideas about living sustainably in college or as a young adult at university, please share them in the comments below! We’re here to support each other and help the earth become a cleaner place.

References:

M, Seth. How OverConsumption Affects the Environment and Health - Explained. Sentient. https://sentientmedia.org/overconsumption/

Consumption: Natural resources and the environment. Friends of the Earth. https://friendsoftheearth.uk/consumption-natural-resources

Human Consumption of Earth’s Natural Resources Has Tripled in 40 Years. EcoWatch. https://www.ecowatch.com/humans-consumption-of-earths-natural-resources-tripled-in-40-years-1943126747.html

Global Resources Outlook 2024 - Press Release. International Resource Panel. https://www.resourcepanel.org/news-events/global-resources-outlook-2024-press-release

P, Linda. When Food Is Too Good To Waste, College Kids Pick Up The Scraps. NPR. https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2015/02/27/389284061/when-food-is-too-good-to-waste-college-kids-pick-up-the-scraps

Food Waste Estimation Guide. Recycling Works. https://recyclingworksma.com/food-waste-estimation-guide/#Top

W, Isobella. Textile Dyes Pollution. The Truth About Fashion’s Toxic Colors. Good on You. https://goodonyou.eco/textile-dyes-pollution/

N, Kirsi et al. The environmental price of fast fashion. Nature Reviews: Earth & Environment. https://www.nature.com/articles/s43017-020-0039-9.epdf?sharing_token=Oa8N9LqBngfVKHDpDjdkvNRgN0jAjWel9jnR3ZoTv0NrTOAvTiqFxn1nfvyRGyHkE4yF_jq14qyqvZZR_f1nYTLLVRzfHLYUYyd_KjM09QWGJ6NHkd0WEkWC9BGgymol7xtCxqWx8c5NUpg1wvBq_fSMpY1m4AmNk7mAu0qzRnB0FKU17tV66zzghahBBbFZ8QiWuHKS994XPAjr0MYTVhZsyJAWoTyOfpNH1GYC-fA%3D&tracking_referrer=www.washingtonpost.com

Liam McCabe and C, Joanne. Why Small Appliances End Up in Landfills, and What You Can Do About It. Consumer Reports. https://www.consumerreports.org/home-garden/recycling/why-small-appliances-end-up-in-landfills-and-what-to-do-a1160633361/