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`If you have not seen the posters around campus for a delicious organic juice, you are already confused. Drinking naked has nothing to do with the best party you will ever go to, it is merely a slogan for one of many products that support the ongoing frenzy encouraging people everywhere to “go green.” While there are plenty of trendy green products, it is not always necessary to spend money in order to save the environment. By making an effort to help the environment, you are going to end up saving yourself plenty of cash.
Turn off those lights.Mother knows best, so turn off those lights. Doing so will save money on your electric bill and reduce the strain that the excessive waste of electricity puts on the environment. The same goes for conserving water, turn it off while you brush your teeth and try to shorten your showers. If you think living in the dorms excuses you from this, think again. Spikes in cost of living on campus stem back to simple things that we as students can quit contributing to, such as wasting water and electricity.
Recycle clothes. Shop at thrift stores like Goodwill, located on Rohrerstown Road, or the Salvation Army on Manheim Pike. If you are not willing to consider shopping there, at least donate your old threads. If you are interested in swinging a profit, donate your clothes to a local consignment shop like Next to New on Lincoln Highway East (www.next-to-new.com). Yard sales are another great way to find recycled bargains or to earn money by hosting your own. Hold a swap party with friends to exchange clothes you are tired of.
Think before you print. Ganser Library usually spends over $20,000 a year on the costs of paper and ink cartridges. Students are fortunate enough to print as they wish for “free,” but stop to consider that nothing is free, someone is paying for what you print. Think about how far $20,000 could go in other ways. Decreasing print jobs saves cash and trees.
Incorporate exercise. While helping the environment can be great for your wallet, it can also be good for your body. Environmentally friendly habits yield results that keep us at our healthiest. Walking or biking around campus cuts down on the cost of driving, the frustration of traffic, and the negative effects of vehicle pollution all while adding an easy work-out into your day.
Enjoy the outdoors. Going for hikes with friends on the weekends is a cheap form of entertainment, a fun source of exercise, and an excellent reminder of how beautiful the earth you are trying to save truly is. You can find local parks and trails by visiting the Lancaster County Department of Parks and Recreation website at http://www.co.lancaster.pa.us/parks/site/default.asp or Localhikes.org.
Buy local. Shop for fresh food from local produce stands as much as possible. The George Street Café hosts Community Market Night on Wednesdays from 4-9 p.m. over the summer. Visit other local farmers markets such as LancasterCentralMarket.com, HistoricEastenMarket.org, or RootsMarket.com. Small businesses produce less waste and have much less of a negative impact on the environment than big box stores. You will get more for your money as their products tend to be higher quality and therefore longer lasting, adding to the environmentally friendly factor of small businesses. The same concept goes for eating at local restaurants instead of frequenting chains. Local restaurants like Senorita Burrita on Prince Street grow their own vegetables from seed. John J. Jeffries is an upscale restaurant on Harrisburg Pike that serves food from small organic farms within Lancaster.
Do not litter. I am going to make the optimistic assumption that maybe the people leaving their trash all across campus are illiterate, and have therefore missed every memo considering litter that have been plastering the media waves ever since I can remember. (I’d say maybe they grew up in caves, but my gut tells me cave people had much more respect for nature than these litterbugs.) With that assumption, I have a challenge for those of you who are reading this article with the importance of not littering already instilled in your minds. Consider going the extra mile by picking up the trash you see. Do not dismiss the litter on campus with the thought that “someone else will get it.” Everyone has that thought. You are somebody else. Pick it up, throw it out, bam – it took three seconds of your life, tops, to be the person who actually does something for the environment instead of just gabbing about going green for the sake of politics.