Something that more people are becoming passionate about is being eco-friendly and it’s for a myriad of reasons. Not only is “being green” great for helping to preserve the environment but it’s also financially savvy and innovative too.
So, it’s no wonder that there are more and more colleges that are becoming a huge part of the eco-friendly initiative. If you’re curious to know about some of the more popular green projects that are taking place on many campuses, we have provided you with five below:
Eco-friendly degrees. Being that colleges are what provide people with the education and tools that they need in order to succeed in the workforce, it would make sense that more schools are offering what would be considered to be eco-friendly degrees. Environmental law, environmental health science, environmental engineering and sustainable business are all degrees that are currently on the rise.
Eco-friendly dorms. Just like students are looking for ways to save money on tuition, room and board, schools are also looking for ways to decrease their expenses. One way to do that is to build and/or renovate eco-friendly dorms. This would include installing appliances with Energy Star labels on them, painting the walls with low-VOC paint, using sustainable materials and also improving indoor air quality.
Organic farms and kitchens. Something that all college campuses have are kitchens. And in the effort to be more responsible when it comes to produce and food consumption, lots of colleges are creating organic farms on their campus and then preparing the food in organic kitchens. UC-Berkeley was the first school to build one in 2006. There are also schools that are doing more food composting too. This puts less food in our landfills and also provides fertilizer for the schools lawns and gardens.
Green roofs. If you’ve ever seen a green roof before, then you know how beautiful they are. But did you know that they also come with many eco-friendly benefits? They provide a place for wildlife to live; they prolong the life of HVAC units; they give insulation to buildings which reduces energy costs; they help to purify the air and they assist in significantly reducing greenhouse emissions.
Low emissions incentives. Although just about everyone looks forward to having a car on campus, being that cars tend to increase the amount of emissions in the atmosphere, there are also several schools and universities that offer incentives to students that leave their car parked and instead choose to carpool, ride their bike or even walk to their classes. That’s not to say that some schools are not finding new modes of transportation as well. In fact, several years ago, two students at Harvard designed a car that runs solely on vegetable oil. However, until the time comes that we can all afford electrical cars or there are vegetable oil powered cars are on the market, if you plan to attend Columbia University, the University, USC or the University of California, look for organizations and clubs that offer eco-friendly incentives. It’s healthier for the environment, but it’s better for you as well.
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