Shawn: Environmentally Conscious

So when i joined this group it was mostly because i needed a room and a place to live. Dont get me wrong i was excited about who i was getting to live with and was tremendously excited about living in community, but i was like, WHATEVER, about the "being environmentally conscious" clause in our proposal. I figured it wouldnt be a big deal and i could just let that slide.

However the longer i've lived here and have been exposed to conversation of the group members, the more i find myself critiquing the way people around me in any circumstance waste resources. I used to be opposed to trayless tuesdays because they were an inconvenience when i wanted to get a bunch of food and not have to make several trips. I dont know if not grabbing trays actually saves water (there are many rumors circulating), but I have flipped my stance and have made it a habit to not grab a tray when going through the line, tuesday or not. I now engage the people who still complain about not having trays and try to get them to view trays, or on a larger scale, waste, the way i do. If nothing else, not having a tray lowers the amount of food we grab, which will in turn eliminate waste.

Food, electricity, and energy in any form are a gift most people around the world arent privileged to have. There are even some in our own country who forgo these to try to survive. If we all cut back will this lower the overall cost for everyone?

I know this is true on our campus. If, campuswide, we were concerned about not wasting food, shutting off lights, taking short showers and unplugging unused appliances and electronics, we could significantly lower the room and board aspect of our bill to the college.

Our group will probably be most of the people who read this blog but for those outside our group who would love to do something similar to what we are doing i encourage you to ask us questions and talk to professors as well. There are many faculty interested in what we are doing and when meeting with our mentors we explored the possibility of creating a "simple living themed housing" invoice, under the impression that the themed housing group would cut back on expenses, if this group would continue its existance. This is a possibility i am willing to explore with peers who also see the need for environmental accountability.

Why is it that i always write books? Congrats if you made it to the end...see me for your prize.
SY