Whether you are already in college or just starting to think about your options, one thing you might be worried about is how you can lead a green life while on a student budget. One day you may hope to drive a hybrid car and have solar panels on your home, but at the moment you probably can’t afford to make such big changes to your life. Fortunately, there are some great ways to make a very real difference even on a student budget. Here is a look at some of the best.
Go Paper Free
A great way to help the environment is to use less paper. Most of it just gets thrown away or sits in a folder anyway. So, avoid printing as much as you can. Read online, either on your computer or a Kindle, save things online, and avoid printing altogether. You could even study an online course, such as a civil engineering online degree, which would allow you to avoid printing altogether.
Recycle
Recycling is one of the easiest things we could and should all be doing. Try to separate your rubbish as much as possible before throwing it out. Many students struggle for space and worry about having more than one bin, but simple dividers make a great option. When recycling is made this easy, there really isn’t any excuse not to.
Buy Second-Hand
Buy textbooks, clothes, and anything else you can second-hand to save money and resources. Charity shops or online sites like eBay are great places to look for some awesome finds and you could check with your university to see if they have any kind of second-hand textbook exchange program.
Have a Meat-Free Day
Producing meat for our consumption creates an unbelievable amount of carbon dioxide. Agricultural emissions are said to account for up to 30% of all global emissions. If everyone on earth had a meat-free day every week, this figure could be slashed dramatically.
Switch Off
We’re all guilty of wasting electricity occasionally. We turn the TV on to standby instead of off, we leave chargers plugged in when they aren’t needed, and we leave lights on when we leave the room. Turning these things off and unplugging may not seem like a huge change, but if everyone did it, it would soon add up to a huge power saving.
Keep Fit
Another huge cause of emissions is driving. While electric cars are a great option, a better one is not using a vehicle at all. Try to walk as much as you can, but for greater distances consider car shares or using public transport.
In the case of most of these things, you will not only be saving the planet but also saving yourself a lot of money. If you are interested in taking things further and studying a course which would allow you to find a job in a green industry, have you considered an online civil engineering degree? While It might not sound the obvious choice, it would allow you to find work in construction or structural engineering working with and developing renewable energy sources for the future.
Are you a ‘green’ student? Let us know how you do it!