Tag Archives: reduce

Earth Day 2021

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By: Ali Niefield

Edited By: Brady Brooks

Earth Day Tips and Tricks!

For us, everyday is Earth Day! This year we have decided to dedicate our time to give you some useful tips on how to get involved and save our planet. With the help of each and every one of us, there is hope of reverting the negative changes we have seen come to light in recent years. Here are some tips to make a difference in light of this special day.

Wash your laundry in cold water

Did you know that about 90% of the energy your washing machine uses goes towards heating water? In order to save that energy, try washing your clothes with cold water instead! If you wash your clothing in cold water it not only saves energy, but it can also remove many stains while hot water shrinks, fade, or wrinkle clothing. Next time, stop and think about the effects of cold vs warmer water and make the change!

Forget the plastic straws

It’s time to ditch the plastic straws, people! Did you know that Americans use nearly 500 million plastic straws every day? Not only do these straws effect our “on land” environment, but they also have a deep impact our ocean life as well. In fact, a study showed that 100% of tested sea turtles had ingested plastic. Thankfully, we have made various reusable straws to help this problem. Many are now made from stainless steel, silicone, or bamboo! Not only will the environment be impacted positively for these investments, but the ocean will thank you too. 

Unsubscribe from junk mail

Everyone still gets that piece of mail that makes them think, “how did I end up on this list?” It is not uncommon to look at that piece of perfectly wrapped mail only to realize it has no importance to you, and then to toss it. It’s time to save some time, effort, and some trees and finally remove yourself from that mailing list! If you need information on how to easily and effectively do so, visit https://www.ecocycle.org/junkmail for six easy steps!

Switch to E-books

What is portable, lightweight, accessible anywhere, and has shareable content? E-books! There might be some satisfaction of turning the page, but there is also something to be said for the movement of swiping your hand across the screen. According to one lifecycle analysis of print books versus e-readers, the energy, water and raw materials needed to make a single e-reader is equal to that of 40 to 50 books. In terms of the effect on climate, the emissions created by a single e-reader are equal to roughly 100 books. So, the next time you want to pick up a book, try seeing if the ebook is available and remember the impact you will be making!

Top 3 Tips For an Eco Friendly St. Patty’s Day

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By: Ali N

Top 3 Tips For an Eco Friendly St. Patty’s Day

Kiss me, i’m eco-friendly! St. Patrick’s Day is around the corner and like any other holiday there will be a ton of (socially distanced and safe) celebration. Unfortunately, like many other holidays, amid the joy and cheerful festivities lurks a massive environmental toll. It may not bring the same amount of participation as other days such as Christmas or Valentines Day, but St. Patricks Day celebrations bring with them a lot of waste.

If you are trying to be more aware of the detrimental effects that non bio degradable waste has on the planet while also wanting to celebrate a highly anticipated holiday, you came to the right place! It is possible to celebrate without creating a negative environmental impact; so here is a guide with the top three things to avoid if you want to participate in a truly green St. Patrick’s Day.

PLASTIC

Green beads, plastic shamrocks, plates, cups, beers…these are just a few things that are expected to be involved in the St. Patricks Day celebration. Plastic, though recyclable, mostly ends up on the road and ultimately in landfills contributing to land and air pollution. If you can, try to use biodegradable plates, cups and utensils. We are not suggesting having a colorless festivity either by the way. We suggest going green in green just with different decorations made of different material such as felt, cloth, or metal. It takes vast amounts of water and energy to recycle plastic and make it reusable so keep the planet in mind when you are engaging in this years celebration!

CLOTHING

This is a holiday where you get to be festive! Why not save yourself the time and money and wear something green that you already have. Before going to buy a new outfit or extra green items, think about looking through your closet first and seeing what you can make of what you got! It is the eco-friendliest way to dress green as less consumption means less waste and uses no extra resources and energy to create.If you need to go out there and make a new purchase be sure to keep in mind that thrifting is always a good, convenient, cheap and eco-friendly way of shopping.

 

TRANSPORTATION

Holiday celebrations means the guarantee of events in several different places. The guarantee of events in several different places, guarantees people will be on the roads. Something that can be done to encourage an eco friendly celebration is to reduce the amount of carbon emissions. Before having to drive somewhere, think about the other possible ways to get to your destination that will help benefit the planet. Instead of taking your car, consider the more eco-friendly options like walking, carpooling, biking, or even taking public transportation. The reduction of CO2 into the atmosphere can significantly help with our polluted planet.

 

Before you celebrate in green, make sure you are also thinking and being green!

 

 

GoGreenGo

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GoGreenGo!

There is a rising issue of extreme fossil fuel usage in the world. Specifically, the state of Texas is the top producer of both crude oil and natural gas. The continual drilling, mining and burning of dirty energy is not only harming our health, but our environment as well. GoGreenGo is an awareness campaign to inform about the extreme rise of fossil fuels in Texas and its detrimental effects. It is our aim to educate the younger generation of Millennials and Generation Z’s and reinforce action by offering facts about the fossil fuel usage in Texas.

 

MEET THE TEAM

Meet Ali! She was born and raised in Houston, Texas and moved to Austin to attend St. Edward’s University in 2018. She is a current senior studying Communication. Some of her passions include music, yoga, traveling and fashion. Her role for GoGreenGo is WordPress & blogger. She will be the one synthesizing team ideas and creativity, developing the WordPress site, updates layouts as needed, and provides support for blog postings. When questioned why she wanted to participate in this campaign she said, “I am passionate about not only making a change for my home state, but a global difference as well. We are at a time where acting quickly is essential for change. I am excited to be able to inform and hopefully make a difference!”

Meet Brady! He studies at St. Edward’s University and is majoring in Communication. Brady’s excitement for this project shines through as he is one of the two overall team and situation analysis leaders. Working alongside Taylor Arnold, they will both run team meetings, lead in all projects the team will be working on, managing the calendar and due dates, and overall creating a smooth environment for effective and enjoyable teamwork! When asked why he was interested in this topic, he said, “the planet’s environment is at a crossroads right now and I hope to inspire change for Texans through our campaign. This issue is crucial for people to be aware of and we plan on educating Texans through accurate and effective information.” 

Meet Taylor! She was born in Shreveport, Louisiana and is currently studying at St. Edward’s University studying Writing and Rhetoric. She brings a passionate side of leadership which is why her role for the GoGreenGo campaign is to be the overall team and situation analysis leader. Working with Brady, she is in charge of running team meetings, overseeing the team calendar, leading the situation development process, and creating PowerPoints when need be. When asked why she was invested deeply in this campaign she explained, “environmentalism is a forefront issue that is essential to our planet. There are several sources of misinformation that have circulated and allowed for the prevalence of pseudoscience and has ultimately led to climate change. I am excited to be able to contribute to countering the misinformation and to help the process of bettering our environment.”

Meet Brianna! She is our final representation and reporting leader from Austin, Texas. She is a student at St. Edward’s University studying Communication. Her important role on the team consists of tracking the campaign data, managing the development of the final team engagement reports, leading the teams final presentation process and developing the PowerPoint. Her contribution to our team is volatile! When asking her why she is motivated to work on this particular campaign, she explained that “by educating Texans about the benefits that follow clean energy sources, we have the ability to change the future generations to come.” 
Meet Caitlyn! She is a communication major at St. Edward’s University. She is a San Antonio native but now lives in Austin, Texas to attend school. She will be contributing to the team as the Twitter and 3rd platform leader. She will be in charge of setting up the teams Twitter account, overseeing all platform engagements, and developing and submitting the team rationale. Caitlyn is excited to be a part of this campaign and explains, protecting our resources and being able to conserve what the world offers us is important to me. We should leave our environment better than what it was, for our future generations. I’m happy to inform those who wish to do the same!”