WHAT CAN STUDENTS DO?

We've put put together a list of simple and inexpensive things you can do to make your own life more sustainable, without added costs!

Why should you even consider these?

Click here to find out about YOUR Ecological Footprint!

We have all of these tips and more in our pdf of our brochure that outlines the simple steps below that can make a Auburn more sustainable.

Sustainable Practices for Students at Auburn University

(Click for a pdf of our brochure)

Share the pdf with your friends and family, but if you print it out, please use post-consumer recycled content paper.

• Leave Your Car at Home

Take Tiger Transit, ride a bicycle, or walk. Per passenger, public transportation uses considerably less fuel than individual cars, and Tiger Transit is already paid for in your student fees. Starting Fall 2007 all Tiger Transit buses are running on biodiesel, reducing their emissions are even further. If you want more flexibility in your schedule (or any of the other great benefits) biking to school even just one day a week can also save you hundreds of dollars in gas costs each year. Biking can also save time. Compared to driving a car, in-town bicycle trips of three miles or less can actually decrease your travel time, and with no polluting emissions

-For more information on the Tiger Transit including schedules and routes click HERE.

-For more information on cycling in Auburn click HERE.

• Relax and Live Life in the Slow Lane

For every 5 MPH you drive over 60 MPH your fuel cost is increased by 20 cents per gallon. That means that a trip to Atlanta at 80 MPH rather than 60 MPH would cost 27% more in gas expenses. Also avoid heavy acceleration. Being a lead-foot can use up to four times as much fuel as moderate acceleration (fueleconomy.gov).

-For more information about driving your current car more efficiently click HERE.

• Reduce Your Waste

...by buying durable rather than disposable products. Not only are you reducing your waste, but high quality durable goods (ceramic plates and cups, cloth napkins, refillable razors, canvas shopping bags, reusable food containers) are more pleasant to use than something designed to be thrown away. Once you've done that...

• Recycle Everything You Can Through AU RECYCLING

It really does reduce the energy needed to manufacture packaging and reduces the need for raw materials. In January 2002, a trash audit was conducted at Auburn University by the EAO (Environmental Awareness Organization) to determine the contents of dumpsters on campus. A total of 2400 lb (5250 gal) of trash was sorted from 8 dumpsters. The audit showed that more than 50% of the dumpster contents both by weight and volume were recyclable. Since that point Auburn University has been working to develop a full scale Recycling Program starting in all the offices on campus. Recycling opportunities for students and other parts of campus are coming along each semester. Do your part by recycling both on campus and off. Finally, make sure you "close the circle" and buy products that are made from recycled materials.

-For information about Auburn University's recycling program, including locations of recycling bins and a recyclable material list, click HERE.

-For information on recycling in the city of Auburn click HERE.

• Buy Local

Did you know that in the U.S. food generally travels 1,500-2,000 miles to get to your table? (Worldwatch.org Paper #163) Instead of buying your produce at a grocery store visit the Auburn University Farmer's Market (spring through early fall). This is not only healthier and tastes better, but it also supports the local economy and family farmers, reduces air pollution and wasteful packaging, and reduces our need for oil. In addition to buying local produce, put your dollars to work in Auburn, support our locally owned businesses instead of large chain "big-box stores".

To find out more about buying Alabama grown food click HERE.

Visit the Farmer's Market at Ag Heritage Park. For more information click HERE.

• Lug-A-Mug

Purchase an AU Lug-a-Mug to decrease the number of disposable cups used on campus. Reusing is even better than recycling (and those drink cups aren't recyclable anyway!). Plus you get a discount whenever you fill it on campus and at selected shops around town. If everyone at AU used a refillable mug once a day we would save thousands of disposable cups a day; millions per year!

The Auburn University Lug-a-Mug program offers travel mugs for sale at discounted prices. The holder of a mug receives a discount on all fountain drinks and coffee drinks purchased on campus and at participating off-campus merchants (Bizilia's Cafe, Cambridge Coffee, Taylor's Bakery). Lug-A-Mugs can be purchased for $6.50 at:

• The WPB Starbucks & Outtakes coffee shop (bottom floor of the Library)
• The Haley Center coffee shop (on the first floor)
• The War Eagle Food Court in Foy Union (at the cashiers)
• The Drawing Board in Dudley Hall

-For more information on the Lug-A-Mug click HERE.

• BYO-Bottle

Purchase a refillable water bottle and fill it at home and around campus (choose a nonleaching plastic or stainless steel, it is not recommended that you refill #1 soda and water bottles). Not only is it cheaper and reduces plastic waste compared to buying individual bottles of water, but Auburn tap water is held to more stringent purity standards (by U.S. EPA) than any purchased bottled water (regulated by U.S. FDA).

For more information on bottled water click HERE.

• Power Down

One of the easiest ways to become more sustainable and save money is simply by being more efficient in your use of electricity for computers and lighting.

Turn off your computer when it is not in use.

Computers use about the same amount of power when they're idling as when they are being used actively. For those times that you walk away and forget to turn it off, your monitor should be set to sleep after 15 minutes (not a screen saver that still uses the normal amount of power). It takes only seconds for it to come back on, and you can reduce your computer's electricity use dramatically.

Turn off the lights when you aren't in the room.

And switch to compact fluorescent light bulbs which use 66% less energy than a standard incandescent bulb and last up to 10 times longer. Replacing a 100-watt incandescent bulb with a 32-watt compact fluorescent can save you at least $30 in energy costs over the life of the bulb. Even if your apartment or dorm doesn't give you a separate bill for electricity, you are paying for the cost of the electricity you use in your rent (energystar.gov). If you're on campus at the end of the day, turn off lights that other people may have left on. We're all paying for that waste power!

For more information on compact fluorescent lightbulbs click HERE.

• Don't be a Drip

Report drips and running toilets

A dripping faucet can waste up to 2,000 gallons of water a year. If every household in America had a faucet that dripped once each second, 928 million gallons of water a day would leak away. If it's in your apartment, let your landlord know, and report drips and running fixtures on campus to Auburn Facilities Division at 844-4357.

For more information on saving water in and around your place click HERE

• Take a Class That Incorporates Sustainability

Auburn University offers an array of classes that tackle these issues in departments ranging from architecture and engineering to history and anthropology. This semester we're working on a list of all the classes that address sustainability, but until then give us a call or an email and we can give you some suggestions. Here are a couple of examples:

• UNIV 1100 (EarthSmart)
• HIST 3970 (Environmental History)
• ART 2510 (Sculpture I)
• ART 3530 (Sculpture III)
• FINC 3630 (Advanced Business Finance)

• Join a Sustainable Student Group

Auburn Sustainability Action Program (ASAP)

-For more information or to join you can contact Brittany Branyon

Environmental Awareness Organization (EAO)

-For more information or to join you can contact Rachael Werner.

• Volunteer at the Sustainability Initiative

To become involved with one of our numerous projects, contact the Sustainability Initiative at 334-844-7777 or by emailing Matt Williams