COLUMN: What to do if you can’t follow helpful hints – or how to remember to remember
Every time I go to an event, someone is handing out fliers filled with tips and tricks to become the best person ever. There are pamphlets about how to reduce your cholesterol, pick a 401K, buy local, dress for interviews and more. The amount of information we receive in print is astronomical. Why, this very newspaper is filled with ideas for how to better live your life.
What is my suggestion to you? Every time something really grabs your attention, stop and engage with it for a minute. Don’t stuff it in your bag, thinking you’ll have time for it later. The late Charles Burton said, “You will never find time for anything. If you want time, you must make it.” Make time for what moves you, because that’s where you can find meaning as well as ways to improve.
How does this apply to a flier about the five best ways to reduce your water use, the three most outrageous facts about solid waste stream in America, or any other way to save resources?
Instead of trying to change your entire life in order to be the most sustainable person, do one thing. Make time for one conscious act that you can stand by. For me, it was investing in compact fluorescent light bulbs – $5 a pop – that will last about 6,000 hours. Every time I turned on a lamp, I saw the distinctive curl of the bulb and remembered to remember energy conservation. It wasn’t a big move and it certainly didn’t change the world’s energy consumption by much that day, but it happened. That’s important because, eventually, I realized I could easily do more.
If you want to save food but don’t always remember to use it by the expiration date, find ways to make it last longer. Invest in some airtight containers that enhance the shelf-life of your food. On the other hand, you can buy food that looks and tastes the best when it is fresh. Make it easy to save money by not wasting.
These daily reminders can help you find new ways to be environmentally sound because you see them at work all the time. Eventually, you might want to make another conscious act towards less consumption. There won’t be any trouble finding another step to make.
Next, make the system work for you. Ask your landlord to weatherize your apartment. If that doesn’t seem likely to happen for some reason, look into the Bear River Association of Governments Weatherization program in Cache Valley for low income residents to access and utilize.
Where else do you spend a lot of your time? Right here on campus. Ask Facilities if there will be more water bottle refilling stations or tell Dining Services that composting is a great way to cut down on waste. If you’re feeling really jazzed about something that should be happening at USU but you haven’t seen yet, contact the Student Sustainability Office to get involved in it being brought here.
I realize I just gave you a long list of helpful hints, and you probably won’t remember any of them. In order to get this remembering movement going, I have made the starting point easy for you. Instagram yourself recycling with the hashtag #USUdontbetrashy today and you will be entered into the drawing for free compact fluorescent light bulbs.
– Viviane is a sophomore majoring in environmental and natural resource economics. She is the food intern at the Student Sustainability Office, an EcoRep and a member of the Sustainability Club as well as the Environmental and Natural Resource Economics Club. She is a part of the Bioneers Conference Planning Committee and the Cache Valley Chapter of the Citizens Climate Lobby. Send any comments to vbaji93@gmail.com.