Hey Eda, you are right about the unnecessary pollution; it is the mistake of everyone’s ignorant behavior. While older generations have lived their lives experiencing or tackling it, the condition is alarming for the younger generations. There must be no better way than students themselves to be involved in reducing waste and taking care of future generations.
As a senior environmental engineer, I will suggest a few suggestions that will help improve a sustainable campus with close to zero garbage accumulation.
Use the Three R’s
When discussing reducing waste or garbage, you must not forget the three R’s principle. It includes reduce, reuse, and recycle. With these techniques, you can reach the benchmark of making your campus sustainable.
Reduce: Firstly, reduce your survival needs to conserve natural resources. You must minimize paper usage, single-use plastics (straw, water bottles, and bags), food waste, water use, and transportation demand.
Reuse: You must adapt the things or items that have reusable capacity, such as reusable notes, reusable bamboo straws, and other alternatives. In addition, you must create a society that shares everything from reusable clothes and books to household items.
Recycling: The best thing to do is recycle waste to reduce it. For this, you can prepare a recycling guide about what waste undergoes recycling, ensure the availability of recycling bins at different locations on campus, and consult local facilities for proper recycling procedures. Ask the facility to participate in it.
Composting
You must not know, but let me tell you that composting is the best thing ever invented. It contributes to reducing waste, reducing greenhouse emissions, and enhancing sustainability. Composting involves breaking down natural waste, like food scraps or grass clippings. Overall, it reduces the waste from going to landfills that otherwise produce pollution.
Adapt Digitalization
As you know, this is the era of digitalization. Why don’t you adopt the trend and contribute to reducing waste? You can do this by adopting and encouraging others to use fewer papers and opt for digital documents and double-sided printing.
In addition, you can raise awareness about lowering energy consumption by using AI tools to do tasks earlier and reduce manpower. Campus students must create a private society in which they learn about laundering tactics. They turn on campus room lights only when required.
Avoid Fast Fashion
Fast fashion bleeds the idea of how waste is generated in large amounts. When you follow fast fashion, you promote waste accumulation at a striking rate. The trend is more common among students and youth for their everyday OOTD videos and makeovers.
If you genuinely want not only your campus but also your country or the entire planet to enjoy lower waste management, avoid fast fashion in the first place. Opt for brands that produce clothes or accessories from synthetic or eco-friendly materials and promote long-lasting clothing.
Increasing sustainability also includes avoiding wasting clothes; instead, altering, repairing, donating, reselling, or renting them.
Develop Repurposing
Repurposing is more like reusing. You can repurpose old materials or reuse them. This includes materials used in art projects, furniture, or other creative uses.
