Go Green with Stephens!

Forest

About the Citywide Challenge

Stephens College is looking toward the future as it celebrates Women’s History Month in this, its 175th anniversary year. As part of “Women Making History Month,” Stephens and Darwin Hindman, mayor of the City of Columbia are issuing a green challenge. We invite you to live a greener life by implementing at least one green idea during the month of March (see ideas below). Then, on April 2nd, come back and tell us how it went. If you’re on the path toward sustainability, Stephens will give you a gift to help along the way.

Ten ways to lead a greener life

Keep your blinds open and lights off as much as you can.
Turn off lights in spaces that are unoccupied.
Power adaptors use energy while plugged in, even if the devices they power are switched off. Plug power adaptors into a power strip and turn off the entire strip when devices are not in use.
Replace your light bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs (CFLs). CFLs use about 75 percent less energy as incandescent bulbs and last much longer.
When buying printer paper, look for recycled paper with a high percentage of post-consumer content and the minimum chlorine bleaching. Print on both sides of the page when appropriate.
The greenest paper is no paper at all, so keep things digital whenever possible. Take your name off of mailing lists and never print an email unless you absolutely must.
Carpool, take public transit, bike, walk, or use a creative combination of all of the above.
Bring lunch to work as often as possible, and use reusable containers and utensils. If you order delivery, place a large group order instead of several small ones.
Buy fewer disposable goods. Consume less of everything.
On average, produce grown in the U.S. travels 1,500 miles to reach grocery store shelves. Save on fuel by buying from local growers, and favor local products and services in general.

Stephens College Going Green

The leadership of the Student Government Association (SGA) at Stephens College is leading a charge to “go green” through the implementation of a campuswide energy savings and recycling plan. The Stephens College Going Green (SCG2) initiative is aimed at raising awareness of our impact on the environment. SGA is working with ARAMARK (our food service provider) to help reduce waste and conserve energy in our food service operation and has placed receptacles across campus to encourage recycling. Through the efforts of SCG2, Stephens College recently placed 30th out of 167 in Recyclemania, a national recycling competition among colleges and universities

In January 2008, SCG2 launched the “Kill-a-watt” program – a competition among residence halls to reduce electricity consumption by turning off lights when not in use. SCG2 challenges faculty and staff to do the same in their areas. Since the competition started, several campus buildings have reduced their energy consumption between 10 and 20 percent.

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