Greenifying Your Dorm

I started shopping for college the day after I got accepted to Lehigh; I may have been a little overly enthusiastic ( I got my letter in December...), but I was excited to start my college experience. I commandeered the spare bedroom in our house and gradually filled it for the next 8 months with bedding, toiletries and way more pens than any one person could need. One of the biggest challenges for me was finding things to help keep my dorm room eco-friendly. In the end I was able to get some pretty good stuff; here's the result of my hard work (my side is on the left):

So, here are a few tips on how to greenify your dorm room as told by a weathered shopper.


1. The power cord dilemma 

Between a lamp, a TV and all of sorts devices that need to be charged, power outlets are a hot commodity. The only solution to this is a power strip. Make sure you pick one that's energy efficient, and switch it off when you're not using it! Even if you're not watching your TV, as long as it's plugged in it still uses standby electricity. Here's one that's affordable and fits all the specifications.

2. Keep your quarters in your wallet.

Laundry is the bane of my existence. I try to stretch out my clothes for as long as possible (I'm currently on a two week streak) because I feel like I'm throwing away money. Not to mention, I never have enough quarters. This is why I invested in a drying rack. You can store it under your bed or in your closet when you're not using it, it saves money and energy and it makes my room smell like clean laundry--an all around win!

 

                                                   
3. Accept the prospect of washing dishes.
The most convenient thing to do is to buy huge packs of disposable silverware, paper plates and paper cups from BJ's. Instead, buy reusable utensils and dishware that you can use all through college. It's much less wasteful, and you'll get over having to wash everything.


4. *Obligatory anti-water bottle tip* 
No surprise here...plastic water bottles are the worst! Rather than buying a huge pack, get a Brita filter (of course in addition to your reusable Camelbak water bottle). You can fill it up in the sink or water fountain, and it'll filter out chemicals and get rid of any chlorine taste. Make sure you get a compact one that will fit in your minifridge.

If you want to take it a step further, you can buy bedding made from organic cotton and forgo the TV and mini-fridge. These are just some of the easier things you can do to make your dorm a little more eco-friendly.

Welcome!

Hello blogosphere,

Welcome to Simple Changes! This blog is dedicated to encouraging living a natural lifestyle in a manageable way.

When you think of natural and organic living, you might think of people wearing wheat skirts and making their own soap.  That lifestyle can be great and works for some people, but in the words of the lovely Sweet Brown--

This blog will show simple changes we can make in our lives that make a difference and that we DO have time for. As a college student, staying healthy and environmentally friendly can be a challenge, but it's not impossible.

So why go natural??

1. Your Health
   
   Eating fried, processed and chemical-filled foods can be so tempting (Oreos,french fires, mozzarella sticks, ice cream...I digress). There's nothing wrong with having these things  in moderation-- but there lays the problem. Nobody wants to stop at one (or two, or ten) Oreos, but look at the ingredients. High fructose corn syrup (HFCS), refined sugar, and unknown artificial colors/flavors are not only fattening, but dangerous--HFCS have been linked to diabetes, metabolic syndrome and heart disease. So why not choose healthier alternatives like desserts made from wheat flour, natural sweeteners, and pronounceable ingredients as your go-to snack foods?
2. Your Earth
   
   
   Natural living also includes living an eco-friendly lifestyle. This can be especially hard for students--especially those who live in a dorm. Plastic water bottles are one of the most popular culprits to non green living, but they also have one of the simplest fixes. The production of the bottles requires huge amounts of crude oil, and the bottles themselves often aren't recycled and end up in landfills.  This article from livestrong.com goes into more detail about the problems with plastic bottles. Opt for a reusable water bottle that you can refill to your heart's content. Camelbak has some of the best ones out there. These babies are BPA free and come in a bunch of colors.

    
3. Your Wallet
   This one is hard to believe, but if done right you can save a lot of money with natural/green products. Take energy-efficient lightbulbs for example. Their shelf price is more expensive, but they use a fraction of the energy (which lowers electricity bills) and they last much longer than regular lightbulbs. Growing your own fruits and vegetables is another great way to save money, but isn't really possible for students, and it requires a lot of time and effort. Let that be a long-term goal, but in the mean time opt for simpler cost-savers like carpooling and hang-drying your laundry. 

All of this is evidence that living a health conscious and eco-friendly lifestyle does not have to be a burden.