Of late, there has been much talk of campus-wide greening projects. All of these projects are to take place on massive scales and have little or no influence from the student body. As the University has been busy creating these expensive and grandiose plans to save the earth, they have overlooked the simplest solution to global warming: the individual.
It is neither laser powered "bee transports" that will save us, nor will it be a plethora of solar panels. When it comes to saving the earth, only our everyday habits can change the destructive path we have created. As college students, we are often distracted and disconnected from the real world and are unconscious of the consequences of our actions. As a society, we have failed to realize that the most mundane tasks - such as turning off your computer at night - have dramatic and lasting effects on the environment.
A study at Ohio State University found that "a single computer left running will emit 2161 pounds of CO2 in a year and costs $45 a year to power at $0.0372 per kWh." Turning off your computer is a great "green" decision that is going to save you some "green" too!
Many skeptics and AOL Instant Messenger addicts will argue that - much like cars - computers need more energy to start up than to run idly. This is true, but the energy needed to start a computer only amounts to three minutes of idle time as compared to the eight to 10 hours it remains idle while you sleep. It is okay; everyone on your buddy list will be there tomorrow. No one cares that you are sleeping.
This is our planet. It is not going to be saved by the government, the school, our parents or our neighbors. It is up to you - the individual - to see that your actions are not linear and that everything you do affects the ecological web. Former Vice President Al Gore quotes Winston Churchill in "An Inconvenient Truth."
"The era of procrastination, of half-measures, of soothing and baffling expedients is coming to a close," Churchill said. 'We are entering an era of consequences."
As a culture, we need to stop being so lazy. The time it takes to turn off your computer or place a plastic bottle in the recycling is less than the time you are going to spend looking at profiles on Facebook. We need to realize the essence of life and the details that make living on this planet so important. The time has come to reconnect with our environments.
Alex Bernardini is a Cook College junior, majoring in environmental policy, institutions and behaviors.
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