Green Living Guide

PDF VERSION HERE

Here at Loyola, we have made a Laudato Si commitment to advance sustainability. One of the goals of that commitment is to examine and better our lifestyles to become more sustainable. Here are a few tips to help you get started in achieving that goal we share:

Waste and Recycling Reduction

• Limit food waste by eating all you take, buy, or make!

• Donate clothing that would otherwise be thrown away to the Forevergreen Thrift Store or the Good Stuff Campaign. Learn more at our Good Stuff Campaign webpage.

• Do not put your recycling in plastic bags. Plastic bags are not recyclable!

• Only recycle the following: clean & empty plastic bottles, cardboard & paper, clean & empty aluminum cans.

• Please do not recycle glass or Styrofoam.

• For more information, please visit our Waste & Recycling webpage.

• Utilize the Community Compost Collection Bin at 5104 York Road / the Motorpool lot. If interested, please email sustainability@loyola.edu

  • Please only compost: Pasta, rice, vegetables, fruit, tea bags (staple removed), eggshells (crushed), grains & bread, cereal, and coffee grounds.

  • Avoid composting: Dairy products, oily foods, produce stickers, meat, bones, and crustacean shells.

  • You can store compost in a bag or container in your freezer. If you choose to store your compost in a bag, you can use a non-compostable bag if you do not compost the bag and simply dump its contents!

Water Conservation

• Report water leaks to facilities through Loyola’s Request Service Portal.

• Turn off the tap while brushing your teeth and scrubbing your hands with soap when washing them.

• Be conscious of water use while washing dishes. To conserve water, try using a small bin with warm water and rinse dishes using that water. Dump after it gets too dirty and refill. Start washing cleaner items first to dump bin less often.

• Push yourself to take shorter showers when possible.

• Only do full loads of laundry to save water!

Energy and Electric Conservation

• Turn off lights when you leave a room and shut down devices when not in use. Otherwise, the device uses electricity you don’t need.

• Unplug your phone chargers and other devices when not in use. Even when you aren’t using them, phone chargers and appliances use electricity unless plugged into a turned-off power strip. Try unplugging these items when you are not using them.

• Try to reduce the number of lights on in a room. Often, you do not need every light on.

• Make sure your windows are closed tightly to prevent drafts. Otherwise, precious heat or AC will escape, which wastes electricity.

• If the weather is nice, try ditching the AC and opening a window. Just be sure to close the window tightly when turning the AC or heat on!

• Try turning the AC off or down when leaving your room! If your room has Ecobees on the wall (Rahner Village, McAuley Hall, Ahern Hall, Aquinas Hall) and you do not want to turn the AC/heat off, energy-efficient temperature set points are 76 on warm days and 68 on cool days.

• Wash your laundry on “Cold” whenever possible. This way, no electricity is used to heat the water before it’s used to wash your clothes.

• Try air-drying your laundry! If you are in a time crunch, try taking your clothes out of the dryer during the drying cycle and then air drying them while they are damp.

Sustainable Dining

• Try Meatless Mondays or going without meat one day per week.

• Try reducing how often you have red meat.

• If you are interested in growing your own produce on campus, please contact sustainability@loyola.edu

Sustainable Transportation

• Bike or walk palces when possible. There are mutiple bike racks located around campus.
• Take advantage of local bus routes to get around Baltimore instead of ubering or driving. Explore local bus schedules and routes on their website.
• Use the MARC train to get to D.C. instead of ubering or driving. Explore schedules and routes on their website.
• Use Baltimore's LightRail system instead of ubering or driving. Explore schedules and routes on their website.
• Use Baltimore's commuter bus when applicable. Explore Baltimore's commuter bus schedules and routes.
• Explore other Baltimore transit maps on there website to learn of more opportunities that may apply to you.

Advocacy and Action

• Loyola Votes can help you register to vote and provide you with updates on important deadlines for those who vote via absentee ballot.

• Volunteer locally. The Center for Community, Service, and Justice (CCSJ) is able to provide information to help you find what volunteer opportunities are right for you!

• Join an environmental organization on campus! Environmental Action Club, Global Sustainable Business Club, and Student Government Association’s Sustainability Subcommittee are all open to all students and put on an array of sustainability-related activities.

• Join the Office of Sustainability’s Newsletter for monthly lists of sustainability-related events and opportunities happening on and around campus! To sign up, join the Office of Sustainability Group on The Bridge.

• Stay up to date about the state of sustainability in Baltimore with the Baltimore Office of Sustainability’s Newsletter!

• Donate what you can to the Govans Community Fridge! 

• Information on Baltimore City Committee hearings and a hearing calendar.

 

To address the climate crisis, governmental action is important, but so are your actions. Individual actions may seem inconsequential, but collective action is only possible with everyone doing their part. You got it!

Find out more about sustainability, follow us on Instagram @greengreyhounds!