Even though every college across the U.S. is different, one thing that I’ve noticed at all the colleges that I’ve visited is their huge desire for action. Action can take the form of students organizing food-drives for local homeless families, putting together a fund-raising concert for the victims of Hurricane Katrina or setting up a recycling program in the cafeteria. It can be a few students or a whole dorm of them. I was just so amazed to see that even though we as students are so individually unique, we still share that common bond of wanting to have a positive impact on the world.

Students Make Waves

Student environmental organizations are making a huge wave across the country. As students become more aware of global warming and the destruction of the environment, they realize that they are the exact people who can make a difference in our society. The goal of a college is to educate students and to prepare them for the real world, so a green student organization’s goal is to educate students and staff about the environment and give them the knowledge and tools they need to sustain it. And it all starts right on campus.

USM's Biodiesel Initiative

There are a few college environmental organizations that I’ve read about that have really amazed me with their dedication and care for the environment. The first is the University of Southern Maine, which created the 2004 USM Biodiesel Initiative to support the switch from petrodiesel to B20 biodiesel to run the buses that transport students to and from campus. B20 biodiesel is composed of 80% petrodiesel and 20% vegetable oil, so it produces far less toxic carbon monoxide and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.

The initiative began when a senior named Sarah Ferriter applied for two fellowships to bring biodiesel to USM to help reduce the harmful fuel emissions that were being released into the air by the big shuttle buses. She won both fellowships to start the process, and with a vote of 564-114 in favor of the fuel switch from the student body, she then started the USM Sustainability Fund, which was a permanent $1.00 annual fee that students would pay for the continued purchase of biodiesel for the buses.  The president of USM, Richard Pattenaude, was so impressed with the Biodiesel Initiative that he said he would consider dissolving the annual fee for students and just include it in the busing contract. Now that’s a great way to get the entire college campus involved in a green student organization!

Harvard's Hard Work

Another amazing college environmental organization is the Harvard Green Campus Initiative, which consists of 19 staff members and 40 part-time students. This is one of the biggest green student organizations I’ve read about in the U.S. because its sustainability mission has literally spread across the entire campus! The members of HGCI work in over 600 buildings across campus and promote numerous programs that range from energy conservation and sustainable architecture to recycling and green cleaning products.

One of the coolest programs is The Best Practices Exchange. These are events hosted by HGCI with the sole purpose of getting the Harvard community and administrative staff involved in the green effort. Anyone who is part of the Harvard community can give a presentation, and it’s a great idea because it involves educators being educated by each other. Plus, it helps make the student effort more meaningful because the administration is taking the time to learn more about green initiatives.

Texans Take Action

Finally, the Engineers for a Sustainable World at the University of Texas at Austin is another student environmental organization with a great mission: to find alternative ways to promote technology without harming the environment. It consists primarily of students and select faculty members that work to promote various green initiatives like biodiesel use and sustainable architecture in poverty-stricken areas.

The Engergy Taskforce is a group within the engineers that tries to implement energy-saving practices on campus. Their first goal was to try and use vending misers on the vending machines because vending machines use about $300 worth of electricity a year. A vending miser is a small device that is plugged into the machine and outlet, and if no one is near the machine within 15 minutes, it will shut the machine off. It will apparently cut the cost of electricity in half. This is a great idea for any school, campus or company that has many power-consuming vending machines!

Even though I only talked about three college environmental organizations, there really are many out there who are making a huge impact in their community and state. It only takes one or two students to influence a faculty or staff member to get a green student organization up and running, so if you have an idea share it with someone on your campus today!