JEN WENDLAND ASSISTANT SUSTAINABILITY COORDINATOR
Over the course of the last year, I have been interviewed more times than I can count about sustainability efforts at Wartburg—for news purposes or classes. Every time, the person interviewing me is different, but the questions are usually the same.
One question that never fails to come up is what Wartburg is doing to become green. While I have an answer to the question, I would rather answer with a question of my own: why wait for Wartburg to do something when you can do something right here, right now, that is free and easy?
The first step to sustainability is not finding new ways to get rid of our trash or new ways to produce our energy, but to find ways to consume less in the first place. Not only is this completely free, but it is something we can start doing right now.
Waiting on the college to act from the top down means you are waiting a lot longer than you may like. You have to get ideas agreed upon, have a plan written up, wait for approval and then apply for funding. Then you wait for approval of funding before you can finally start. This takes time and money, two things for which we really can’t just wait.
Instead, we can shut off lights, open the door with our hands instead of the handicap button and waste less energy in other ways.
But this, too, can’t just happen overnight. Sustainability has to be intentional.
It’s too easy to just leave the lights on, to leave the computer on, to leave the phone charger plugged in. It’s too easy to take a longer shower, to let the water run while doing dishes, and to buy the disposable cup and use the plastic silverware.
We can wait for Wartburg to change, or we can start making changes—as students, faculty and staff—right now.
Like running a marathon, living sustainably takes training: incremental, intentional actions taken to reach a certain outcome. This will take living with intention and realizing that you are responsible for the consequences.
During the month of February, you have the perfect opportunity to start acting and stop waiting.
Already, we are in the second week of the February Greenathon. Go online to www.wartburg.edu/sustainability/feb.html to find out simple (and not so simple) things you can do right now to make a difference.