Check out the Climate Coalition at IU
Global warming is all over the news right now, but almost no one is talking about solutions — even though we have everything we need right now to solve the problem. We already have cars that can get over 100 miles per gallon. We already have the technology to get most of our energy from wind and solar power. All we need now is the leadership to make it happen.
That’s where students come in. This is our problem, and it’s up to us to solve it, starting right here on campus, right now.
That’s why we’ve joined the Campus Climate Challenge, along with over 300 other universities and high schools across the U.S. and Canada. We’re working to get all of our electricity from clean sources like wind and solar power, transforming the way our dorms and classrooms use energy, and educating ourselves and our fellow students about real solutions to global warming. It’s going to take hard work, but we are committed to making it happen. By 2008, over 1,000 universities will have taken the Challenge.
What we do matters!
If students at IU Bloomington's Campus succeeded in halving their personal junk and bulk mail, we will save: (based on calculations of student population to waste ratio)
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28,900 trees
- 1,203,000 pounds of carbon dioxide and
- 2,590,000 gallons of water each year.
That's why the Campus Climate Challenge has teamed up with IUCoupons.com to cut down on the substantial amount of paper waste that is used as coupons in newspaper ads-the majority of which are never used. Good business practices dictate a new way of doing business and IUCoupons.com provides tech savvy students with a web-based approach to cutting down on the paper that is wasted every year. Students print coupons from IUCoupons.com only when they want to. The paper coupon can be completely eliminated when the merchant and student opt for text message coupons on their cell phones.
IUcoupons.com founder John Evons is donating 5% of his profits to support on campus environmental causes and to purchase Carbon Offset Credits to help make IU a carbon neutral campus. The Campus Climate Challenge applauds John for his ethical and environmentally friendly business practices and his commitment to making this world a more sustainable place to live.
Why Such a Fuss Over Junk Mail?
The world's forests are feeling the strain of unsustainable demand for wood and paper. The United States consumed 99 million tons of paper in 1997, or about 740 pounds per American. The U.S., with five percent of the world's population, consumes 30% of the world's paper.
By weight, paper products comprise nearly one-third of all waste going into American landfills. Bulk mail, a substantial chunk of our paper waste, is especially troubling because it is often unsolicited and thus leaves citizens to dispose of materials they did not choose to consume.
Catalogs and other direct mailings account for 5.2 million tons of waste each year and are recycled at a paltry rate of 19%, leaving over 4 million tons to clog landfills. That's 340,000 garbage trucks filled to the brim with nothing but bulk mail!
This is a problem not only because of the waste disposal issue but also because it forces more paper to be made from trees, a very resource intensive process. Producing a ton of virgin paper requires 17 more trees, 7000 more gallons of water, and substantially greater energy input than a ton of 100% recycled paper. Furthermore, chlorine is often used in the bleaching process, releasing the carcinogenic chemical dioxin and other toxins.
