Welcome Class of 2013!

Welcome Georgetown University Class of 2013!!!

While you ease your way into the life of a college student (and as a Hoya!), we thought we'd give you some quick and easy tips to sustainable habits/eco-friendly lifestyles on campus.

Bleed Blue, Wear Gray, Think (and Live) Green.

1. Be cool with water usage!
Try to limit your shower to ten minutes--every minute less can save 7 gallons of water, and cooler showers mean that less energy is required to heat the water. Maybe try a navy shower, which can be as quick as two minutes. Also, when you are doing your wash, make sure to keep the water cold--you get the same results!

2. Don't be full of hot air!
Turn off the thermostat when your windows are open! All that cold air gets sucked out the window, and the energy gets wasted.

3. Give your room a nap!
Just as you get tired from the energy you expend during the day, so, too, does your room.

When you aren't in the room, don't forget to turn off the lights. And don't forget to turn off the A/C when you aren't there as well.

Also, turn off your screensaver--these screensavers, especially animated ones, can require more energy than standard power for the laptop. Better yet, turn your computer off at night! Good night room! And while you're saving energy.....

4. Human energy--the greenest and cleanest of all!
Using your own two legs is emission-free and also gives you great exercise. When you are going up to your dorm room, opt for the stairs instead of the elevator.

When you venture off campus, opt for biking or walking. DC's street system is easy to learn, for most of the city is a grid of numbers and letters.

For walking, all you need is a good pair of shoes. Go take a hike in Glover Archibold Park just past the Hospital, or for a long walk, follow the Potomac over to the Monuments!

As for biking, you are lucky to be in a very bike-friendly city. If you want to get to the Rosslyn metro stop in Arlington (1.0 mi) or to the Dupont Circle metro stop (1.5 mi), you can get there a lot faster by bike than by bus. If you are feeling competitive, try to see if you can beat the bus there!

And while we're on the topic of conversation....

5. There's a reason man wasn't meant to fly!
Most Hoyas travel to wherever they call home at least 5 times a year. There are several options to consider when making these plans: should you fly, drive, or hop on a train? As a student on a non-commuting campus, air travel will be the largest single contributor to your carbon footprint that you can directly affect.

If you live nearby (cough *New Jersey* cough cough--or even the rest of the tristate New York metro area---that means you, too, Connecticut), default to taking a bus or train home. Many students enjoy the Bolt Bus, which has free wireless internet (www.boltbus.com) and offers $1 trips--if you're lucky.

For those who must fly home, consider using Terra Pass (www.terrapass.com) to offset your flight. Surprisingly, the carbon footprint of a single cross-country round trip can be offset by as little as $10. And when booking your flight, use DC National, which is accessible by Metro. Dulles can only be reached by an hour plus bus ride or a $40 cab.

Now that you saved some jet fuel, get ready to discuss your personal fuel......

But that's in the next installment...So stay tuned!

Building a walkway over the Hudson

The picture to the right is of two bridges in my hometown of Poughkeepsie, NY. The bridge in the immediate foreground is the Mid-Hudson Bridge, used by thousands of auto commuters each day. The bridge under construction in the background is actually an old railroad bridge, which has been inoperable since catching fire in the 1970s.

The work that's being done now will turn the old bridge into a walking and bike path, and will likely be complete by the early fall. It is the culmination of a grassroots effort that's lasted nearly ten years.

This is exactly the sort of practical, widely appealing project that I think everyone can get behind. It's unclear whether many (if any) potential commuters in the river's immediate vicinity will actually leave the car at home and walk or bike to work. From an environmental perspective, however, that's not even the point. This is a great use of an existing resource to develop a beautiful space for outdoor recreation. Furthermore, the walkway will be dedicated as a state park, so it will provide an economic boon to the communities on both sides of the river, while also opening up an exciting environment for local activity. For almost the last year now, the construction has also been a source for jobs.

Projects such as these help to promote the fundamental appreciation of the outdoors that is essential to any large-scale efforts to improve environmental quality on the whole. Even more encouraging is the wide-ranging support and effort on behalf of this new project. Walkway Over the Hudson, the nonprofit that engineered its development, ended up working with local business leaders and the city governments in Poughkeepsie and Highland (the town across the river) to get this idea off the ground. The final shot in the arm came in the form of federal dollars secured by U.S. Rep. Maurice Hinchey (NY-22), who serves this district. The earmark process may be much maligned, but in many cases such as this one, earmarks are responsible for providing some of the support needed to advance creative and useful projects that simply happen to be good ideas. That's something we can all encourage.















Walkway Over the Hudson (www.walkway.org)

Transportation by Human Power

I talk about walking a lot, so I thought I would write a little manifesto/blog post about the benefits of walking--what I call transportation by human power. Buses and cars get power from fossil fuels--I get power from my own two legs (and food, of course).

I thought about writing this when reflecting on how one of my housemates has been ordering from Safeway--not just now since the Safeway is closed--but always; I don't think he has ever walked there. To me, the walk to Safeway is ridiculously short.

I encourage you, whoever is reading this (hopefully more than just Kristin!), to think twice before hopping into a car or a bus when you're in DC. I started walking the city last summer, and I think it has been a very valuable experience.

For all too many of us at Georgetown, DC ends at M & Wisconsin, but it doesn't have to be that way.

Last summer, I started walking, ironically, because of the heat. The idea of walking to Yates in the heat and humidity just to work out and then walk back didn't seem like a great idea, so I thought that, instead, I would just walk to any interviews I had downtown and throughout the city. It is truly amazing how much more you learn about the city from just taking a few steps outside of Georgetown. I think one of the best examples of this is the walk to Columbia Heights. In just 3 miles, you pass by a variety of vibrant and very different neighborhoods: Georgetown, Dupont Circle, Adams Morgan, Mt. Pleasant, Columbia Heights. By the end, you feel as though you are in a different world almost.

I am not going to say that everyone should walk 3 miles (although, in my mind, up to 4 is fully walkable); however, what I recommend is thinking twice before hopping a bus, a car, or a metro rail to go somewhere only about a mile or so away.

Walking has the following unparalleled freedoms:
1) Freedom from fossil fuels and emissions: It is the most eco-friendly form of transportation because all it requires is yourself.

2) Freedom from expense: It's free!

3) Freedom from lack of exercise: This is awkwardly phrased, but walking can be good exercise if you make it! It also has numerous other health benefits.

So, the next time you are bored and it's nice weather, start walking--you'll find something new.

Photo link: http://www.hvrsd.k12.nj.us/stonybrook/home/Walking.html