Harvard Sustainability Pledge

Just switch them off before you settle down for a more enjoyable viewing experience!

Set your computer to go into standby or sleep mode after a few minutes of inactivity. It uses up to 80% less energy than leaving it awake, and will wake back up in seconds. (Learn how to power manage your computer.)

Choose "bright colors" on the washer when you\'re doing your laundry. 90% of the energy used in washing clothes comes from heating the water. According to the U.S. Dept of Energy, washing clothes on cold or warm is usually sufficient, and simply using warm instead of hot can cut energy use in half.

The lighting fixtures Harvard provides are already energy efficient, but if you brought a desk lamp or standing lamp with you, or are living off campus, use a CFL in your fixture. On average, they use 75% less energy than their incandescent equivalent, and last 10 times as long. Just make sure to recycle it properly when it finally does burn out and review the Massachusetts recommended guidelines for handling a broken CFL.

Some electronics draw electricity, even when they're turned off. This "phantom power" is estimated to waste $3 billion of electricity a year in the U.S. Watch this video to learn more, or check out this chart to get an estimate of how much your electronics might be costing you.

If you're able to, take the stairs. Regular exercise, including simple measures like walking up stairs, can reduce the risks of many serious diseases. Besides, it's about the journey, not the destination.

Greasy pizza boxes are recyclable as long as they don't have the paper liner, crusts or other food in them. Most of Harvard\'s recycling is single stream, so that means you can recycle your paper and cardboard in the same bin as your cans, bottles and glass. Find out more about what is recyclable.

One man's trash... During the school year, donate unwanted items to Goodwill or contact Harvard Recycling. At the end of the year, there will be Donation Bins located in your dorm. For the college, you can use the new reuse areas located in your House year round.

Even if you recycle all of your junkmail, reducing junkmail production is better than recycling. Reduce paper waste. Click here to learn how.

Reusing is better than recycling! The average American uses one, 100-foot-tall Douglas fir tree worth of paper and wood products each year, so help bring that number down by reusing scrap paper.

Reduce your paper towel use! Remember, they were once trees.

Most buildings on campus have an E-waste bucket. If you don't know where yours is, contact the building manager or your Green Rep.

If you're dining in, choose a reusable option. Bring reusables with you to study breaks, meetings or anywhere else where there's only disposable dishware. If you're visiting a coffee shop on campus (HUHDS or Starbucks) bring your mug with you and get a discount.

At the beginning of the year you can buy great furniture and school supplies from the Habitat for Humanity Stuff Sale. The rest of the year, try CrimsonList or Goodwill.

Or two or three! When it comes to energy, how you choose to fill your plate is just as important as how you fill your gas tank. The difference in energy needed to produce a vegetarian diet versus the average American diet is equivalent to the difference between driving a sedan versus an SUV! Even simply reducing your meat consumption will have a positive environmental impact of high magnitude. There are many other benefits to eating less meat as well.

Only take what you know you want to eat, or take small samples of things you've never seen before and go back for seconds if necessary. Food scraps rank third in their contribution to solid waste in the U.S., accounting for 17.5% of our garbage. By consciously choosing food, you can take control of a large portion of the waste you produce.

Red meat is the most resource and energy intensive food to produce. Can you get by without it? Give it a try for a few days and see how well you do.

Faucets can use up to 2 gallons of water a minute, so when you brush your teeth, shave, wash your face or anything else, make sure that the tap is turned off.

For undergrads, email energy@fas.harvard.edu for any maintenance or waste issues. At the business school, contact HBS Operations: put in a work request or call 5-6811. For the Law School, contact Facilities, facmgmt@law.harvard.edu. For emergency wastage issues, such as a busted pipe, call the control center at 617-495-5560.

Get rid of bottled water entirely. Our Boston tap water is some of the safest and best tap water in the world! It\'s tested for harmful chemicals 500 times a week. Plus, if you were to drink the daily recommended amount of water using only bottled water, it would cost you $1,400 per year, where as it would average only 49 cents from the tap, so be sure to take your reusable bottle with you when you go out!

How low can you go? Can you make your shower two minutes shorter, three? Most showerheads on campus are low flow, but they still use 2.5 gallons of water per minute (gpm) and standard showerheads use 5-7 gpm, so cutting one minute off your shower could save up to 2555 gallons a year.

There are opportunities to get involved with the Garden nearly every week. Find out more here.

If you're an undergraduate, a Business School Student, or a Law School Student, you have a student Green Rep who needs your help to make the campus greener. All other schools have Green Teams of individuals working to make your department or building more eco friendly.

Find ways to reduce the environmental impact of your student groups. You can even take it a step further and complete the Harvard Green Office Program checklist.

The Office for Sustainability offers grants from $500 to $5000 for on campus sustainability projects. Find out more.

Next time you see someone making a poor recycling decision, or leaving a light on, remind them of better practices.

Contact your State representative this year and let them know your stance on any environmental measures currently being debated. Look up their contact information here.

Contact at least three of the businesses you patronize about their practices. Thank them for their sustainable practices and tell them what you\'d like to see more of.