The PHOENIX asked Loyolans what kind of “green” projects they would like to see students do on campus.
Rachel Schneck, 18, Freshman, Undecided: “I would like to see more paper recycling. I find myself wanting to throw paper [away] but, like, here in Damen we have cans and bottles and waste only but no paper. [Additionally,] I have like four plastic bags sitting in my room and I want to have something to do with them, and there’s no place that I know of to get rid of plastic bags.”
Aveen Sharma, 18, Sophomore, Psychology: “I know a lot of people living on campus use the laundry. It would be sort of cool if someone took initiative about finding a way to take that waste and recycle it. Maybe use it for the plumbing that we have for the bathrooms. Maybe find a way to filter it. Maybe you can purify it. It would be nice to see some sort of [water] recyclability throughout the campus.”
Amanda Koenig, 21, Senior, Biochemistry: “We could ask that the IC and the library and Damen replace any non-recycled printing paper with recycled paper. We could just ask that Damen turn off some of the lights throughout the day. I think the lights get dimmer, but down the hallway there are a lot of lights that probably aren’t doing much. I think [being green is] in the little things.”
John Dwyer, 20, Junior, Information Systems and Accounting: “Expanding what we think we’re doing well [such as] growing our own food [and] the [BioSoap] program — there’s no BioSoap downtown — and look at things as far as energy goes. Maybe producing our own energy like we produce our own food. Those would be the first things that come to mind.”
Amy Nguyen, 19,
Sophomore, Biology: “I guess we can see more of the use of solar power panels, especially on the sidewalks where it catches the sun’s rays. Obviously you can generate more energy and electricity that way. These materials cost a lot of money but we can always do fundraising to incorporate them onto the grounds and whatnot.”