Hello fellow grads, I hope you are all enjoying the sunshine today. Seeing as today is Earth Day (when we take a bit of time to think about what the planet does for us all and how easily it is for us to harm it) I thought I'd share a few ideas that we can do around the University to lessen our impact on the planet. The funny thing about a lot of these ideas is that they end up saving money - either for the department or the university or yourself.

1. Reduce paper use. There is an option you can set on your computer that allows you to print on both sides of the paper. ALSO you can put more than one page on a sheet - and it's still legible! So you could reduce your paper printing by 75% just by printing 2 pages per sheet and printing double sided!

2. Reduce paper waste. For some reason there is a garbage can right beside the printer in the office. BUT, that isn't for the print job you just realized went wrong. NO - put waste paper in the RECYCLING box over by the photocopier. ALSO, some people (like me) make regular trips to the recycling box to take all that great paper that was only printed on one side. I take that home and use it for printing my drafts.

3. Reusable lunch containers. When you bring in your lunch, take it in reusable containers. If you are buying your lunch, you can bring your own container to have the lunch put into. Same goes for coffee cups. I bet you every person going to seminar has a mug on campus, but how many paper cups are sitting in the garbage afterwards? Also, packing your own lunch is better for the environment than buying lunch at a restaurant.

4. Turn off electrical things. Leaving your computer turned off over night saves a lot of energy. If you don't want to shut down, put it to sleep, which is just about the same thing but doesn't quit any of your applications. Turn off lights when no one is in the room for any period of time.

5. Walk/bike to school. It's warm now (or it will be soon). Certainly the risk of frostbite is gone. So get some fresh air and use your legs to get you to campus. Some people live too far away for this, and they are allowed to take the bus or carpool. But try not to drive to school alone in a car.

Happy spring, Simon.