Take the Duke Sustainability Pledge / January 16, 2008
Does global warming seem too global for an individual to impact? Not so, says Duke’s Dean of the Nicholas School of the Environment William Chameides. Even seemingly small efforts can add up to significant change.
“If every home in the United States changed out three regular light bulbs to compact fluorescent bulbs, it would be equivalent to taking 3 million cars off the road,” he said. “We simply need to be smarter about how we use energy. That involves lifestyle changes. Some of those are fairly trivial, like turning the lights off and using less water.”
Duke is inviting all students, faculty, and staff to join together to make a sustainable difference by signing the Duke Sustainability Pledge. The pledge is meant to raise awareness about sustainability issues and encourage members of the Duke community to consider the environmental, social and economic impact of their daily decisions.
Every person who signs the pledge will receive a Sustainable Duke reusable shopping bag made from organic cotton. The reusable bag will help reduce the use of paper and plastic bags as well as help share the message of sustainability with others.
Individuals can also share their sustainable stories, ideas and efforts through the site, so they can be shared with the broader campus community to inspire others.
10 Ways to Support Sustainability at Duke
- Turn off lights and use natural light
- Replace incandescent bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs
- Enable sleep settings on monitors/computers and turn off copiers, computers, printers, fax machines, etc. when not in use
- Turn off water when washing hands, brushing teeth and washing dishes
- Walk, bike or use public transportation to get to campus, go to lunch and get to meetings
- Choose campus dining facilities that are “green;” buy produce at the campus farmer’s market
- Reduce, reuse and recycle
- Buy EnergyStar electronics and appliances
- Purchase environmentally friendly products recycled content paper, nontoxic cleaning supplies, local food, etc.
- Educate yourself and others about your ecological footprint
Make your contribution to greening Duke. Sign the pledge and be a part of Duke’s vision for a sustainable future.