What you can do
What's the next thing you can do to help Waterloo's sustainability efforts?
Small actions like reducing waste, recycling, turning off the lights, and driving less do add up to important changes and help shift campus culture. For resources about how to live and work sustainably in your day-to-day, check out the Sustainability Guide. But there are also many impactful ways you can use your role on campus for wider impact.
As a student, here are some important actions you can take to support campus sustainability:
Learning and development
- Ask your professor how climate change or other sustainability issues will impact course topics
- Add the Sustainability Diploma and/or other options to your degree
- Reflect on and speak to an academic advisor about how climate and sustainability could impact your career
- Make an impact on sustainability in your co-op placements and other experiential learning opportunities
Campus community
- Complete the Living Planet on Campus certification through WWF Canada
- Join a sustainability-focused club, student group, or society
- Become a Green Residence Ambassador or Sustainability Volunteer
Culture building
- Talk to your peers and friends about sustainability and climate change
- Ask University services and programs about sustainability, and advocate for change on and off campus
- Bring sustainability home with you, or to other places you go – sports, work, community groups, etc.
Personal action
- Walk, cycle, take transit, carpool, or drive an electric vehicle whenever possible
- Turn off appliances and electronics when not in use, especially in residences
- Take shorter showers and don’t leave the taps running
- Eliminate waste and sort properly whatever is left
- Look for local, certified, fair trade, and plant-based food options
Jump to:
- What you can do
- Sustainability considerations
- Departmental support