Throughout this semester I have learned in many different ways how my lifestyle affects the Earth. Before this class, I thought I was a pretty environmentally aware person. I had stopped using plastic bags, straws, and face washes with micro-beads in high school. The first time I was shocked about the impacts I still had on the Earth was during the carbon footprint exercise. Although my “Earths” were lower than the average American, I was still embarrassed and surprised. The biggest impact I have was from my driving. About five times a week, I drive from James Island to Seabrook Island. I did not think much about carpooling with my friends. After the carbon footprint assignment, I made more of an effort to carpool with other people. At least a couple times a week, I carpool with some of my friends now. Although in a perfect world I would be able to carpool everyday to reduce emissions, carpooling some is better than nothing.

Another part of my carbon footprint that was not apart of the assignment is the carbon emissions produced by the food industry. Food that travels across the country or even the world produces lots of carbon emissions. Not only is buying locally better for the economy, but it is better for the environment. This is not the only way my thoughts about food have changed. Chicken nuggets used to be my favorite food, especially Tyson’s. After watching the food documentary, I walked into kitchen and threw away all the chicken nuggets I could find. I was so surprised and disgusted by that documentary. I think majority of the population just doesn’t know how bad our food industry has become for ourselves and the environment. I have also tried to move to more of a plant based diet especially after Professor Saunders’ partner gave us that speech. He proved that a good diet can have a lot more effects than I realized. After that equation that calculated how many protein I should be eating, I realized I was eating too much. Most of our calories should be coming from other types of food. Although I have not completely removed meat from my diet, I have become a lot more conscious about my decisions. I do intend of eventually becoming a vegetarian, and I am spreading awareness to my family and friends. Fortunately, most of my friends have already made this switch. I believe if I did the carbon footprint assignment again, it would be lower.

I also try to make other small changes like taking shorter showers, trying not to buy clothing with plastics, turning off lights and such when I can, etc. It is important to do everything possible because unfortunately, it is very hard to live in the United States without a carbon footprint, which is upsetting.  I figured if I am going to have to have a carbon footprint, I will try every day and every way I can to reduce it. Fortunately, I am moving downtown in August so I will no longer drive to class, which will further reduce my carbon footprint.

This class has immensely changed my outlook on how to live a more sustainable lifestyle. Of course, no one is perfect, nor does everyone have the same educational background that is required for certain decisions. I believe that education is key for change. As people become more aware, they change their actions. Citizens need to have the necessary tools to make informed decisions on their environment and health.  As college students, we are lucky to have this information at our fingertips. The material from this course inspired my personal change. I have stopped using plastic bags. I’ve began bringing my own personal, reusable bags each time I go to the store or pharmacy. I have kept them in my car so I don’t have an excuse to forget. After living in a house with three other girls for two years, I have seen a great amount of plastic bags pile up from endless trips to the grocery store. This is only from one household in Charleston. In reality, “the average reusable bag has a lifespan equal to that of more than 700 disposable plastic bags. One person using reusable bags over their lifetime would remove more than 22,000 plastic bags from the environment.” (from https://www.reusethisbag.com/articles/25-reasons-to-go-reusable/) Our actions obviously have large impacts. If everyone thought this way, we would be making the world a better place. Not only are using reusable bags beneficial for the environment, but also enriching personally. After this course, i’m more aware of a sustainable environment and if I can help in any way possible, I like to. It’s nice to know that you’re making a difference in the world.

The first week of my behavior change was the most challenging. Not challenging as in hard to do, but actually hard to remember to bring in my reusable bags in the first place. Like previously mentioned, keeping them in my car helped. What was even better was that I didn’t even need to go purchase reusable bags. I have about five from clothing stores in the area and around King Street that actually give you them when you make a purchase. Because of this, I believe that people have more reusable bags than they think. These include tote bags and even reusable plastic bags. At times when I forgot my reusable bags, it actually made me realize how many plastic bags are wasted. This began to actually make me angry and therefore not forget my bags. I am upset with that fact that I am just now making this change. I suppose that it is better late than never. I am sure that I will stick with the change for the long run. I hope to inspire my friends and family to change as well. Using reusable bags is such a simple change in a person’s life that has numerous positive benefits for the environment. For others hoping to change their actions, I would say to have a positive attitude and keep reusable bags in multiple locations for convenience. Everyone has the ability to change if they want to.

The one main change that I worked on this semester was bringing a reusable coffee to drink my morning coffee in . I am so proud of this accomplishment. Truth be told, I did break like two mugs this semester so I gotta work on handling my mugs with care. I think this was a good change because I am not contributing  to pollution and trying to live more sustainable. This change has helped make the world a better place because I drink coffee every morning and by using the same mug every morning I am saving a lot of to go coffee cups. I am also producing less trash this way too. It will enrich my own life because just to let you in on a little secret, coffee is a $1.10 if you bring your own mug at stern food court and the Education Center. Not only am I saving money but I am inspiring others to bring their own mugs too. If people see me using my coffee mug than hopefully they will get their own, instead of purchasing those starbucks disposable cups. The first week, it was hard, I am not going to lie  and I did forget several times. So in order to help myself, I would not drink coffee that day on campus. Also, we read an article on coffee and that was very hard to digest all of that information. I am a coffee lover so to hear how far my coffee has traveled was eye opening. I am not sure how I am still living with the fact on how much labor went into making my one cup of coffee, but I am going to come up with a way to find that out. I wish there was a way to see where I can find some coffee that is from here and not one that traveled so far. Anyone know a place here in Charleston? Or at least somewhere near here? The whole bringing my mug thing has become a habit. So personally, I think if you want to make a change you gotta take baby steps. So in January I forgot to bring my personal mug a lot. In February, I forgot it once in a while, but in March and April I just carry one in my bookbag.This is a change that I will stick with because I want to rescue my own mug. I do not have a favorite mug. I just grab a mug at random from my kitchen cabinet in the morning or use the one in my book bag. To some this whole bringing my own myg might sound silly or a small change but for me personally, it is a big change. So imagine, if our entire classroom of students did that. Then our whole building and then all of the students at CofC. These little steps could eventually spread all around. I think it is those small changes that makes a big difference. I am so glad that I made this change. I will forever remember, whenever I am drinking my morning coffee that I am saving our beloved planer earth one coffee mug at a time. 🙂