By Michelle Ross The toothbrush: Millions of toothbrushes are thrown into the landfills every year because they are not recyclable. A toothbrush consists of three separate parts: the nylon bristles, the metal staple that holds the nylon in place and the plastic handle made from polypropylene. All three of these components would have to be separated… Read more »
Future Comments
Sustainable Home Goods
By Pebble Haniford, student, IU South Bend Foundations of Sustainability class Ikea has been a long standing favorite of mine as a provider for home goods. I appreciate the vision of creating and providing the masses of everyday people with well designed, affordable products. In addition, it was clear to me early on that it… Read more »
Simply Sustainable Seeds
By Jennifer Evans Clicking on my favorite sustainable seed catalog link from my e-mail inbox feels like a package of spring just waiting for me to open! Gardening has always been a pleasure and a connection to nature for my ancestors and me and it all starts with the SEED! What is the difference between… Read more »
Sustainable Curb Appeal
By Ben Futa The American lawn has a substance abuse problem. The problem likely started with a casual gateway drug like extra water, but has since spiraled out of control, turning into a head-long downward spiral, ending in the dark world of synthetic fertilizer and toxic pesticide addiction. These substances are produced under abnormal and… Read more »
Cog in a Most Beautiful Machine
My primary goal as a resident assistant has always been to get other students involved. I honestly feel that moving out my folks’ home and into River Crossing was one of the best decisions I have ever made. Granger felt so distant from campus, and participation in clubs was a chore. I possessed a void… Read more »
Monstrous Hybrid for Stormy Weather
By Alicia Buford, Sustainability Studies student One day before class I was looking at what the weather was supposed to be like the next day and saw that it was supposed to be windy and rainy. I packed my umbrella in my book bag and then realized that was a perfect “monstrous hybrid.” It’s a… Read more »
Less Bad? More Good?
“Even the most rigorous and eco-efficient business paradigm does not challenge basic methods and practices…our concept of eco-effectiveness means working on the right things…instead of making the wrong things less bad.” – Cradle to Cradle, by William McDonough & Michael Braungart That is essentially the basis for the difference between eco-efficiency and eco-effectiveness. … Read more »
Circle of Strife
The final in a series of writings done by first year students at IUSB. They were in Marcia Holland’s intro writings course, W130, where their writing prompts were on sustainability topics. By Courtney Harris Throughout history, we’ve looked at earth as though it were so bountiful that there would never be a time when it… Read more »
Balanced Living Through Nature’s Complexity
Here is another piece written by first year students at IUSB who enrolled in marcia Hollands introductory writing course, W130, where their writing prompts were focused on sustainability. By Briana Weidler Everyday life consists of numerous checks and balances that we must constantly consider. The amount of sleep we get every night, what and how… Read more »
Mother Nature as our Model
By Kameron Smith Not everything that’s right and good comes easy. Sometimes when you try to simplify everything it can actually make things more complex. (B)ecoming a sustainable culture is a lot like the natural world we live in today which is the longest lasting thing we have. We begin to look at its cycles… Read more »