How can I minimize my personal waste?

Here are some ideas you should consider:

• Bring plastic bags you've already purchased (or a backpack) to Weshop so you don't have to get a new one (and save 10¢ by doing so). Also, bring a mug to Pi Cafe and Red and Black and be rewarded similarly.
• Buy large containers of food products (e.g. yogurt, juice, canned fruit) instead of buying several small ones.
  
• Recycle everything that can possibly be recycled. If it's something more obscure like styrofoam, cardboard, or batteries, make a pile of it somewhere and take a trip to one of the appropriate dumpsters (or the "unique" recycling shelves in the science center) on campus. See Wesleyan Recycling for details.
• Buy goods that come in recyclable packaging--or better yet, no packaging at all. Remember, only plastics numbered 1 and 2 can be recycled in Connecticut.
• Use cloth napkins instead of disposable napkins, and washable plates instead of disposable plates.
• Compost your food waste. Email compost@wesleyan.edu for details about how to get a compost bucket for your house/hall and have your bucket emptied on a regular basis.
• Ask your server to put your food on a napkin in the Kosher section at Usdan—perfectly legitimate and plastic-free.
• If you can avoid it, don't print out documents that are on E-Reserve. Read them on your computer to save paper.
• Where feasible, keep a personal hand towel in the bathroom so you don't have to use paper towels every time you wash your hands.
• Only ask for a to-go container at WesWings if you're actually planning on saving leftovers, since they serve you on disposable plates anyway.
• Bring your own dishes to every "free food" event and then you won't need to use the plastic ware.
• Don't buy bottled water! Refill durable water bottles and use travel mugs.
• Make your own food and pack it in Tupperware instead of buying packaged items every day.
• Bring back the handkerchief…
• Try to conserve toilet paper―you don’t need that many squares to be clean…
• Avoid throwing things away whenever possible. Reuse before you recycle. If it can't be recycled, try to think of some other practical use for it, or consider if someone else could use it (Goodwill? Freecycle?).

Useful Links:
 Preserving Resources, Preventing Waste (EPA)
 Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle (EPA)
 

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