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WORLD'S LEADING INTERNSHIP PROGRAM

Dreamers Go Green

We all have our own dreams—investment banking in London, acting on Broadway, or running an ad agency in LA—but perhaps one of the most important ways we can contribute to our own futures and to those of future generations would be to work together on realizing a green dream.

Every day, companies, corporations, and individuals are seeing the positive potential of “going green.” You can do your part by researching ways to decrease your carbon footprint—the impact your activities have on the environment based on your carbon dioxide emissions. Check out what some Dreamers are doing to contribute to making the green dream a reality:

I recycle all my newspapers & magazines when I'm done reading them.

  • Kat Vong (NY ’06)

I plan on going green by buying the world’s first production hybrid to get 300 miles to the gallon. It’s available in 2009. More information can be found at www.aptera.com.

  • Korre Hegem (LA ’07)

At work, I use a Nalgene bottle to get water instead of using the Styrofoam cups.

  • Sarah Baker (NY ’05)

I bring my own bags to the grocery store! Along with being better for the environment, they are soooo much easier to carry all of my groceries in. My bags are from Trader Joes and i even have a reusable wine sack to carry wine in.

  • Dana Kirschenbaum (NY ’06)

It's not much, but I take public transportation to and from work, saving both money and gas.

  • Steve Johnson (NY ’06)

I tell everyone to turn off their computer when they're away from their home or office for a certain time rather than leave it on standby.

  • Dewaylon Johnson (NY ’07)

Well, Im actually very interested and inspired about 'Going Green.' I am graduating with an Interior Design major this spring and within that field I have learned so much about the need for sustainability. To start off, for Christmas I gave all my relatives energy efficient light bulbs. This was a hit!! Everyone loved them and I knew I was doing good for the environment at the same time.   I personally have been very concious about the energy I use. I eat fresh products rather than prepackaged. I carpool to school rather than driving separately. I unplug and turn off all electronics when not in use. I reuse a water container rather than using multiple water bottles. There are plenty more options you can do in order to make your part in 'Going Green.'

  • Tara Kosinsky (Chicago ’07)

I've stopped buying water bottles and only drink out of my Klean Kanteen! (Made out of metal and safer than Nalgenes)

  • Erin Odisio (NY ’06)

Eat and buy "green." Buy products that against "factory farming" techniques that turn a lot of our food into processed items, and support causes such as being against animal testing, and support Community Trade. America's largest carbon footprint comes from the agricultural industry.
Instead of buying something new, repair something old. Vote for candidates that support environmental issues! Use the back of paper. When going away from home for long periods of time, unplug your appliances; these things still use energy when they are only shut off! This will also save on your electricity bills. Buy in bulk. This will save on multiple trips to the store, or shipping and handling on items in the mail, and also saves resources on packaging.

  • Bonnie Chow (NY ’07)

I'm a big advocate of being green, so one of the community service projects I recently participated in was making the community aware of how destructive and potentially harmful drinking out of plastic water bottles is. Plastic bottles contain a harmful chemical (BPA) that can leak into the water, increasing the chance for certain cancers among many other things. Along with the health risks comes the environmental damage. The amount of oil used to produce the bottles used in the U.S. alone could fuel over 660,000 cars for a year with today's estimates. Only one out of every five bottles is recycled, and the rest end up in landfills where it takes 450 years to decompose, or in our lakes, rivers, and eventually the ocean. I encourage everyone to reconsider drinking out of plastic water bottles and trade them in for a reusable stainless steel container.

I've also purchased reusable grocery bags from 1bagatatime.com and encourage people to eat organic foods. Organic foods eliminate the use of pesticides and growth hormones that affect the environment as well as our bodies.

  • Kevin Parrish (LA ’07)

I am obsessed with the Going Green movement and have been actively harassing friends, family, and coworkers. I've set up recycling bins and boxes at work for aluminum cans, paper, and plastic bottles. I have also done this at my house as well as my parents'. I also convinced my parents and a few of my friends to trade out their light bulbs for energy-efficient bulbs. Also, I just bought the cutest "Green & Gorgeous" canvas bag for the grocery store. (You can still be green and fashionable!)

Some other things I've done include installing a water-saving shower head, using recyclable batteries, and packing my lunches in reusable containers instead of plastic baggies.

I also donated to OxFam in honor of my family for Christmas. Some of their "gifts" included planting 50 trees in Africa, school uniforms for poverty-stricken children, a goat (some areas use them for transportation, funny I know) and donating 500 fish to a river. If you ever want to do that, check out their website. There are some cheap options and then some outrageously priced items, but it’s definitely cool.

  • Katie Smith (London ’07)

I always make sure to turn off the water when I brush my teeth and shave my legs.

  • Laura McLaine (LA ’07)

I quit buying packs of bottled water and got a Brita to avoid the extra trash.

  • Nicole Parisi (NY ’05)

My fiance Brian and I are going green by using tote bags for grocery shopping. We bring them to Whole Foods when we shop and even receive 10¢ back for each tote we bring every time, extra bonus!  We also save all of our plastic bags and reuse them as doggie poop bags when our walking our puppy Puck in the city of Chicago. Or when we have enough we take them to the recycling center.  Lastly we save Campbells soup labels for my Mom's school which recycle themselves double-fold: once, because Campbells donates money to my Mom's classroom for each label saved that can be put toward books, pens, pencils, etc. and secondly because all the labels are then recycled to make future ones.

  • Adrienne Olds (London ’06)

I've started using a canvas totebag for my groceries. You can purchase them from Whole Foods for 99 cents right now. They are eliminating plastic bags from their stores by earth day.

  • Laura O’Connor (SF ’02)

I actually just did a big presentation on going green and the effects of water bottles on our society!
So, I am now using a reusable water bottle, have my own "grocery bag," and switched out to energy-efficient light bulbs!

  • Dani Wallin (LA ’07)

Turning off the water while I brush my teeth. Turning off the lights in the house not needed. Recycling cans and bottles, and carpooling to class.

  • Omar Hatoum (LA ’06)

I have done a lot with trying to get people to move towards green products. I helped launch a green initiative within my company in partnership with our supplier Spartan Chemical. I work for a janitorial and sanitary industrial supply company that my dad and I started. Our goal for this year is to get 50% of local churches, community centers, and schools in our market area to switch to green cleaning chemicals to help improve our local indoor environments. I have done a lot of research in this area and have worked with many companies on how switching to green chemicals not only helps the environment and improves the overall health of employees, but it saves companies a lot of money as well.

Check out our Web site for more info on what we have put together at www.hartersupply.com.  

  • Neil Chamness (NY ’05)

My mother doesn't recycle as a habit, only newspapers and those obnoxious big boxes that come with her QVC purchases. So while home over Christmas break, I would set aside all the cans, bottles, etc. that I used for cooking so I could throw them into the recycling container in the garage. My mom literally got mad at me for not immediately throwing items away. She's too lazy to walk 50 feet to the garage to put it in the recycling bin compared to walking 5 feet to put it in her trash can. In my apartment I recycle everything and I go through about 2 or 3 bags of recycling for every 1 bag of trash. So I then went to Wal-Mart, bought another trash can for the recyclable materials, and set it next to her original trash can in the pantry. Now she has no excuse for not recycling on a daily basis!

I've also changed all my light bulbs to the energy-saving bulbs. I only use lights that I am using at that very moment as well as turning off all the lights before I leave my apartment. I'm still working on turning off electronics and unplugging them when not in use. Baby steps!

I just recently got a new professional digital camera. I develop many photographs in my darkroom, but not as much as I used to. I only develop my film when it's a special project; the chemicals used for developing, as well as the waste of paper in the darkroom, can be very harmful to Miss Mother Earth.
Now all I work with are digital files on my computer. But working on my computer all the time uses energy, so that goes back to the fact that I'm still working on turning off electronics when not in use. It's a vicious cycle!

  • Rachel Esterday (London ’06)

Several Ways I have committed to "Going Green" include carpooling, walking or riding a bike instead of driving short distances, reusing notebooks and printing double-sided to avoid wasting paper, and keeping electric use to a limited amount.

  • Jason Bernheimer (NY ’06)

I bought a Brita filter instead of buying so much bottled water, which cuts down on carbon emissions from distribution and recycling.

  • Ashley Marchetta (Barcelona ’07)

I go green by buying/wearing organic clothing.

  • Devon Kaiser (London ‘07)

For going green, my family uses cloth napkins and also cloth grocery bags when we go shopping!

  • Emily Pittinger (London ‘07)

I ride the bus to and from campus.

  • Emily Cohea (NY ‘07)

I walk to work instead of driving my car.

  • Ben Gruver (London '07)

To offset my carbon footprint, I donated to begreennow.com to a tree-planting project. I also use only canvas bags for grocery shopping and use energy-efficient light bulbs.

  • Trent Cobb (NY ‘06 and ‘07)

Make sure lights and electrical switches are turned off when you’re not using them.

  • Lucy Keir (San Francisco ’07)

I recycle and use cloth towels instead of paper towels. I am looking into buying my next car and want it to be a hybrid.

  • Crystal Ferrer (London ’06)

I convinced all of my friends to recycle and every party I have I make them recycle everything, even plastic bags.

  • Chelsea Siaca (Barcelona 2007)

I drive a hybrid car.

  • Jenna Medeiros (LA 2007)

I drive a hybrid car and I take public transportation or walk whenever I can. I was all my clothes in cold water to conserve energy. I only use a "green" dry cleaners.

  • Ashley Ann Loh (NY ’04)

I sold my car and moved close to work so I could ride a skateboard to work, save money, energy, and be healthier = Awesome!

  • Brad Conner (SF ’02 & NY ’03)

For more ideas on how you can contribute to the green dream, check out the web site under “Be Inspired.” Also, calculate your carbon footprint here to ensure we all share a bright, clean future.