I learned more than I thought I would while visiting the sustainability office.  I always notice recycling bins across campus, but I had never actually seen where they go, or even knew if they made it past a landfill.  I have always appreciated the water bottle filling stations, though.  Getting to hear about everything that Oklahoma State does for sustainability makes me appreciate it even more.  Knowing that 70% of campus electricity comes from wind power is very eye opening, and that nearly half the food comes from towns nearby in Oklahoma.  I also was impressed by the fact that my campus has saved around $50 million dollars in the past decade just by simply making people more aware of easy ways to conserve energy.  Noting that if you leave a room for more than 23 seconds you should be turning the light off, I will be putting that into my routine because I now realize that just small actions can add up to a significant impact.

These past few weeks have definitely changed my views on sustainability and conservation.  I am now being more mindful of the things I throw away and the amount I rely on fast fashion.  I am thinking more about ways to use less energy and fossil fuels as well as purchasing less products that I do not think I will get much use out of.  I am alarmed at how quickly our country is running out of landfill space and destroying the clean environment, and am more worried than ever about the increasing number of lives we are bringing into it.  There is no time to wait for future generations to come up with solutions, because by then it will be too late.  My question is, how can we ensure a healthy environment for future generations to live in?