A Starter Pack for a Beginner Eco-Friendly Student

Going to university is an exciting time, but it means that you have to begin your journey to being independent. That means buying your own stuff for your bedroom, university supplies, food, and drinks. But being environmentally friendly seems harder to do while being a student as you have to make the commitment yourself. But in the long run, buying eco-friendly products that are sustainable will save you money and produce less pollution.

Now here are the six products I would recommend buying for a simple change to becoming an environmentally friendly student.

Coffee Cup

Being a student involves studying, partying, and not having enough sleep. So it is essential to have coffee in times of need (a.k.a. when you need to stay awake during your commute to university). Reusable coffee cups are great for taking a coffee on the go, cutting the amount of paper being used by single-use coffee cups, and you can get discounts on tea or coffee when you bring a reusable cup in many coffee shops and cafes. If you need your drink to stay warm during your two-hour lecture, then a thermal travel mug is the way to go. The thermal layer keeps your drinks hot or cold for up to four hours depending on the product.

Straws

In most of your life, I bet you have used a straw to drink your beverages. First, for those lazy people that can’t pick up a cup, it provides an efficient way to drink without tilting the cup into your mouth (only joking about the lazy part). Also, for drinks such as coke, the straw decreases the chances of the drink covering your teeth in sugar. However, these single-use straws are normally thrown away into landfills, littering in the environment or floating away at sea. You would think that because they are plastic therefore they can be recycled, but as they are so small they are not able to fit through the recycling machines. As a result, they are automatically considered rubbish. So by using sustainable straws, less plastic straws have to be produced. These reusable straws come in all types of materials, so you can find the one that best suits you.

Water Bottle

When it comes to water bottles, they are easier to recycle compared to straws because they are bigger in size. But many people still don’t remember to recycle them so they end up in the bin. However, in the past few years, many companies have begun selling recycled water bottles, which are a huge help to stop the production of new plastic bottles. Although, I don’t think this is enough, so I would recommend buying a reusable water bottle that is fairly cheap in price, and they come in different sizes for different amounts. Being at university, you should be able to find water fountains all around your campus, this is the case with mine, anyway. I would recommend keeping a tracker of these water fountains so you know where to find the nearest one. Water is essential, but using plastic isn’t.

Lunchbox

This may not be as essential to many students, but it’s for the ones that want to go beyond what is needed and save money. Many universities provide places to buy ready-made food, and a lot of the packaging that universities use now is recyclable, as they want to help combat the issue of plastic waste. But to those who want to save a lot of money, be healthier and sustainable, then I would recommend buying an eco-friendly lunch box. Having this allows you to make food at home and bring it to university rather than buying food on campus. It can be cheaper in the long-term if you can be committed. For me, this is something I’m trying to strive for, as I want to be healthier and save money, but I also don’t want to buy something that is plastic because it goes against the whole reason for being sustainable. You can also buy insulated lunch boxes for hot meals that you need to keep warm for a specific amount of time.

Cutlery

In addition to a lunchbox, having cutlery is essential. At my university, many of the campus cafes and restaurants provide metal cutlery, which is great, but it’s only if you are eating within the facility. Plastic cutlery is given to take-away meals, which don’t help the issue of plastic waste. With many universities, there are recycling bins around, but many students automatically throw their plastic into the rubbish bins instead. So if you would rather not have to face them at all, just bring your own travel cutlery set from home. My travel set comes in a nice felt zipped bag so it’s easy to take with me, plus it also comes with chopsticks so I can eat noodles as well. Very useful for eating anywhere and comes in a variety of materials.

Bag

Lastly, we have the shopping bag, which is essential for trips to the supermarket.

Many people forget to bring a bag for shopping, so they have to buy a 5p plastic bag instead. Over time, these bags are normally kept at home and forgotten, so customers keep buying plastic bags every time they shop. So, for a student who wants to save money, make their own food at home and doesn’t want to pay extra for a bag each time they shop, then I would recommend bringing a reusable bag that can easily fit in your backpack or handbag on the go. You can find many that are waterproof and durable. I think it’s one of the most useful things to have but hard to remember to bring.

Overview

With all the products mentioned above, many people never remember to bring them to university. These products are great to use, but can only be effective if used regularly. So the best way to do this is to make it a habit.