Hello everyone, my name is Mamadou Toure. I am a senior Environmental Studies major. I am currently working on designing a Living Green theme floor with the Residence Life as an internship and  with support of Ripon College Sustainability. This eco-friendly floor in Anderson  Hall will focus on energy and water conservation.  Students selected will have to sign an agreement indicating their commitment to the Theme Floor and educating themselves and others about Green Living and sustainability. The members of this living group will apply a green lifestyle by applying the Reduce-Reuse-Recycle principle: managing their trash and recycling bins, creating eco-env activities (indoor & outdoor), working on designing green lifestyle for other students to follow, planting more trees and flowers, hosting an Earth Day event, helping to take care of the campus as a community…etc. My wish is that this theme floor living group will serve as an  eco-cultural living center that encourages sustainable lifestyle and also promotes it around campus. I believe that implementing  such a program in a college is an indispensable action that will help educate students in practical ways about environmental issues.  This will also reduce our environmental foot-print individually and as a community.

In today’s world, we take most things we consume for granted: electricity that comes in our power plugs, heat is produced by boilers and water heaters. Most of us do not think about the process  and the waste of our consumption. We must take into account our impact on the environment and also think about the future. This program I am working on will be bringing awareness and illustration of a green lifestyle in our campus. The Living Green theme floor will positively impact our actions and decisions around the environment and climate change. You must be the change you wish to see in the world as Mahatma Gandhi said, so let’s be it.