The Green Guide: Resources for Environmental Sustainability

This website is one of many resource for learning about environmental sustainability at Guilford. If these pages do not address your questions, we would like to encourage you to ask a question or make a suggestion for further content developement, explore the calendar and events page, or read about what you can do to get involved in Guilford's environmental sustainability movement!

Tips for Conserving Energy in College: Guilford College has made a lot of changes to help the college conserve energy as a whole, including solar hot water heaters on the roof of Shore Hall, low flow shower and sink fixtures, and double flush valves for toilets in the academic buildings. Even though Guilford has made a lot of changes, there are still ways that students, faculty, and staff can help to conserve energy, and this page includes a few of our ideas.

Lucy Rowe, a guilford Student, uses the bus. Photo by Gabriella Spang.

Transportation: Many of the cities in the United States were built during an age of cheap gas and economic growth. As a result, many of these cities have a lot of suburban sprawl, and in some areas it can be difficult to get to a bank, clothing store, or even a grocery store without using a car. Greensboro does have suburban sprawl, but Guilford College is located in an area where most amenities are easily accessible by foot or by bike, and there are also a number of public transportation options available. The above link accesses a page that provides information about walking, biking, and taking public transportation in Greensboro.

Food: Food is often pumped full of fertilizers and pesticides and then shipped thousands of miles for consumption. As oil and gas prices go up, so does the cost of transporting chemicals and food, and therefore, the cost of food itself. So buying organically and locally is not just good for the environment, it can also be good for your pocket book. We know that organic produce at grocery stores often costs more, but that is often because the food at large chains still come from large, mass production farms, and those farms often simply use "natural", but more expensive fertilizers and pesticides that in great concentrations still contribute to soil degradation and water and air pollution. Local farmers, however, often grow

A large beach tree in Guilford's woods. Photo by Lizza Vachon

organically, and use more responsible farming practices, despite not being able to afford an official sticker from the EPA. Here we've provided a list of local sources that we believe have shown a great deal of commitment towards sustainable farming practices. You can either click on the anchor food, or you can click here for a downloadable version of the page.

Outdoors: The natural world can be a place of inspiration for environmentalists. There are a number of green spaces in and around Greensboro, and we invite you to explore your options on this page.

Recycling: The recycling program at Guilford is an ongoing effort. Technology for recycling is constantly changing; we are now able to recycle objects like batteries, reading glasses, cell phones, and ink cartridges. Guilford even boasts a "Green Room", a room in Founders where people can take used, but still functional goods like clothing, cook ware, and school supplies. These items are available to any student, staff, or faculty of Guilford College.

Recommended Books, Articles, and Websites: This page is a resource for the constantly curious. We have organized a list of books, articles, and websites pertaining to a number of different academic fields that we believe contain interesting information about environmental sustainability.