Welcome to another school year, Her Campus Tulane readers! For those of you who
started following last year, it’s great to have you back. For freshmen or new readers,
I’m excited that you’re joining the rest of the HC Tulane contributors and me on our
journey through our second semester as a Her Campus branch.
This year, I’ve traded in my adventure blog for a brand-spankin’ new set of articles
that will focus on anything and everything Green. Sustainable eating and eco-friendly
shopping tips will be interspersed with information on why sustainable living is so
important in today’s day and age. Together, we’ll transform from wasteful women into
green goddesses!
If we’re going to embark on this journey, we should probably have a sense of what
we’re getting ourselves into, right? Definitely. Let’s start with some definitions to help
us get our bearings.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recognizes that our survival as humans
depends directly on the health of our natural environment. The EPA therefore defines
sustainability as any practice that allows humans to live in harmony with nature, by
taking pleasure in today, but also by guaranteeing that it can be enjoyed by future
generations.
Environmentally friendly (eco-friendly) is a label placed on products, services and policies
that do little or no harm to the environment.
Green is a word that gets tossed around a lot. Essentially, it boils down to something
that is sustainably produced or utilized in a socially conscious manner.
The writers at EcoStiletto have made a list of other helpful definitions that I’ll likely be
discussing throughout the year. These are the words that get slapped on labels that
make us want to buy a product just because it makes us feel like we’re doing good
things to help save the world.
Fair trade products are made in areas that are less economically developed, in order to
reduce income disparities and to offer people opportunities for financial gain.
USDA Certified Organic doesn’t mean that the product is made entirely of materials that
do not contain pesticides, antibiotics, or synthetic chemicals. This label does, however,
promise that 95% of the ingredients are organically grown.
On that note, what does the word organic even mean? Essentially, it just refers to any
material that came from a source that was alive at some point; think plants and animals.
However, the organic label doesn’t automatically mean it’s healthy or good for you. If
that’s your main concern, look for the USDA Certified Organic or USDA 100% Organic
labels instead.
Eco and natural are also used on product labels to make us think we’re being healthy or
environmentally conscious consumers. However, neither of these words is regulated,
ensuring that they often end up as mere marketing ploys.
Whew! Now that the basics are out of the way, we can look forward to a semester of
eco-adventures and stylish sustainability.
If there’s any topic that you’d love to see explored here throughout the semester,
comment below and I’ll do my best to make your wildest Green Dreams come true!