Environmental Wellness is the ability to recognize our own responsibility for the quality of the air, the water and the land that surrounds us. The ability to make a positive impact on the quality of our environment, be it our homes, our communities or our planet contributes to our Environmental Wellness.
- Being aware of the natural environment you live in
- Recognizing opportunities that lead you to new skills and acting on those opportunities
- Working to ensure the stability and longevity of our natural resources
- Participating in activities that protect the environment
Environmental Wellness on Pinterest: Not sure about what you can do to change your lifestyle? Start by checking out this Pinterest board we found or start your own board and come up with new initiatives on campus!
ThinkOne Energy Conservation Campaign: The Think One campaign focuses on energy-saving behaviors that individuals at Vanderbilt can take to reduce Vanderbilt’s energy consumption and impact on the environment.
Vanderbilt Green Fund: The Vanderbilt Green Fund is a fund set aside for sustainability projects proposed by students and the committee is always looking for innovative and educational ideas that improve sustainability on campus.
VUTREES: the arboretum blog
Self-guided tree tours at Vanderbilt: One of the things that I’m most excited about are the self-guiding portable device-friendly tree tours. You can use a smart phone or iPad to locate and learn about trees that are located along two routes through campus. The physical labels on the trees also have QR code stickers that allow people to learn about the trees and discover the tours by scanning the codes.
Activities & Exercises to improve & interact with environmental wellness
Choose Reusable Save paper and plastic and use reusable items. Bring your own cloth shopping bags when you go to the store, use your own water bottle instead of buying plastic water bottles, and buy paper, clothes, and other items made from recycled materials.
Eat local. Take advantage of local farmers’ markets, CSAs, and restaurants that serve local foods. Not only do local foods have more nutrients due to usually being consumed closer to harvest, eating local foods also saves a lot of pollution caused by transportation.
Turn it off. Whether it’s a faucet while you’re brushing your teeth or the TV when you leave the room, if you aren’t using something turn it off. Doing so will save a lot of water and energy. Added bonus: It will also lower your bills.
Clean green. Using natural or homemade cleaning products is better for you, your home, pets, and the environment. Most household cleaners have a lot of toxic chemicals in them.
Stop your junk mail. Remove yourself from any unnecessary mailing lists and contact companies to receive information electronically, when possible.
Environmental Wellness is not limited to nature. It also encompasses living well here on campus. Here are some links to help you create an environment of happiness and sustainability starting with your own room:
- The 16 Best Healthy, Edible Plants to Grow Indoors (Article)
- Stop Wasting Food (and Money) With This Genius New App (Article)
- Why You Should Never Buy Disposable Water Bottles Again (Article)
- This Hilarious Ad Proves Nature Is the Best Medicine: Feeling down in the dumps? Bored out of your mind? We’ve got the cure. (Watch is here)
- 15 houseplants for improving indoor air quality (Article)
- A Beginners Guide to Gardening with Kids (Article)
- Are GMOs safe? Yes. The case against them is full of fraud, lies, and errors. (Article)
- 14 Waterfalls In Tennessee That Will Leave You Breathless (Article)
The Wellness Center Team invites suggestions and community contributors to our Wellness Wheel pages-We are always looking to keep things fresh! If you have an article you’d like to see posted or would like to add your organization as a resource, please contact Jennifer Ray at firstname.lastname@example.org.