A greener campus begins with its faculty, staff and students. Here are three simple tips on how to live a more eco-friendly life.

Avoid bottled water:
Use a water filter and do not buy bottled water. Not only will it save money, but it’s also better for the environment. Instead, invest in a permanent water bottle.

Reuseable grocery bags:
Even better, buy eco-friendly bags. Plastic bags take over 100 years to decompose.

Recycle:
Purchase recycled and green products as often as possible. Scattered across campus are numerous recycling bins.

“Sustainability is vital for the preservation of our planet,” says Nick Dunne, a junior public relations major and member of Webster University’s Sustainability Coalition (SC). “Even the tiniest habits of our Westernized society have contributed to global warming. Frankly, it’s scary.” With nothing less than the world at stake, Webster has yet to make a signifigant contributions due to nonexistent funding and a transitioning administrative body.

Webster University Convocation, former university President Richard Meyers welcomed students with enthusiasm and purpose. “I believe this year may be the highlight year of my presidency,” said Meyers, as he laid out plans for what he saw to be a “banner year” for the school. Included in the speech was a commitment to take “a serious look at how Webster can contribute to reducing the world’s unprecedented scale and speed of environmental degradation.”

Meyers announced that Webster joined the Association for Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education to learn the “best practices” from other higher education institutions. He formed an exploratory committee that would eventually become the SC. Audits on energy, utilities, landscaping, dining services and waste management were going to be sought. Meyers signed the President’s Climate Commitment to acknowledge global climate change and take action.

All of this was done, Meyers said, in an effort to make Webster “a green model for our students, communities and the world.”

Two years later, while some progress can be measured, the goal line remains far for a greener Webster. Of all the audits proposed in Meyers’ speech, only one has been conducted. The recommendations of that audit have not been addressed on a large scale. A university-wide energy policy with a sustainable agenda does not exist. A paid-position for a sustainability coordinator has yet to be assigned, if even considered. And in the fall of 2008, The Princeton Review gave Webster a “green rating” of 60, the lowest possible score.

Then, in the winter of 2008, Meyers unexpectedly resigned, never to see the completion of his “banner year” or to follow through on the number of initiatives he established in his address.

After Meyers’ speech in 2007, the SC quickly became ground zero for all efforts to make Webster more environmentally sustainable. Made up of faculty, staff and students, the group meets once a month, for less than two hours. According to the meeting minutes, member attendance fluctuates. Guest speakers from other universities and green developers are a constant presence. While the committee lists their achievements on their Web site, www.webster.edu/sustainability, which includes creating the campus smoking policy and hiring Energy Solutions Inc., to conduct the first energy audit, progress remains slow.

“Right now, it is all done in our spare moments,” says Lori Deifenbacher, adjunct professor for the School of Education and member of the SC. Diefenbacher doesn’t see this changing until there is a paid-position for a sustainability coordinator. She does, however, find some consolation in the recent movement towards new classes that incorporate sustainable education.