How to reduce your environmental impact as you head to campus this fall.
Lighten the (waste) load, save money, stress less, and have an eco-conscious college experience, starting with these sustainable recommendations for making your way to UCLA this September. Green practices you put into place now can—and hopefully will—last well beyond your time in Westwood.
- Assess what essentials to bring and take inventory of what you already have ahead of time to avoid overpacking and overpurchasing. If you must shop, do it after arrival. Explore Facebook Marketplace and Buy Nothing groups; visit thrift shops and secondhand stores for any resident hall or apartment needs. There’s also the UCLA Surplus Stop and UCLA Thrift Shop to check out.
- Connect with your future Bruin roomies to coordinate sharing items.
- Pull out backpacks, totes, suitcases, and duffel bags to pack. Unlike cardboard boxes, these containers are easier to carry, more durable, and usable after the big move. Skip the bubble wrap and Styrofoam that usually end up in the landfill and repurpose towels, clothes, and blankets — which you can also use later — for breakable items.
- Remember your reusables: water bottle, coffee cup, utensils, food containers, bags, plus refillable containers for soap, shampoo, and conditioner.
- Plug in at your new home using a smart power strip and LED bulbs. Make your computer more energy-efficient, too, by enabling power-saving settings.
- To decorate, reuse, upcycle, and DIY. Indoor plants are a nice addition, as well.
- Further green your Bruin den with sustainably packaged cleaning products that avoid chemicals.
- Speaking of being clean: sort rubbish responsibly with the campus’s centralized three-stream waste bin system (compost, recycle, and landfill).
Once settled in, here are more suggestions for making sustainability part of your daily life at UCLA:
- Eat clean. UCLA Dining fuels Bruins with locally sourced, fresh, and healthy meal options, including environmentally friendly vegetarian fare. Westwood Village also hosts a Farmers’ Market every Thursday on Broxton Ave for all your in-season fruit and veggie needs. UCLA also has a student-run farmers market in Bruin Plaza.
- Go green. Ride a bike. If you don’t plan to bring two wheels with you for cruising around, use Metro Bike Share, with stations located across campus, in Westwood Village, plus Weyburn Terrace, and at the University Village on Sawtelle Boulevard. Be sure to also register each quarter for Bruin U-Pass or Bruin Grad Pass to take public transportation. These passes provide unlimited, fare-free rides across L.A. on several local and commuter lines.
- Get involved. On campus, join a student club or organization, study sustainability, attend a green event, and follow us on Facebook, X, and Instagram for news and other resources throughout the year. Off-campus, engage with nonprofits and other organizations dedicated to sustainable causes.