@Papplehat asked, “if you can’t maintain a vegetarian diet for health reasons, what else can you do to make a positive impact?”    Being a vegetarian certainly helps lower your carbon footprint, but when it’s not possible, there are other options when it comes to food. Global food production is responsible for 35% of all human-caused greenhouse gas emissions, so it is a great place to start making a positive impact ( BBC ).    Beef and other red meat produce the largest amount of greenhouse...

Lauren, a student on the Auraria Campus, asked, “how can we support the start of composting programs in our own communities?” We’ll explore that question in the context of our campus, Denver, and Colorado as a whole, as well as the basics of composting and why it is important.    What is compost?     Compost is the aerobic (oxygen-required) biological decomposition of organic (carbon-based) materials by microorganisms (EPA). It can be used to build soil health and provide nutrients for...

Recycling can be confusing no matter where you are. Not every city can recycle the same types of materials, and labels can be tricky or misleading. While we break down some common misconceptions and myths about recycling, we’ll answer a question from a student at Auraria: is it more sustainable to buy products that are recyclable or products made of recycled materials?   When a product is recyclable, it means it can be collected and remanufactured into new products (1). Different locations...