<r Editor,
Carleton’s commitment to sustainability has been ever increasing in recent years. We have one wind turbine and will soon have two, Memorial and Cassit are LEED-Gold certified and the new Arts Union will be LEED-Silver certified, and compost bins are becoming as ubiquitous as trashcans. These school-backed initiatives will certainly reduce our carbon footprint and make Carleton a more environmentally sustainable school. Yet none of these measures negatively affect an average Carleton student. We have been choosing the environmental option when it has little impact on our life. In the past we have bypassed options that would hinder our ability to live our normal, easy existence.
A couple years back, the dining halls tried to change to a trayless system. They had heard that removing trays at other colleges had reduced food waste 25-30%. They also found a positive impact on the health of the students, and saved money on raw food costs more than ten cents per student per meal. Sadly, Carleton students rejected the trayless system, and after an uproar by the student body, the trays were placed back in the dining halls. As a member of the Carleton student body today, I want to help Carleton make the right choice. To become more sustainable, we must learn to give up some of our luxuries. So what if you have to make two trips? So what if you have to decrease that amount of cookies you get the first time around? To show that Carleton students are not selfish spoiled brats that do not think of the rest of the world, we must go trayless. Keep your iPods, your Uggs, and your $200,000 education. We are just giving up trays. Seriously, just trays. It is not a big deal for you. It is a big deal for the future.
Sincerely,
Rhys Lindmark, 2013