As I begin my morning by grabbing a freshly brewed coffee at our on-campus Coffee House, I often tend to only be thinking about consuming my coffee and starting my day. However, it also crosses my mind that my coffee cup is compostable, and so is just about everything else.
As Earth Day rolls around, I have become more aware of all the amenities Davis offers that are eco-friendly. I have begun to notice everything that the largest corporations on campus do to help the Earth. Davis makes huge efforts to reach its zero-waste goal, and it’s going to change so much more than just our college campus. I hope it will be a start for the rest of the world to catch up.
The Coffee House isn’t just a huge source for a variety of cheaply-priced food on campus. It also composts almost all of its scraps every day. It has made everything from coffee cups to plates to bowls to people compostable. (I’m only kidding about the people part, but it’s still impressive!)
UC Davis has convinced every area of the Coffee House to use compostable, user-friendly methods to help sustain our earth. The zero-waste goal for 2020 is actually really close to being obtained, with most waste coming from user error. Considering all the effort that the Coffee House puts into making Davis an eco-friendly place, even behind closed doors, it’s our duty as consumers and students on campus to try our best and do our part in making campus more eco-friendly.
A lot of students don’t realize that their own plate or cup can make a difference, especially when it comes to throwing things in compost that actually belong in landfill (or vice versa). You don’t have to be a sustainability major or own a community garden to make an impact on saving our earth. So the next time you get your morning coffee, make sure to check twice if you’re throwing your cup in the compost or the landfill, because it does matter.