Student Sustainability Guide
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Surprising ways living sustainably could save you money
Give up bottled water
Tap water is approximately 500 times cheaper than bottled water
Switching to a green energy provider
Switching to a green energy provider that uses 100% renewable energy and could save up to £240 on main suppliers
Switch off!
Simply switching off devices and lights you aren’t using at the mains will save you money on your energy bill
Buy in bulk and decant
Great for all sorts of products from shampoo to fabric conditioner and hand sanitizer. Buying in bulk tends to work out cheaper and produced less plastic waste.
LED Bulbs
These are more energy-efficient than traditional halogen bulbs, meaning they last longer and are less expensive to run. The average household would save about £40 a year by replacing all their bulbs, according to The Energy Saving Trust. If everyone switched 100% to LED, 1.7m tons of carbon emissions could be saved every year.
Use soap
Just as effective as shower gel at keeping you clean but comes without the plastic and is much cheaper.
Cut the disposable razors
Buy a razor where you only need to replace the blades and not the handle, use an electric shaver or a zero-waste razor.
Group delivery items together
When buying online, group items for delivery together as much as possible, to reduce packing and the environmental impact of multiple transport deliveries.
Go digital
Use online folders and subscriptions including streaming services such as netflix amazon prime, apple music. But be mindful of ways to reduce your digital carbon footprint too.
Walk, cycle or get the bus!
With everything in Portsmouth being so close together the isn’t much need to drive around the city. The majority of student houses and halls are all within a 25 minute walk (10 minute cycle) of the university buildings, bars and restaurants. Especially with the price of petrol.
Reduce your load
If you are driving, don't have any unnecessary heavy items in the boot, you’d be surprised how much further your fuel goes without them.
Keep it cold
One of the main benefits of choosing a wash temperature of 30°C is that on average you can save 57% on running costs, when compared washing at 40°C. While this saving on energy and money is huge, the lower temperature's cleaning power is only marginally reduced
In season fruit and veg
When buying fruit and veg, look to see what’s in season. By buying fruits and veg that are in peak season, not only will they be at their best but they are in the peak of their supply so much easier for harvest and less transport to the store. Plus because of this it is cheaper.
BYOB
No not booze, but bring your own bag, stop spending 10p extra for every bag on each of your food shops, invest in a reusable food bag or canvas bag to save money overall.
Local fruit and veg
Market sellers bring fresh, local and much cheaper fruits and vegetables than supermarkets do. And where you can, grow your own food that’s even cheaper than markets, better for the environment and the feeling of pride eating home grown tastes amazing.
Switch the dryer for the rack
With energy prices going up, now it the time to start cutting back and helping the planet, use a drying rack over a tumble dryer for a natural, cheap, eco way to dry your washing.
Eat less meat
Reducing your meat consumption (even by cutting out just red meat or having a zero meat day of the week) will dramatically reduce your carbon footprint. Incorporating more vegan and vegetarian meals during your week will cut some costs, while helping out the earth, and the animals. As well as this it has major health benefits such as the decrease of risk of heart disease, stroke, obesity, high bllood pressure, high cholesterol, type 2 diabetes, many cancers.
Don't buy books
Instead of buying books, read for free in our University library or any local libraries.
Rescue food
You can use apps like Olio and TooGoodToGo, where you can buy excess food at a fraction of the full price that stores and cafes would otherwise have to throw away.
Plan your meals
Write a rough menu each week and only buy what you need.
Cook in bulk
Cooking big batches of food and then freezing it, cuts down on food waste and saves money. No more unhealthy microwave meals or takeaways when you can’t be bothered to cook!
The freezer is your bestie
According to WRAP, we throw away 6.6m metric tonnes of food every year worth almost £400 each. Bad for the environment and bad for our wallets.
Where possible just buy what you need and don't shop on an empty stomach where you are more likely to overestimate what you need. But pretty much all food can be frozen, make the most of your freezer and freeze what you won't use for a later date!
Green Portsmouth Map
Use the map below to find different recycling points, as well as green businesses and community groups/initiatives around Portsmouth.
*Please note that recycling banks have been taken directly from information from the Portsmouth City Council website and we mainly focussed on the PO postcodes that students are most densely populated, for more banks across the wider Portsmouth area, including North End, check out the PCC website.
Useful Tools
Check Waste Disposal Option
Portsmouth City Council have a helpful tool to help you see what options there are for recycling/wasting most materials. If you are ever unsure as to what bin a certain item of waste needs to go in, this tool has you covered!
Check your Carbon Footprint
The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) has created a useful calculator for finding out your individual carbon footprint, giving you tips for how to reduce your footprint as well as how you compare to the UK average and in your local area
Make your Money Matter
Make your Money Matter helps you to see how your pension or bank provider may be funding fossil fuels. They have created templates that you can use to contact your own bank to encourage them to decarbonise.
More coming soon...
Let us know what you would like to see here, by emailing climate@upsu.net