CREDIT: FRESHHOME.COM
You don’t have to literally “go green” for an eco-friendly home design, but it sure looks pretty!

The current trend of being more “green” conscious is inspiring and motivating everyone to take part in caring for our earth. As students, we should feel obligated to make better decisions to maintain our environment and set examples for other generations. Being green feels great and it is easy, especially when it comes to redesigning your home.

Having a green design for your home does not literally mean you have green colours throughout your space. Acting green is making eco-friendly decisions when you are spicing up your place. Here are a few easy and simple tips for students to help maintain a green design:

Many of us students are leaving the rez life this year and moving on to student housing. This is the perfect scenario to put your green attitude to work. Unlike rez, most of the student housing does not come fully furnished, so you'll need to go out and purchase furniture for your place. The easiest way to act green is to help reduce the waste that's going into our landfills. There's no better way to do this than by purchasing secondhand furniture, or even better, asking family and friends if they are getting rid of any furniture. Why purchase new expensive furniture when there is cheap secondhand furniture waiting to be used again? When the time comes that you feel you have unwanted furniture, remember to never throw it to the curb. Two great options are giving it to a secondhand store or selling it on Kijiji. Let's do our best to keep as much as possible out of our landfills.

Another perk to not living in rez is having the freedom to choose your wall colour. With advancement in paint technology, we are able to purchase low to zero VOC paint. VOC stands for Volatile Organic Components, which are additives into paint that is harmful for the environment. When you go to purchase paint to brighten your space, make sure to read the paint can label for zero VOC indication. Be aware that paint no longer is zero VOC once you add colour to the can. Regardless, your can of paint will still be eco-friendly, even when colour is added.

The easiest way to ensure you are taking part in the green movement is by purchasing energy efficient light bulbs. CFL and LED light bulbs are both energy efficient. Your bulbs are going to burn out sooner or later, so when they do, be sure to look for an energy efficient label on the replacement bulbs you are purchasing!

Acting, being, feeling and living green is the hottest trend today. No matter what you are doing, being green conscious is always essential. Being green feels great and is easy, especially when it comes to redesigning your living space.