As Simpson continues to grow beneath the whispering maples, environment-friendly habits have been sorely neglected. Whether it’s the gross overuse of paper by the entire campus or the prevalent use of Styrofoam in our dining facilities, the proverbial mother is shaking her finger at us.

There are simple solutions to these problems. At the top of the list is recycling. Tin, aluminum, paper, plastic, glass and cardboard can all be easily recycled by students – so make sure the Prego bottles and the Easy Mac boxes aren’t thrown away. All dorms, Greek houses, apartments and theme houses have recycling containers. It’s a few extra trips down the stairs or hall, but think of it as exercise toward the New Year’s resolution. And if it helps the earth it’s just an added bonus.

The piles of wasted paper in the computer labs are astonishing. Students should reduce paper use by only printing the pages they need, only printing final drafts of papers and printing double-sided whenever possible.

Simpson should consider allotting students a specific amount of paper to print during the year, and charging for pages over that limit. The college could also require all copiers used by faculty to have a separate tray for used paper, so if anyone needs to copy something unimportant, a sheet of new paper isn’t wasted. The paper has to come from somewhere and the Giving Tree can’t help us now.

The last of the three Rs is reuse. Sure, reusing paper is easy, but there are ways to get creative. Build a wall out of aluminum cans to block out that obnoxious roommate. It may not solve the problem indefinitely, but Dr. Pepper was never intended to be a psychologist.

The key to Simpson becoming more eco-friendly is for everyone to be a little more mindful, a little more proactive and a lot less lazy.