1. Individual lifestyle changes

• conserve energy-switch to more economical car
• use the bus
• bike to school
• recycle materials, avoid disposable items, reduce excess packaging & purchase less (do I really need this?)
• conserve water use
• compost
• sell the ski boat and take up kayaking
• Paper or Plastic?
• paper making consumes more water
• causes more water pollution
• most supermarket brown bags are from virgin paper (from intensively farmed clear-cut forests managed by large companies that use massive quantities of fertilizer)
• takes more energy to produce paper bags
• paper bags take up more room in landfills than plastic bags (paper bags do not decompose in landfills either)
• Plastic may be a better choice if neither plastic nor paper are recycled.

 2. Get involved politically!!

• Vote for environmentally friendly candidates
• Support legislation through letters and phone calls

3. Become involved in environmental organizations

• National Wildlife Federation, The World Wildlife Fund, The Audubon Society, Sierra Club, Greenpeace, Ducks Unlimited, etc.
• Receive information and become better educated
• Organizations focus efforts politically (lobbyist representing an organization of thousands will get heard)
• Organizations significant in whistle blowing of polluters
• Student organization: SEAC Student Environmental Action Coalition

4. Get a Job!!

• EPA predicts 100,000 new professional jobs in the next 5 yr. to deal with hazardous waste management
• Fed govt. will need 10,000 employees/year in the environmental disciplines
• Lawyers—develop policies, laws and regulations
• Economists—evaluate the costs of pollution
• Scientists
• Teachers
• Engineers—develop new technology

 Job opportunities in:

• Pollution control
• Recycling
• Waste management
• City planning
• Environmental monitoring and analysis
• Environmental restoration
• Development of environmental materials and products