IN THIS EDITION
Meet the Team ∙ News & Events ∙ Media Recs ∙ Green Guide Advice
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Greetings from the Office of Sustainability! Welcome to the inaugural edition of the Blue Jay's Green Guide, a brand-new newsletter bringing you sustainability updates from across Johns Hopkins University. In the spirit of the new semester—and new newsletter—our new year's resolution is to put you in touch with the stories, happenings, and people advancing sustainability at JHU and beyond.
We hope this newsletter inspires you with climate optimism and ideas for contributing to a more sustainable world: whether that means attending a campus sustainability event to meet like-minded peers and colleagues, meal shopping with impact in mind, or mending to give your clothes a second life.
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SKYE NEULIGHT, COMMUNICATIONS INTERN |
Skye is a sophomore at KSAS doing an interdisciplinary major in Environmental Humanities for Climate Action, looking at how different narrative forms and styles generate collective climate consciousness. With a penchant for all things crafty and homemade, she is currently running experiments with plant-based bead making, mushroom grows, and pickling. Tell her all about your pet projects with the BJGG submission form!
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TERESSA HEALY, COMMUNICATIONS & ENGAGEMENT SPECIALIST | Teressa has been with the Sustainability team since 2021, connecting the JHU community to sustainability initiatives through digital media, storytelling, and outreach events. If you keep a lookout, you’ll probably find her walking her new puppy, Mabel, through Hampden.
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The JHU Sustainability Leadership Council (SLC) is holding an in-person research symposium on Wednesday, April 5th, at Scotts-Bates Commons showcasing sustainability initiatives, programs, and research at JHU. The SLC invites researchers, faculty, staff, and students to share their recent work by presenting a poster, giving a presentation, speaking on a panel, or organizing a tour/activity.
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Save the date! If you are interested in presenting or attending, fill out the form by March 3rd.
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The Hub: Climate Impact Labels Could Affect Fast Food Selections |
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A new study led by Associate Professor, Julia Wolfson, and researchers at the Bloomberg School of Public Health shows the potential for climate impact labeling in fast food as an effective way to promote sustainability and nutritional choices. In this study, menus with a "high climate impact" label on burgers increased non-beef choices by 23 percent compared to the control group. Menus that included "low climate impact" labels increased non-beef choices, such as a chicken sandwich or salad, by about 10 percent more participants than those in the control group.
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The Smell of Money: Film Screening, hosted by CLF
FEB 8 | 12:30 PM | Sommer Hall E2014
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Planting of Pines and Publics: Retracing the Steps of Fakhr Al-Din II
FEB 9 | 5:30 PM | Hodson 210
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A Taste of Black Freedom: Black Foodways in Baltimore and Beyond
FEB 9 | 2:00 PM | Scotts-Bates Commons
FEB 10 | 10:00 AM | Scotts-Bates Commons
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Grand Rounds: The Social Exposome, Social-to-Biological Transitions with Paulo Vineis
FEB 10 | 12:00 PM | Virtual
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Sustainable Solutions: Expanding Horizons with NASA DEVELOP
FEB 15 | 1:00 PM | Virtual
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| Sabrina Imbler on "How Far the Light Reaches: A Life in Ten Sea Creatures"
FEB 15 | 8:00 PM | Virtual
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Birdwatching Tour with the Patterson Park Audubon Center
FEB 18 | 8:00 AM | Druid Hill Park
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Dara Friedman-Wheeler presents "Being the Change: A Guide for Advocates and Activists on Staying Healthy, Inspired, and Driven"
FEB 8 | 7:00 PM | Red Emma’s
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Malcolm Harris on "Palo Alto: A History of California, Capitalism, and the World"
FEB 23 | 4:00 PM | Red Emma’s
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Podcast: Ologies by Alie Ward | Exploring Critical Ecology with Dr. Suzanne Pierre
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| Book: Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer
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| Newsletter: The Climate Optimist by Marcy Franck of the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health
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Dear Green Guide: How do I shop more sustainably for clothes? |
~ Anonymous, via Instagram |
Swap, don’t shop | Before you go online or into a store, check with the people you know—clothing swaps are a free way to switch what you have without bringing more into circulation. The more people you get involved with to barter and trade, the better everyone’s chances of leaving with something exciting and new.
Pay attention to fabrics | Linen (made from flax) and hemp are both plant-based and biodegradable, but not nearly as energy, water, or pesticide intensive as a lot of cotton production can be. As much as you can, avoid synthetics like polyester, acrylic, nylon, and spandex, which tend to be non-biodegradable petroleum products. Invest where you can in brands with an ecological mission (like Hopkins’ own Taara Projects).
Be mindful | Overall, our best advice is to make your shopping a thoughtful process. Resist the frenetic pace of trend cycles and build up a personal style and wardrobe that will sustain over time. It's great to shop secondhand, but be wary of overconsuming! Revisit clothing you own to find the colors, patterns, and styles that suit you—and then acquire more of those, one or two things at a time. Arguably, the satisfaction of a shopping spree comes from abundance and newness; the satisfaction of slow consumption is in building a conscious connection with your items. Choose your things carefully, wear them and love them, and then when your favorite sweater gets a hole, love it a little more by mending it.
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We know you have lingering questions about sustainability: do individual actions really make a difference? Is a paper bag more sustainable? How do I compost at a small scale?
Send in your questions and dilemmas below and we’ll offer our advice in the next newsletter!
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