Go for the Green!
Sustainability Challenge in the Residence Halls
What is Go for the Green?
Go for the Green is our annual sustainability competition between residential communities at Western, focusing on composting food waste and reducing energy usage in the residence halls!
Students can pledge to take part in the competition from Janurary 9th to Earth Day to conserve resources and compost on campus! Reduce your footprint and learn how to make sustainable behavior changes that will help you save big in your time at Western.
Students who pledge to Go for the Green get a custom sticker-sheet set and poster to hang on their door and are entered into a prize raffle with gifts from local Bellingham businesses. The community that reduces the most energy consumption will win a dessert bar for their community!
How to Participate
- Pledge to Go for the Green
- Reduce your energy and water usage
- Compost food waste and soiled paper
- Participate in sustainable events and initiatives
Pledge to Go for the Green
Why Pledge?
- It helps build positive, sustainable, money-saving habits that students can take with them when they move off-campus.
- It helps save energy at WWU during the coldest months, a high energy-consuming period of the year.
- Diverting food waste from the landfill mitigates WWU's footprint (food waste in landfill produces methane, harming our environment). Reducing compost contamination increases amount of food waste that can be sent to be repurposed.
I Pledge To:
- Turn off the lights when I leave a room
- Turn down the heat and bundle up
- Turn off the tap when I scrub and brush
- Unplug my electronics when not in use
- Limit food waste contamination
Upcoming Events
Join us at upcoming events to win participation points and win prizes!
Kick-off Go for the Green with Plant it Forward! Bring your own up-cycled container—tin cans, yogurt tubs, glass jars, or anything creative—and pot a plant for your space.
When: January 22nd at 5pm
Where: Viking Union Multi-Purpose Room (605)
- Learn & Pledge: Discover how to reduce your footprint, and pledge to Go for the Green!
- Earn Points & Win Prizes: Participate to earn points for your community and enter to win exciting prizes
Pledge for Go for the Green and join the conversation about sustainability with our HFA's. We will be tabling bi-weekly at the Viking Commons Dining Hall. The more you engage, the more points you’ll earn for your community! All pledgers receive a pledge poster and sticker pack to display on their door!
When: January 9th and 15th, Bi-Weekly January 29th - April 16th
Where: Viking Commons Dining Hall
Ways to Participate
In addition to attending events, check out these ways to get involved with Go for the Green!
Residents can enter the contest by submitting an 8.5x11 PDF file of art that inspires our community to make sustainable behavior changes that positively impact our community.
All submissions are due by Earth Day, April 22, 2025. By submitting your art, you'll have the opportunity for your art to be on display and used to promote Go For The Green in the future!
Theme: Create a visually stunning poster that communicates the beauty of sustainable living, the importance of environmental activism, and the profound love we share for our planet.
Submit your art here: GFTG Poster Contest Submission
Volunteer to be an ambassador for your community and win goodies! Sign up here: GFTG Ambassador Signup.
As an ambassador, you will engage in on-campus sustainability by:
- Volunteering 1-5 hours per month at events (great resume builder)!
- Gaining sustainability knowledge, no matter your skill level!
- Encouraging others in your community to take the pledge!
- Educating your peers on how they can Go for the Green.
- Promoting sustainability events and initiatives.
You will also get a free five-panel Housing Sustainability hat and other goodies!
Go for the Green Tips & Tricks
Points Breakdown
Waste
10% reduction (over total period) = 50 points
Participation
1% population pledges/in attendance = 50 points (max out at 10%)
Energy
1% reduction of consumption/person = 50 points
Host a Community Event
1% of population in attendance = 200 points
WWU Concepts + Poster Submissions
1% of population/community submits entries = 200 points
Frequently Asked Questions
Here are some easy ways to reduce your energy usage for GFTG:
- Wash only full loads of laundry, and wash on cold
- Turn off lights when you leave a room
- Turn down the heat and bundle up
- Keep windows closed to conserve heat when you can (aside from airing out room)
- Turn off the water when you scrub and brush
- Unplug your electronic devices, lighting, and appliances when not in use
- Take shorter showers
- Take the stairs over the elevator if you are able
- Limit TV time
- Study in already lit/heated public spaces to avoid increased energy demand
- Turn off/unplug all devices, lighting, and appliances before you go to bed
To compost:
- Compost food scraps and soiled paper in the provided compost bin in your room
- Know where your compost drop-off location is
- Avoid placing landfill trash in green compost drop off toters to reduce compost contamination
We will be catering a dessert bar for the winning residential community! We encourage all residents from the winning community to come together to celebrate their win, take a load off, and eat some delicious free desserts. You’ve earned it! Vegan and gluten free options will be available.
Good question! We will be comparing each residential community to themselves in previous years- for example, Nash’s energy use will be compared to an average of Nash’s energy use between 2018 and 2023, so that the change in usage will be relative to its normal energy consumption. We are just comparing the percent change in energy consumption compared to average years, so that we can calculate the impact that students are having!
Contact Us!
Want to learn more? Check out Housing Sustainability or email residencesfacilities@wwu.edu. Follow our Instagram @wwuhousingsustainability for regular program updates!
Additional Resources
Looking for additional sustainability resources? Use these to take your knowledge to the next level:
We the Power | YouTube
- Local community members break down legislative barriers and taking power from big energy companies and putting it back in the hands of locals.
@energy | Instagram
- The U.S. Department of Energy shares ways to reduce energy use and promote clean energy.
@intersectionalenvironmentalist | Instagram
- Follow for posts focusing on the intersectional aspects of environmentalism. A great place to start if you’re new to sustainability and want to learn!
Energy Justice & Climate Change Resistance | Podcast
- Listen to intersectional environmentalist discuss the “link between marginalization + climate vulnerability” and the importance of energy justice.