Building something like this on a university campus was a neat idea. A lot of people who lived here this year will be back, and we're trying to get everyone more active ecologically. There are two botany students living with me next year and they're very, very keen on the idea of using the greenhouses. Still, because of budget difficulties, there have been some small snags along the way. A bunch of people would collect newspaper, hop in someone's car and dump it at Laird Hall for recycling.
Students have recycling now and worm composters are due for the coming term.
In the end, it's the students themselves who will determine the way daily life proceeds in the EcoResidence. You don't have to do anything differently just because you're living there, but it's designed to encourage a certain awareness of nature and our need to cut down on our impact on the environment. The dean sees a bright future for the residence and its inhabitants. One of the things about the style of the building being centred around a courtyard is that it tends to bring everyone together. They've had pot luck suppers and meetings in each others' apartments, so it's already becoming a community.