As temperatures begin to drop in some parts of the Midwest this week, making some areas of the U.S. colder than Antarctica, there is no question that the state of the Earth is in danger.

Green Club leaders senior Sophia Bellisario, senior Tracy Ellison, and junior Grace Seefelt are striving now more than ever to raise awareness regarding how one can take steps in everyday life to help the planet.

“The overall mission of Green Club is to make people aware,” said Ellison. “We know that we cannot solve the world’s environmental issues by the one small group, but once people are educated on what they are doing and how it affects the world around them, they can be more conscious about how they go about their everyday lives.”

Small changes to one’s daily routine can drastically affect one’s carbon footprint. While many steps are obvious, such as recycling and composting and using less paper, there are many more ways to make your life more eco-friendly. As stated in Newsprint’s December issue, reducing food waste and donating to food kitchens means the resources, such as water and energy, that went into making the food, are not squandered and, instead, reused. As a nation that throws out around 40% of our food every year, becoming keen on your trash production can open your eyes to how wasteful your household may be.

Green Club hopes to make their members, and all of Mercy, aware of their footprint through hands on activities. This will be a change from their latest way of running Green Club, as they plan to shift to a more hands on program.

“We find things that everyone can enjoy while also being mindful of the environment, which includes not using too much paper and recycling all of the products we use within meetings,” said Ellison.

Leading by example is what these leaders have practiced, and their members feel their leaders exemplify exactly that.

“I think the leaders do a good job leading by example,” said senior member Lexi Morello. “Throughout each meeting the leaders bring snacks to have during the presentation when we are learning about animals we are saving as a club. Along with snacks, they bring a basket to recycle specific items in order to help the environment.”

Each member of Green Club feels that now, more than ever, people must be mindful of every action they take. 

“I think we all agree that global warming is a real issue,” said Ellison. “I don’t think people take it as serious as they should but as time moves on . . . people are starting to become more aware of it, but more attention should be focused on this issue.”