Dr. Jeff Wilson, a university professor at Huston-Tillotson University, Austin, Texas has moved into a dumpster in a bid to show students how to live on less.
The professor, who moved in on Tuesday, plans to spend the full year living in the 33 sq foot dumpster.
‘The idea here is to ultimately show one can have a pretty good life in a dumpster,’ Wilson told Fast Company.
Jeff, a Harvard-educated environmental science professor, is currently being referred to as Professor Dumpster by his students but he plans to get them on board with his new project.
He wants to make the dumpster a comfortable living space by adding a shower, kitchen, bed, WiFi and energy efficient by installing solar panels and an energy producing toilet.
When the year is up, Jeff plans to take the bin across the United States, educating students about the possibility of following in his ‘less is more’ footsteps.
Students are encouraged to sign up for the project which means Jeff can take the odd night off.
‘I think it’s pretty intriguing,’ said Evette Jackson. ‘It’s pretty cool. I want to live in it too.’
Dr. Jeff Wilson and his new home
The idea came to Jeff about two years ago while he was having a coffee in Starbucks, ‘I looked out the window into the parking lot and saw an eight-yard dumpster and had some sort of strange flash that I was definitely moving into a dumpster,’ he told Fast Company.
He put an advert on Facebook selling his home furnishings and kitchen appliances, ‘Starting at 6pm, I will be selling all of my home furnishings, clothes, kitchen appliances, and everything else in the apartment for $1 an item.’
The Dumpster Project has the support of the university and the ultimate goal is to bring sustainability to the center of the college experience.
