San Diego State U Pairs Trash and Recycling Bins
(U.S.): In an effort to make recycling easier on campus, the recycling department is co-locating trash and recycling bins around campus and re-labeling all the bins to create consistent messaging.
U Tennessee Spurs Plastic Water Bottle Reduction Initiative
The new Take Back the Tap campaign is part of a national initiative aimed at reducing the consumption of single-use plastic water bottles on college campuses. Food and Water Watch, an organization that primarily provides resources for campus coordinators as they work to debunk myths about tap and bottled water, is currently working with over 60 colleges across the United States to encourage students to make a habit of choosing tap water over bottled water.
U North Carolina Chapel Hill Installs Solar Trash Compactors
University Grounds Services has initiated a pilot program of two solar-powered, compacting trash cans and recycling bins on campus aiming to increase trash collection efficiency. Grounds Services will evaluate the efficiency of the cans after six months to a year to determine if more should be installed throughout campus.
U South Alabama SGA Funds Waste Diversion Initiatives
The two projects selected by the university's Student Government Association for funding include an expansion of recycling from only plastic to plastic, aluminum and paper, and help to subside the start-up costs of a large-scale composting program.
U Wisconsin Oshkosh Implements Single Stream Recycling
Joining the regional recycling system, the new recycling scenario includes blue bins across campus that accept paper, plastics and cans. The recyclables are sent to the county recycling facility where workers hand-sort the discarded material.
Georgia State U Strives to Minimize Food Waste
The university championed its first Hunger Awareness Month by educating students on excessive food waste associated with overloading plates with food. Volunteers in the dining hall weighed patrons food waste resulting in monthly posters declaring food waste totals.
U San Diego Student Club Challenges Campus to BYOC
(U.S.): Students from the university's Net Impact chapter launched a month-long Kill the Cup campaign aimed at reducing the amount of one-time use cups heading to the landfill by offering incentives to campus members who bring their own coffee cup.
Louisiana State U to Improve Lakes
A recent $10,000 grant will allow the university to increase recycling opportunities in and around Campus Lake to help reach the recycling goal of 50 percent in 2014.
West Philadelphia Institutions to See Sustainable Shop
A new sustainable coffee and retail shop from United By Blue will open soon in University City, a western part of Philadelphia that is home to the University of Pennsylvania, Drexel University and University of the Sciences in Philadelphia. For each product sold, the company removes one pound of trash from oceans and waterways through local cleanups.
U Western Ontario Increase Recycling Efforts
(Canada): Coffee cups, fountain drink cups and the accompanying lids are now recyclable to divert 100 tons of waste annually toward their goal of diverting 90 percent of waste from landfills.
Auburn U Goes Styrofoam Free
Starting this semester, the university replaced styrofoam with paper products to increase recycling and eliminate waste from landfills in an effort to achieve a zero waste campus.
Macalester College Pledges Zero Waste
In an effort to divert waste from landfills and incinerators, the university recently implemented campus wide composting, a new program to repurpose food waste and reusable take-out containers.
MacEwan U Recycles Furniture
The university introduced a new program called Re-Love Market this September that takes unwanted and gently used items for people to swap or buy items instead of throwing them away.
U Maine Reduces Waste
The university recently reduced waste with a new unlimited meal plan for students where they no longer need to swipe for a lunch or dinner, which caused a significant decrease in food waste.
Appalachian State U Stadium Now Zero-Waste
To help the university meet its 90 percent waste diversion rate by 2022, a plan was recently developed for the 2014 season to include compost and recyclables waste collection areas each game day.
Penn State U to Increase Sustainability at Sporting Events
Throughout the upcoming football season, the university will work to achieve a 100 percent landfill diversion rate starting within the suite sections of the Beaver Stadium to surpass the 97 percent diversion rate accomplished in the 2013 season.
Portland State U Boosts Recycling Bin Locations
Thanks to a grant from Keep America Beautiful and The Coca-Cola Foundation, 1,000 new recycling bins designed specifically for placement in its residence halls were recently installed to increase waste diversion efforts.
Two Emory U Hospitals to Divert Waste
Starting in the operating rooms, Emory University Hospital Midtown and Emory University Hospital aim to reduce landfill waste by 65 percent by 2015 through recycling more and donating unused supplies.
U Louisiana Lafayette Works Toward Zero-Waste
The university recently piloted several programs to increase sustainability efforts in their zero-waste initiative around the campus that includes an increase in recycling bins, Goodwill donation bins to divert waste and the donation of leftover food.
Virginia Tech Pilots Green Project
On home game days, the university will now have additional recycling bins as part of a new test program to increase recycling efforts by 50 percent by 2050.
Auburn U Bolsters Waste Diversion Efforts with Solar
(U.S.): Solar-powered trash cans and recycling bins have recently been installed on campus that will compact trash leading to a reduction in labor, fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions due to the reduced frequency with which the cans will need to be emptied.
Concordia U St.Paul Implements Single Stream Recycling
(U.S.): In an effort to reduce waste, new recycling bins are currently being installed throughout campus to allow students, faculty and staff to recycle paper, cardboard, plastic, glass bottles and aluminum in a single container.
Johnson County CC Receives Recycling Bins
(U.S.): Thanks to a grant from Keep America Beautiful and The Coca-Cola Foundation, 50 new recycling bins are being installed at the community college in advance of the upcoming semester to increase waste diversion efforts.
U North Texas Boosts Recycling Efforts
Spurring new outdoor collection bins and installation of solar trash compactors, a recent university study found that when recycling bins were readily available diversion efforts increased from 20-30 percent to 80-90 percent.
Yale U Takes New Steps to Divert Waste
In addition to mattress recycling, the university's athletics department now donates unused high jump and pole vault mats to local schools to achieve its goal of 50 percent waste diversion rate by June 2016.
U Connecticut Invests in Sports Waste Reduction Campaign
(U.S.): University of Connecticut students encourage recycling at university basketball games through the Green GameDays campaign. At halftime, volunteers reminded game patrons to recycle items such as cardboard and plastic bottles. At the end of the game a total of 1,080 bottles were collect for recycling.
U Dayton's New Recycling Agreement Includes Outreach
A recent five-year agreement with a recycling company will offer, besides recycling services, sustainability curriculum with hands-on educational experiences, programming such as facility tours, guest lectures and special projects, assistance with the university's sustainability education efforts in local schools, assistance with participation in Recyclemania, and messages at athletic events to help promote recycling and sustainability initiatives in the community.
Lehigh U Students Begin Composting
Driven environmental concerns, the new Green Resource Recovery of Waste project aims to turn all of the university’s food waste into compost that can be used to fertilize greenery and other plant beds on campus, and then grow food to serve in campus dining halls.
Partnering for End of Year Waste Diversion Campaign
Oklahoma City University, Tennessee State University, University of California at Los Angeles, University of Central Oklahoma, University of La Verne and Vanderbilt University partnered with a national organization to divert clothing, shoes and dorm room textiles from the landfill resulting in a collection of 30,000 pounds of material.
Vanderbilt U Reduces Take Out Container Waste
(U.S.): The university's Campus Dining unveiled the "If You Stay, Use a Tray" initiative using posters, social media, stickers, to-go box signs and buttons worn by Dining workers that intends to promote awareness of sustainability by encouraging people staying in the hall to eat off of plates instead of using disposable boxes.
Elon U Initiates End of Year Waste Diversion Campaign
In an effort to keep usable items out of the landfill, the "Don't Trash It!" campaign encouraged students to donate unwanted items rather than throw them away during the move-out phase. In total, the collection effort donated over 10,500 pounds of bedding, clothing and housewares and nearly 1,500 pounds of canned food.
