Author: hcraig

WashU Receives Green Labs Award at International Institute for Sustainable Laboratories Conference   

WashU was commended for the success of its Green Labs Program at the 2024 International Institute for Sustainable Laboratories (I2SL) conference, held this year in St. Louis. The conference convened architects, engineers and sustainability professionals to discuss energy efficiency and waste reduction in research laboratories.   The “honorable mention” award recognized the program’s rapid growth over […]

Sustainability Coordinator Position opens for WashU School of Medicine

Sustainability initiatives and programming on the Medical Campus are growing!  The Operations and Facilities Management Department (OFMD) is excited to announce the opening of a new Sustainability Coordinator position, in addition to the current Sustainability Coordinator, Heather Craig. The expansion of the WUSM sustainability team will lead to a deeper level of engagement in sustainable operations […]

Focal Pointe awarded Local Sustainable Business Award

WashU’s Grounds Service contractor, Focal Pointe Outdoor Solutions, was awarded the Ralph Wafer Environmentally Sustainable Business Award at the Missouri Coalition for the Environment (MCE) luncheon in September.   This award honors business leaders and entrepreneurs whose innovation and dedication drive the economy towards environmental respect and inclusion. It is named for Ralph Wafer, a distinguished […]

Bon Appetit Feeds Local Organization, Prevents Food Waste

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, an estimated 30-40% of the food supply is wasted in the United States. Reducing food waste is ranked as the number one solution to mitigating the warming effects of climate change. WashU School of Medicine (WUSM) dining partner, Bon Appetit, is actively working to reduce food waste generated […]

Mushroom Dave Opens Storefront

WashU Farmers Market vendor of several years, Mushroom Dave, is excited to announce the opening of a physical storefront in Pacific, Missouri.  Mushroom Dave’s Place was made possible through a collaboration with Crooked Creek Beef, a small farm located just outside of Pacific, Missouri. The store will sell an expanded version of Dave’s market stand, […]

WashU Earth Day Festival a Success

Last week, WashU celebrated Earth Day on the School of Medicine campus. An estimated 200 people attended the WashU Earth Day Festival to learn about sustainable initiatives from a variety of WashU programs and organizations from the St. Louis area. Operations and Facilities Management Department, which houses sustainability staff at the Medical Campus, had a […]

Sustainability Staff at Neuroscience Research Building

The newly occupied Jeffrey T. Fort Neuroscience Research Building (NRB) is a state-of-the-art facility for WashU School of Medicine researchers, with many amenities and a team of dedicated staff. As of late March, Alicia Hubert has joined the NRB team as the newly appointed program manager and NRB operations liaison to research labs and green […]

Meet the Farmers Market Vendors

Now that St. Louis is taking a turn towards warmer weather, the WashU Farmers Market has moved back outside to the University of Health Sciences and Pharmacy Quad. The Farmers Market has been a staple of the WashU community since 2010, bringing new and familiar faces to campus over the years.   Many of our vendors […]

Sustainability at WashU School of Medicine’s Mallinckrodt Institute for Radiology

It is no secret that healthcare has a massive impact on the environment. In fact, if global healthcare services were a country, they would amount to the fifth-largest emitter of greenhouse gases. As the effects of climate change on public health and infrastructure are increasing, the need for specialized sustainability practices within the healthcare sector […]

Newstead Garage Seeking Parksmart Bronze Rating 

The newly constructed Neuroscience Research Building has been an exciting new addition to the WashU School of Medicine campus, with many sustainable features that make it likely to receive a Gold LEED rating. The associated Newstead Garage has also been built with sustainability in mind and is seeking Bronze Parksmart certification in early 2024.   While […]

Introducing Reusable Boxes at EPNEC

In January 2024, WashU School of Medicine is launching an exciting new initiative to reduce catering waste at the Eric P. Newman Education Center (EPNEC). The EPNEC event team, WashU Sustainability, and Bon Appetit Management Company are partnering to offer reusable containers for boxed lunches at events held within EPNEC.  This exciting new program was […]

WashU CSA Update: Introducing Plain & Simple Box

Washington University takes its commitment to eating locally sourced and sustainable food seriously, as seen by collaborations with dining partners, the medical campus farmers market, and the WashU community supported agriculture (CSA) program. The WashU CSA program is in partnership with HOSCO (Holistic Organic Sustainable Cooperatives), a not-for-profit committed to food justice in St. Louis. […]

WashU School of Medicine Sustainability Plan Midterm Report

In 2018, the WashU School of Medicine Operations and Facilities Management Department published its first Sustainable Operations Strategic Plan for 2018 – 2025. This document was built upon the Office of Sustainability’s institution wide plan that was published in 2015, but shines light on programs and plans that are specific to the School of Medicine.    Now […]

Student Represents School of Medicine at CleanMed Conference 

Every year, healthcare leaders from over 1,000 hospitals across the country converge at the annual CleanMed conference, this year held in Pittsburgh, PA. CleanMed is hosted by Practice Greenhealth and Healthcare Without Harm, two organizations focused on fighting climate change within the healthcare sector.   Climate change is one of the biggest threats to global human […]

WUSM Compost Pilot

After many requests by students and staff, WashU’s School of Medicine is excited to announce a pilot post-consumer compost collection program! While back-of-house compost has been collected from the kitchens for many years, the pandemic paused efforts to expand the School of Medicine’s waste diversion programs. WUSM will be “pressing play” in February 2023 with […]

New Electric Vehicles Zip around Medical Campus

Electric vehicles (EVs) are becoming increasingly more common on the road. You can now even find them on the School of Medicine campus! In 2022, the School of Medicine has taken big steps in transitioning to a more fuel-efficient fleet. Two Ford E-transits, which are fully electric vehicles, were added to the Operations and Facilities […]

WashUReuse Surplus Property Program

Does your office, lab, or dorm room have a stockpile of items that are still functional but you no longer want or need? If so, sounds like you could use WashUReuse. Washington University in St. Louis has signed up for an exciting software platform through Rheaply AxM that facilitates the internal recirculation of unneeded furniture, […]

WashU Contracts New CSA Vendor

Starting April 7th, WashU will launch a partnership with HOSCO as its new Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) provider.   HOSCO (Holistic Organic Sustainable Cooperatives), is a sustainable not-for-profit business incubator model for food production, entrepreneurship and apprenticeship training. Their mission is to significantly increase access of local foods while creating jobs and economic development by […]

Medical Campus Recognized as Silver-level Bicycle Friendly Business

Transportation, including our daily commutes, is one of the largest global emitters of greenhouse gases. It’s also the emitter that can feel most personal. Many value their morning commute as a rare moment of peace and quiet, others enjoy the ability to hop on a plane to visit relatives, and nothing beats the freedom of taking a spontaneous road trip.   Due […]

Med Students Making Moves in Sustainability

One of the key phrases that continuously circles through the Office of Sustainability is waste reduction. Students across WashU’s campuses are advocating for the university community to reduce waste wherever possible. The WashU School of Medicine’s (WUSM) Sustainability Group is especially concerned about waste reduction, considering their chosen field is notoriously one of the more wasteful industries in the nation.   […]

Rethink Your Commute

The absence of a daily commute has been an unexpected perk of the COVID-19 pandemic, but as WashU staff and faculty are slowly transitioning back to campus offices, daily commutes are once again becoming a widespread reality. This transitional time is a perfect opportunity to upgrade your commuter habits into a more sustainable, social, and […]