Celebrate the start of the weekend and warmer temperatures by visiting one of St. Louis’s many local, sustainable restaurants! The Green Dining Alliance (GDA) is a program of the non-profit organization St. Louis Earth Day. The GDA helps area restaurants assess and determine a path for meeting sustainability needs and goals. All GDA restaurants participate in a […]
Are you interested to enhance your student leadership skills while fostering a sustainability culture on campus? Apply to be a team leader for the 2017-18 Washington University Green Ambassador (WUGA) program! The Office of Sustainability launched the Green Ambassador program in 2013, and it transitioned to being a student-managed program in 2015. Under the guidance of […]
The Office of Sustainability is pleased to welcome ten new part-time associates this semester. From left to right: Sam Emery, Jenna Schnitzler, Alexis Vidaurreta, Ankita Bhalla, Camille Rieber, Sofia Joison, Annalise Wagner, Sean Fallon, Channing Hunter, and Ashwin Sundaresan. This dynamic group of students will work alongside 12 returning associates and 3.5 staff members to […]
WashU’s annual energy reduction and sustainability competition is back! Green Cup is a four-week competition to reduce energy use among South 40 Residential Colleges, North Side housing, fraternities, and the School of Medicine’s Olin Dorm and Farrell Learning and Teaching Center (in four separate leagues). Students compete to reduce their energy usage below a baseline. […]
In the fall of 2016, the Office of Sustainability introduced a new volunteer program called Recycling Geniuses in response to recurring contamination issues across campus. A significant number of recycling and compost loads were being rejected from their respective collection facilities due to cross-contamination with other waste and improper sorting. The WashU community is committed to lowering contamination rates, […]
On January 27, the first annual Washington University Green Carpet Awards recognized the 55 university offices that certified or re-certified with the Green Office Program in 2016. To certify, an office must first fulfill requirements that promote a sustainable workplace and environment, ranging from sourcing recycled-content paper to eliminating individual space heaters. Since the program […]
Washington University’s Danforth and School of Medicine campuses have been expanding the concept of ‘No Waste Bins in Offices’ as part of our sustainability commitments. Also known as ‘Bin Be Gone’ is some cities; this fast-growing concept is being implemented by businesses, city governments, and universities in buildings that house predominately office space. Why do it? […]
Beginning December 10, Residential Life and Sharing With A Purpose (SWAP) are providing a new service for students interested to donate old or unused items before heading home for the winter break. Similar to the Share our Stuff move-out drive each May, the collection service makes it easy to divert unneeded items like clothing, kitchenware, and dorm supplies […]
The holiday season is in full swing! As you catch up with family and friends over meals, we encourage mindfulness about food waste. From uneaten leftovers to blemished produce, far too much edible food goes to waste; in fact, in the United States, food waste is estimated at between 25-40 percent of the food supply. Food waste is a […]
For many of us, coffee is essential. A cup in the morning is a common ritual, and without it, the morning wouldn’t be complete. For something so central to our daily routines, the selection of a coffee machine can be especially important. While some look for economy, others prioritize convenience. However, daily routines are also a perfect […]
November 15 annually marks America Recycles Day, a day in which we celebrate advances in recycling and redouble efforts to increase public awareness and participation in community recycling efforts. Recycling is often described as the gateway to sustainability because it’s easy to understand why reducing, reusing and recycling whenever possible has a positive impact on the […]
Alpha Phi Omega (APO) is WashU’s community service fraternity. Last spring, members started a program to collect granola and protein bar wrappers. The project keeps foil-lined wrappers out of the landfill. Most recycling companies, including WashU’s provider, do not accept foil-lined wrappers because they are too costly to sort. By having participants pre-sort the waste, TerraCycle […]
WashU’s Green Office program is a point-based, self-assessment checklist that enables offices to evaluate their current practices and set goals to be more sustainable moving forward. Congratulations to recent participants: Office of Central Services & Mail Receiving Office of Access Control School of Medicine’s FMD Supply Room Office of Student Technology Services Habif Health and Wellness […]
The Office of Sustainability is excited to introduce a new volunteer program, Recycling Geniuses, which has been developed to help address waste contamination on campus. Recycling Geniuses will receive training on new recycling guidelines and will help with a three-week education blitz in key dining areas. The Recycling Genius program was developed in response to […]
The Washington University Green Ambassador (WUGA) program launched in 2013 and gives students the opportunity to become sustainability leaders across campus. This year, 30 WUGAs completed training and are volunteering across residence halls, dining facilities, and at large events to help first-year students with waste sorting and to provide sustainability resources. Over the first 40 days of the semester, they helped […]
Nearly a year ago, Washington University School of Medicine installed seven Bigbelly waste and recycling units near the 4515 McKinley Research Building. During this time, the cloud-connected platform that is part of the Bigbelly system has been gathering data pertaining to the collection efficiency of the unit and also measuring the diversion rate of trash […]
On Friday September 30, the Washington University School of Medicine (WUSM) celebrated its employees by hosting its annual Employee Picnic. Beginning at 11a, thousands of employees started lining up to enjoy BBQ from Kendrick’s Meats and Catering, Ted Drewes custard, and a variety of carnival games for prizes. Since 2013, the Office of Sustainability has worked with […]
Washington University’s Green Office Program challenges staff and faculty to create sustainable work spaces within their offices. Through a self-assessed, point by point checklist, offices can determine their sustainability in six key areas: energy, waste, documents, purchasing, transportation, and awareness. The checklist assesses sustainability on the specific practices applicable to each office, such as how […]
On September 30th, the Office of Sustainability and the Operations and Facilities Management Departments will team up with the Employee Picnic Planning Committee to pursue zero waste at the Washington University School of Medicine (WUSM) Employee Picnic. Betsy Snyder, Chair of the Employee Picnic Planning Committee, worked with vendors, including caterer Kendrick’s and frozen custard provider […]
The Washington University Green Ambassador (WUGA) program launched in 2013 and gives students the opportunity to become sustainability leaders across campus. First-year impacts included making numerous orientation events near-zero waste (over 90% diversion from landfill); recycling 100,000 pounds of cardboard; and distributing hundreds of Eco To-Go reusable box program memberships. Ingrid Archibald, Alex Symes, and Lily […]
The annual WUSM Employee Appreciation Picnic will be held in Hudlin Park on Friday, September 30, from 11a to 2p. The picnic will feature a BBQ lunch, frozen custard from Ted Drewes, music, and games. To minimize waste associated with the picnic, planning staff have worked with the caterers to ensure that compostable serviceware (plates, […]
SWAP (Sharing with a Purpose) hosted its annual move-in sale on August 25 and 26, and it was a great success! The sale featured items donated by students during move-out in May. Each year, SWAP leaders collect leftover dorm room essentials such as mini refrigerators, microwaves, shelving, electronics, bedding, lamps, and mirrors. They then sell to students on the South […]
The School of Medicine’s Student Sustainability Committee works to make sustainability a priority on campus. On August 1, committee members presented to first-year medical students as part of their orientation. In addition to reviewing the importance of energy efficiency and waste reduction, members touched on the impacts of climate change on public health, such as the link […]
Washington University School of Medicine (WUSM) students have called Olin Residence Hall home since it was built in 1959. Because it houses over 200 residents at a time, it has also seen its share of furniture over the past fifty-seven years. In 2014, the Facilities Management Department (FMD) began administering the lease for the Quadrangle, which manages […]
The end of the 2016 academic year was marked with celebrations across campus. Two of the most notable celebrations, Commencement and Staff Day, were carefully organized to reflect the values of the university, with sustainability playing a key role in planning and decision-making. Commencement Numerous partners came together to plan and execute the waste diversion effort […]