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Tips for Zero-Waste Week

October 19, 2012 – 6:38 pm

It’s easy to do the Zero Waste Challenge when you are at a place like Tufts, where recycling bins abound and compost drops are available on campus. Still, here are some good tips to keep in mind:

  • Snack on fresh fruit – it’s healthier AND it’s compostable.
  • Carry a small tupperware to put food to compost later.
  • Bring your lunch and use the container to get takeout for dinner.
  • Get your drinks without a straw.
  • Avoid individually wrapped tea or drink loose leaf tea.
  • Always bring a reusable mug or water bottle.

    Photo courtesy of Tufts Dining

    • Save 20 cents at Mugar Cafe, Tower Cafe, Brown & Brew, Hodgdon Good-to-Go & Commons Deli if you bring your own mug.
    • The Tufts “Choose to Reuse” clear water bottle will get you a discount on any fountain beverage at Mugar Cafe, Hodgdon Good-to-Go, Commons Deli, and Tower Cafe. Water and sparkling water will also be discounted at Hotung Cafe.

A few things to remember:

  • Aluminum foil and yogurt cups are recyclable.
  • All napkins are compostable.
  • Any rigid plastic can be recycled – including coffee stirrers. (It doesn’t have to fit through the openings of the recycling bin, by the way – just lift the cover.)
  • Energy bar wrappers and chip bags are recyclable. Tufts has Terracycle brigades on campus.

For more information on recycling and composting at Tufts, visit the TuftsRecycles! website.

Good luck and have fun!

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Eco-Reps Events Ideas People Sustainability News Tufts Community Events Tufts Community News Waste

Eco-Reps Weekly Updates

October 17, 2012 – 11:38 am

Zero Waste Week

Today, October 17th, is the start of Zero Waste Week! From October 17th to October 24th, 200 students will participate in this challenge to raise awareness that trash doesn’t just “disappear.” Participating students will place all trash that will not otherwise not be recycled or composted in a clear plastic bag that they will carry around with them for the week. Students should feel less compelled to create waste since they’ll have to carry it all with them! The plastic bags will be dropped off on the RezQuad at Mt. Trashmore on October 24th and the amount generated by the participants will be compared to the trash generated from a comparable sized dorm.  Visit the Office of Sustainability, the Crafts House, or find your Eco-Rep to be a part of the challenge!

Sustainability Day

October 24th, the end of Zero Waste Week, is also Sustainability Day! This event, taking place from 5:00 pm to 10:00 pm, focuses on raising awareness of what has been done and what needs to be worked on to become a sustainable campus. Events for this year’s Sustainability Day include Mt. Trashmore, which will feature individual piles of trash taken from Miller, Houston, Carmichael, and Hill Halls, and “The Story of Bananas” dinner at Dewick. “The Story of Bananas” dinner seeks to educate students on the path of the dining halls’ most eaten fruit from farm all the way to compost. Check out the five stations, play the fun foodie game to win banana themed prizes, and enjoy foods with bananas! In addition, Annie Leonard, the author of “The Story of Stuff” will be holding a talk, question and answer, and book signing session in Cohen Auditorium from 8:00 pm to 10:00 pm.

Eco-Rep Events

Last night Eco-Rep Sidney May, the Eco-Rep for Wren Hall, held her first event. She set up a tap water vs bottled water taste test and raffled off a Brita reusable water bottle! Sidney threw residents a fun curve ball by serving only tap water. Residents had fun doing the test and were almost always surprised they tried two cups of tap water. Way to go, Sidney!

Hill and West residents, don’t miss the Sustainability Dinner event tomorrow night put on by Eco-Reps Chantal Davis and Laina Piera. The dinner will focus on sustainability of the food in the dining halls. You can’t miss the delicious Flatbread pizzas they’ll be serving for dinner! The event takes place from 6-7pm in the Hill Hall Lounge.

Plus, look out of Do It In the Dark, an inter-dorm competition to see which can reduce their energy consumption the most over a one-month period! More information to come in our next post!

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Energy Events Non-Tufts Events People

Oct 19: MIT Energy Night

October 15, 2012 – 12:53 pm

We would like to invite you to attend the MIT Energy Night. The event will be held from 5:00-8:30 pm on October 19, 2012 at the MIT Museum. The MIT Energy Night showcases energy research, initiatives, and entrepreneurship at MIT. It is a large scale poster session and is free and open to the public. Drinks and hors d’oeuvres will be served. You do not need to RSVP.
Presenters are MIT graduate students, postdocs and MIT-affiliated start-ups. In past years, MIT faculty, energy professionals, technology investors, local and national press have attended the event. The event first started in 2006 with 30 poster presenters and 600 attendees. Last year, the event attracted 70 poster presenters and over 1,300 attendees! For more information, please visit our website: http://mitenergynight.org/

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Oct 22: Public Perceptions of Wind Energy Projects in Massachusetts

October 15, 2012 – 12:45 pm

The state of Massachusetts has plans for increasing its cumulative wind energy supply to 2,000 MW by 2020; currently it is at 61 MW (10/11/2012). To be able to achieve this goal, it is important to have a coherent understanding of the factors that make wind energy projects accepted at the local level.

Fletcher’s Center for International Environment and Resource Policy (CIERP) is conducting a study of the factors that lead to community acceptance of wind energy projects. The leader of this study, CIERP postdoctoral research fellow Maria Petrova, recently conducted a survey  and will  present her  results.   From  April  to June, 2012, surveys were mailed to randomly selected residents from the towns of Hull, Kingston, and Falmouth in Massachusetts, where wind projects have been sited with various levels of success. The differences in responses will be analyzed, and the factors that influence public acceptance and lead to the adoption of wind projects at the local level will be discussed.

 

Dr. Petrova came to CIERP from Oregon State University, where she completed her PhD in Environmental Science in 2010. Her doctoral dissertation focused on public acceptability of wave energy technology in Oregon. Her main interests are in public opinion and acceptability of renewable energy technologies (RETs), as well as the policies that need to be in place to advance RET development and deployment. She is also interested in comparative RET policy studies, mainly between the U.S. and countries in the EU.

 

Event will be held on Monday, October 22, 2012 from 12:30-1:45
(a light lunch will be served – no RSVP, first-come first-served)
Cabot 702, The Fletcher School
160 Packard Avenue, Medford

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Oct. 5: Presidential Campaigns Energy Debate

October 3, 2012 – 2:48 pm

Date: Friday, October 5, 2012

Time: 7:30 pm [seating at 7:00 pm]

Viewing: MIT Kresge Auditorium, Televised by E&E TV

 

The MIT Energy Initiative and the MIT Energy Club are co-sponsoring a televised energy debate with representatives from the campaigns of President Barack Obama and Governor Mitt Romney on Friday, October 5 at 7:30 pm in Kresge Auditorium at MIT. Event and registration information are included below:

Speaker for President Barack Obama: Joseph Aldy, Faculty Research Fellow at the National Bureau of Economic Research and Professor of Public Policy at Harvard University

Speaker for Governor Mitt Romney: Oren Cass, Domestic Policy Director; Romney for President

Moderator: Jason Pontin, Editor of Technology Review

Questioners: Steve Hargreaves, CNN Money; Bill Loveless, Senior Editor of Platts; Monica Trauzzi, Managing Editor and Host, E&E TV

Sponsors: MIT Energy Initiative and MIT Energy Club

Two students will be selected to present a question for debate. Interested students must submit one question for consideration in their registration. Winning students will be notified by the MIT Energy Club and MIT Energy Initiative.

REGISTER to attend and participate! This event is free and open to the public, but registration is required. A lottery will be conducted if attendance exceeds venue capacity.

For tickets and more information, click here.

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Oct. 25-27: 2012 Net Impact Conference

October 3, 2012 – 11:23 am

Accelerate your impact. The annual Net Impact Conference is the premier event for students and professionals using their careers for good. For our 20th anniversary conference, we are bringing together more than 2,800 changemakers from all over the world and 300 dynamic speakers from across industries, from Fortune 500 companies to emerging nonprofits.

This October 25 to 27 in Baltimore, Maryland, we will explore how to take all we’ve accomplished over the past 20 years and accelerate our impact to forge real solutions for the decades to come. REGISTER HERE!

What to expect at the 2012 Net Impact Conference

  • Over 100 sessions across 8 interest tracks – Expand your knowledge through inspirational keynotes and more than 100 sessions of panels, workshops, debates, and more, led by industry and thought leaders. Sessions span eight tracks: Corporate Impact, Social Innovation & Entrepreneurship, Energy & Clean Tech, Environmental Sustainability & Natural Resources, Finance & Investing, International Development, Community Development & Urban Revitalization, and Career & Professional Development.
  • Many formal and informal networking opportunities – Network with like-minded changemakers and discover new opportunities to connect through social and networking events including happy hours, Net Impact’s signature no-host dinners, a closing party, and an exclusive reception for our professional attendees.
  • An Expo with over 80 businesses and organizations – Engage with forward-thinking employers and innovative organizations at our epic Net Impact Expo. Many exhibitors are actively recruiting and interviewing while others are showcasing their latest innovations and programs.
  • Opportunities to visit and explore Baltimore – Connect with the people and communities of Baltimore through site visits and tours to local businesses and nonprofits. Attendees can engage on a deeper level by participating in our unique Local Impact mini-consulting sessions.
  • A commitment to sustainable conference practices – We are committed to making a positive impact on our host community and the Earth by implementing green initiatives throughout conference planning and implementation.
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Eco-Rep Updates

October 1, 2012 – 11:23 pm

APPS on APPS

Interested in being an Eco-Rep? You don’t have to wait until next year! We are accepting applications for the spring semester RIGHT NOW! Deadline is November 2nd but apps are accepted on a rolling basis, so apply! Now. 2013_Spring_Eco-Rep_App

 

Meet & Greet

Each Eco-Rep was responsible for having a “Meet and Greet” event the first few weeks of school. We are happy to report that these events were AWESOME!  I am one of two representatives for South Hall and we had 71 people come by and chat with us!  We had baked brownies and cookies and then had brief conversations about green things at Tufts as people passed by in the lobby. The best part of this   event was that people recognized us from the all hall meeting! I fielded really thoughtful questions on composting in the dorms, composting in the dining halls, recycling, my job description, and our Terracycle initiative. What a great start to the year!

Terra–what?

I just mentioned our Terracycle initiative, but I realize there is a good chance you don’t know what that is. Have you ever seen those purses made out of Lays chip bags? Or wallets out of Cheetos? Well, those are from Terracycle! The company upcycles materials and makes new products. Eco-Reps collect chip bags and granola bar wrappers, mail them in, and then get $$ to fund programs in the dorms.

Read more about Tufts Terracycling here: http://sustainability.tufts.edu/terracycle/

AND check out the Terracycle “About Us” page http://www.terracycle.com/en-US/about-us.html  and check out how it works! http://www.terracycle.com/en-US/how-terracycle-works.html 

Events

Eco-Reps are busy planning and putting on our first events of the year. I had the pleasure of attending a discussion on The Story of Stuff last week! I appreciated everyone’s comments on the book and reflections on sustainability here at Tufts. The cynic in me doubted that many people had actually read the book, but this event proved me wrong! Props to Lauren Deaderick and Hayley Welsh for hosting the  first official event of the semester!

Book discussion in Tilton with Eco-Reps, Resident Scholar, and ACE Fellows

Why do YOU go green?

I did a quick youtube search for “go green” and came up with this video: That’s Why I Go Green. The lyrics to the song were written by a kid and then the group sang it and made a music video. I know nothing about the organization but I like their vid! I go green because I believe we can make a difference! Why do you go green?

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Oct. 14: AASHE Conference 2012

September 26, 2012 – 12:24 pm

 

Head to LA on October 14th for the 2012 Student Summit of the annual Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) conference.

At the summit, students have the opportunity to present their unique sustainability projects. They can each contribute their ideas, resources, and opinions on sustainability efforts, and will have the opportunity to network with other students from different schools after these student presentations. The summit will also include a variety of workshops that can guide students in starting sustainability efforts at their school.

The summit will also feature keynote speaker Billy Parish, the Co-Founder and President of Solar Mosaic, a solar investment marketplace. Among his many accomplishments, he founded the Energy Action Coalition, the largest youth advocacy organization in the world focused on climate crisis, and was honored as a “Climate Hero” by Rolling Stone magazine.

The Student Summit provides opportunities for information and resources to start initiatives on your campus. AASHE also provides students with the opportunity to submit their individual research, as well as apply for their two awards: the Student Sustainability Leadership Award and the Student Research on Campus Sustainability Award.

For a full schedule of events and to sign up, visit the AASHE website!

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Oct. 1: GDAE Brown Bag Lecture “Work in the Post-Growth Economy”

September 26, 2012 – 10:46 am

Location: 44 Teele Ave., Somerville, MA

Time: Oct. 1st, 12:30-1:30pm

Head out to GDAE, located just off campus at 44 Teele Ave., and enjoy a free lunch and lecture with Neva Goodwin, GDAE’s Co-Director! GDAE Brown Bag Lectures are held in the 3rd floor conference room and are open to the public. For more upcoming lectures at GDAE, see their events page.

GDAE’s name: Our name reflects our mission. We have capitalized the “A” of “And” to emphasize that it is the interrelation between Development And Environment that is our special focus; studies or policies relating to either of those terms alone have too often resulted in one or another kind of failure. We use the word “Global” to indicate that we are concerned with the linkages between Development And Environment in all parts of the world. There are important differences – as well as some important similarities – between the meaning and the consequences of those linkages in the North and in the South. We are concerned with understanding both the differences and the similarities, from both the academic and the policy perspectives.

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Oct 10: Webinar Green Ribbon Schools Award Program

September 24, 2012 – 12:59 pm

This school year, Massachusetts is participating for the first time in the U.S. Department of Education’s Green Ribbon Schools award program, which recognizes K-12 schools that excel at reducing environmental impact and costs, improving health and wellness, and providing effective environmental and sustainability education.

Find out how your school(s) can apply to be among those nominated by the Commonwealth for this national recognition by registering for this webinar.

Wednesday, October 10. 1 – 2pm

Presented by Lisa Capone, DOER Green Communities Division
Lauren Greene, MA Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
Jessica Hing, Clean, Green and Healthy Schools Coordinator for US EPA Region 1

Register Now

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