Category: Eco-Reps (Page 5 of 10)

The Forgotten Eco-Rep Update!

November 12, 2013 /

Sorry everyone! Kevin here, to apologize for dropping the ball on last week’s Eco-Rep update. Unfortunately, midterm season is now upon us, and things have been getting hectic.

But what have the Eco-Reps been up to, you ask? Well, to prepare for the upcoming hibernation period (i.e. winter), the Eco-Reps are hosting/have hosted a slew of events to promote sustainability! For most of you, that means free food but also an opportunity to see what we’ve been planning for the last few weeks.

Colby and Angie, our Carmichael Eco-Reps, have just recently hosted the Carm Thrift Shop and the WASTELAND Smoothie Night! Both events were a success, with leftover clothes from the freecycle being donated to Goodwill and the Smoothie Night was a great opportunity to teach students about reducing waste and composting.

If you missed those events, don’t worry because there are more coming up this week. Today, (November 12th), Bush and Hodgdon are hosting Last Call at the Oasis, a documentary regarding the water usage and its value as a resource, in addition to a roundtable discussion with Water Diplomacy speaker Margaret Garcia. And if you’ve been craving more smoothies, a sustainable smoothie event is being hosted on the 16th in Hodgdon, where students can learn more about composting and locally grown food. Also coming up is the Sustainability Dinner on Thursday, November 14th in both Carm and Dewick, where we will be hosting a table to educate regarding food sustainability issues and eating meatless.

In other news, the Eco-Reps just came back from the EcoRep symposium at Boston University, where we learned and connected with other Eco-Rep programs in the Northeast and discussed how to make our sustainability initiatives more successful. We’ll hopefully be implementing these changes in the near future, so keep your eyes out!

The View from Blakeley Hall

November 2, 2013 / / 13 Comments

This is Andrew, the Fletcher School’s Eco-Representative. For this week’s post I’ll give you an idea of what it is like to be the Eco-Rep for Blakeley Hall, Fletcher’s graduate student dormitory. First, some background: Blakeley was built in 1926, in a Georgian style of architecture. It has three wings set around a courtyard, with seven independent towers of rooms. The middle tower houses Blakeley’s common room and kitchen, which serves as the busiest gathering space for residents, and the source of delicious smells when students cook dinner or prepare baked goods as a method of procrastination during exam periods…

IMG_3632

Every year, about eighty students in Fletcher’s various degree programs spend a year (or a semester, for exchange students) in singles, doubles, and triples. Many residents come from overseas, which results in a vibrant social scene and a tremendous variety of cuisines prepared in the kitchen. Residents routinely come together for dorm-wide events, like communal cooking events, pick-up cricket matches in the courtyard, and Fletcher’s infamous Blakeley Halloween Party.

As to Eco-Rep and sustainability initiatives, Blakeley, like all Tufts dorms, has receptacles for recycling and compost collection. Each tower contains recycling containers on the ground floor, and the communal compost bin is located in the kitchen. I am happy to report that since the beginning of the school year, Blakeley residents have increased their average weekly compost collection by about 60%! Lastly, each of Blakeley’s towers will contain boxes for TerraCycle recycling. Regarding recycling, we may have to wait until Recyclemania to ascertain how well residents are sorting their materials. Residents have been keeping tabs on recycling and composting, asking me many good questions, and offering suggestions on ways to make Blakeley even greener. I’m very encouraged thus far by their enthusiasm and look forward to holding further Eco-Rep events at the dorm. Next up this month: a pie baking event with a review of composting and recycling best practices!

65 Jumbos Did Not Get Wasted for ZWW!

October 27, 2013 /

Zero Waste Week finished this past Wednesday! Over 200 bags were distributed, and 65 brave and wonderful jumbos (and professors) did a fantastic job at keeping their waste at a minimum and brought their bags to Jumbo Mountains. Jumbo Mountains was set up on the Academic Quad this year, due to logistical considerations, and many passer-bys’ interests proved this to be a great location with great visibility. Participants were rewarded with some PHENOMENAL Cider Donuts and cider from Wilson Farm in Lexington, and the satisfaction of tallying and knowing they made a huge difference in comparison to normal trash-producing colleagues.

1375818_10201306467316030_1423808072_n1379257_10201306763283429_141550852_n 1378210_10201306762763416_2029029974_n

1374819_10201306743882944_1684032958_n   1374364_10201306764323455_1343410038_n

In addition to students, some professors stopped by, and even Senior Provost David Harris conversed with the Eco-Rep team about the successes and room for improvement in the Zero Waste Week challenge.

Some of the greatest challenges expressed were the individually packaged treats such as candy, cookies, etc., and the fact that when you leave the Tufts Campus and travel to greater Boston or the larger community, recycling and composting is nowhere near as accessible. However, many participants also expressed their surprise at the ease of recycling and composting here on campus-shoutout to Dawn and Tufts Recycles!

Three lucky participants won awesome bags made out of recycled materials from terracycle.com, and they definitely deserve it for their participation.

1240468_10201306750123100_1368906150_n1378885_10201306767043523_1931318160_n

Thank you to everyone who participated in Zero Waste Week. You truly made a difference in our fight to prevent excess waste and reduce our consumption of resources. Green Love!

 

 

Zero Waste Week Is Over!

October 16, 2013 / / 2 Comments

It’s mid-October, which means that the leaves are changing, apples are everywhere, and Zero Waste Week has now come and gone! Thank you to all of the students, faculty, and staff that took part in the challenge this week!

Zero Waste Week has really been eye-opening for me. It reminded me of how much I could actually compost, recycle, and terraCycle (I’ve saved a lot of things from my bag because of terraCycle!), but also how much trash I use. On the very first day of the Zero Waste Challenge, I started cleaning up things around my dorm, only to realize that the paper towels and cleaning supplies I’d used were just trash. On the whole the Eco-Reps really happy with how the week went, and we definitely won’t forget the lessons we learned over the course of this challenge. Thank you to everyone that participated! Check back next week for a recap of the week and hear about Wednesday’s Jumbo Mountains event.

In other news, Eco-Reps are getting even more involved in their dorms. Most dorms have a shiny, new board decorated with helpful environmental tips and recycled paper. Check out what our very creative Eco-Reps have been putting up for their residents!

1383975_10201909920182171_978174479_n   1378192_679278428762832_1876660700_n   1375695_10202101172148104_1242074107_n   960152_10151736185468014_792371268_n

Campaigns are also starting up for the semester. Make sure you talk to your Eco-Rep to see what they’re doing through December! More events are coming up, too, so get excited to see what your hall has planned.

That’s all for now! Thanks for reading, staying green, and participating in Zero Waste Week!

 

The Eco-Reps are at it again…in preparation for Zero Waste Week!

October 7, 2013 / / 0 Comments

If the last week has been a bit quiet from the Eco-Reps, it’s probably been because of exams and papers, but also because we’ve been preparing for Zero Waste Week, which starts October 9th and runs through October 16th! You might have seen us scurrying around in Lewis or the Crafts Center getting our buttons and bags ready for the big day. To learn more about Zero Waste Week, feel free to talk to your local Eco-Rep, or go here: http://sustainability.tufts.edu/zero-waste-challenge/. We look forward to seeing all the Zero Waste Week participants, especially at Jumbo Mountains at noon on the 16th! Bags will be distributed at several places on campus, so be sure to talk to your Eco-Rep if you plan on taking the challenge!

Murvi hard at work

 

In other news, Eco-Reps Audrey Dunn and Chantal Davis held the H2(WHAT!?) event in Hill Hall last Thursday, October 3rd to great success! Water trivia night was a blast, and you can see some of the photos below.

IMG_3931 IMG_3932

 

Campaigns will be fully underway soon, so be on the lookout as Eco-Reps organize events to raise awareness for what initiatives we have planned for the dorms! South Hall will be having a freecycle event in the near future, so bring your junk, bring your treasure, or even your compost, and see if anyone wants it! It’s about that time of the year, so good luck with exams and papers everybody! Until next week.

« Older posts Newer posts »

© 2024 Sustainability at Tufts

Theme by Anders Noren — Up ↑