Category: Sustainability News (Page 3 of 63)

Jobs Blog Postings: 6/22/2021

Acton Internship, Summer 2021
Town of Acton, MA
Acton, MA
Apply by June 24th, 2021

Solar Energy Innovators Fellowship
Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE)
Various locations
Email Kat Burnham with a cover letter and resume

ORISE – Environmental Health Policy Fellowship
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Various locations
Apply by July 21st at 3pm ET

Energy Markets Intern
Ascend Analytics
Boulder, CO
Full-time position

Sustainability Program Associate Position
Bard Graduate Programs
Dutchess County, NY
Position posted June 10th

Director of Government Affairs
Citizens’ Climate Lobby
Washington, DC
Position open until filled

Government Affairs Coordinator
Citizens’ Climate Lobby
Washington, DC (Temporarily Remote)
Position open until filled

Conservative Outreach Coordinator
Citizens’ Climate Lobby
Remote
Position open until filled

2021 Move Out: Donations, Recycling, and Waste

DONATIONS

Each year during spring semester Move-Out, the Tufts Office of Sustainability collects donation items as part of its “Trash to Treasures” program. The purpose of Trash to Treasures is to divert salvageable goods from landfills and instead provide them to community members who will use them.

DONATION STATION LOCATIONS

Visualization of donation station locations.

There will be two staffed donation stations, equipped with trailers and collection bins:  

  1. Lower Campus (Haskell Hall on Latin Way)
  2. Upper Campus (Carmichael Hall Parking Lot) 

There will be four 24/7 UPod drop-off locations:*

  1. Haskell Hall on Latin Way
  2. Carmichael Hall Parking Lot
  3. Lot next to 123 Packard Ave
  4. Hill Hall parking lot

For more information about donation station and drop-off locations, visit our 2021 Move Out Donations Map.

DONATION STATION DATES AND HOURS

Wednesday, May 4th – Friday May 7th: No donation stations, but students may drop off accepted donation items at any of the four UPods 24/7

Saturday, May 8th – Friday, May 14th: Lower and upper campus donation stations are open and staffed from 10:00am-5:00pm daily

Saturday, May 15th: Lower and upper campus donation stations are open until 12:00pm

Picture of UPods. Peel apart velcro and open using handle on side door.

OFF-HOUR DONATING

UPods are open for drop-off at all hours from May 4th through May 15th at 12:00pm.

If someone needs to donate at night or early morning when the donation stations are closed, please drop-off donations inside of one of the four UPod locations.

ACCEPTED DONATION ITEMS 

  • Clothing, sheets, shoes
  • Household items: storage containers, dorm decor, fans, vacuums, large and small lamps, mirrors, waste bins, laundry baskets
  • Dining hall dishes 
  • Books and school supplies 
  • Crutches and exercise/sports equipment
  • Unopened, non-perishable food
  • Cleaning supplies: laundry detergent, brooms and sweepers
  • Toiletries: Unopened bottles, feminine hygiene products
  • Kitchen cookware, working kitchen appliances
  • Working electronics
  • Furniture
  • Rugs
  • Media items (DVDs, VHS, CDs, vinyl records, Blu-Ray, etc.)

We will have additional collection bins at both the lower and upper campus donation stations for recycling the following:  

  • Plastic film, including grocery bags, air pillows, bubble wrap, and produce bags 
  • Broken small electronics   

We DO NOT accept:

  • Mattresses
  • Pillows
  • Hangers
  • Hazardous items (for more information about battery and lightbulb recycling at Tufts, visit our specialty recycling webpage)

RECYCLING AND WASTE 

To increase the efficiency of Tufts’ Move Out process, bring your recycling and trash to an outside dumpster. This will ease the load on our hardworking custodial and Facilities staff.

RECYCLING

Recycling dumpsters have blue lids. View up-to-date locations of campus recycling dumpsters on our Eco-Map.

View our website for more information about how-to-recycle and specialty recycling at Tufts.

TRASH

Trash dumpsters have black lids. View up to date locations of campus trash dumpsters on our Eco-Map.

There will additional be large open top trash dumpsters placed at the following locations: Harleston Hall (2), Latin Way (1), Carmichael (1), Talbot (1), Miller Hall (1), and Hill Hall (1).

View our website for more information about how to properly dispose of your waste at Tufts.

QUESTIONS?

Email recycle@tufts.edu.

New Solar Carport Installation at the Medford Campus

Design Rendering Provided by iSun Energy

Tufts University’s Auxiliary and Transportation Services department has announced the construction of a new solar carport for charging electric vehicles. The carport will be located in the Cohen Parking Lot on Lower Campus Road in Medford. It will provide charging for up to six electric vehicles. Construction of the carport will begin April 15, 2021 and is expected to be completed on April 30, 2021.

In the near term, parking spots in the carport will be on a first-come-first-served basis for Tufts University permit holders. Possible future enhancements may include the ability for electric vehicle drivers to reserve spaces using a parking management system app.

“We’re really pleased to be able to offer additional electric vehicle charging stations on the Medford campus. Not only is this a positive step toward promoting more green methods of transportation, but the carport fits squarely within Tufts’ overall commitment to environmental sustainability,” said Jason McClellan, senior director of Tufts University Auxiliary Services.

This pilot program, offered in partnership with iSun Energy, will generate energy measured by a separate meter, and excess power produced will be distributed to the grid. “By partnering with iSun and our electricity utility, the solar carport joins Tufts other solar projects in helping the Commonwealth reach its goal of net zero emissions by 2050, as required under the new comprehensive climate change legislation signed into law by Governor Baker in March, 2021,” said Tina Woolston, director of the Office of Sustainability. “This in turn, helps Tufts reach its own goal of carbon neutrality by 2050.”

Learn about Tufts’ other solar installations

Learn about Tufts’ other sustainable transportation and commuting options.

Tufts won a bench made out of recycled plastic film!

The bench, located in the backyard of CoHo

Tufts has a range of specialty recycling programs through which its community members can sustainably dispose of items that cannot be conventionally recycled. This includes items such as batteries, ink and toner, textiles, and as of 2018—plastic film! Tufts’ plastic film recycling program is a partnership between local grocers and Trex, a composite decking company.

In September 2019, Tufts signed-up for a Trex challenge to recycle 500 pounds of plastic film in 6 months. Between student Move-In, Dining Center kitchens, the mail room, and a range of other efforts, Tufts was able to meet this goal. In turn, we won a Trex bench made out of recycled plastic film!

The plaque on the bench.

How did we win the challenge?

Learn more about how we engaged the Tufts community and recycled enough plastic film to win the challenge:  

Student Move-In and plastic film recycling:

Some plastic film from Move In 2019.

Each fall when students move back to campus, they bring with them a range of packing items, often including a large amount of plastic film such as air pillows and bubble wrap. During Fall 2019 Move-In, our recycling workers circulated the residence halls and dumpsters with special bags for collecting plastic film from students. We were able to collect 192 pounds of film during Move-In alone!

Residence hall recycling competition and waste audits:

Contamination in the recycling from one of our waste audits, mostly consisting of plastic film items.

Later in the 2019 fall semester, the Office of Sustainability (OOS) recycling team partnered with the Eco-Reps to hold a residence hall recycling competition. We judged the competition through a series of 11 waste audits in the residence halls. Through good-spirited competition, we educated about and encouraged proper recycling.

The waste audits also provided valuable qualitative and quantitative data about diversion rate, contamination rate, and the most common contaminants in the recycling stream. Contaminants are when items that cannot be conventionally recycled are placed in the recycling bin, thereby contaminating it.

Plastic film bin expansion and educational campaign:

After noting from the waste audits that plastic film items were one of the most common contaminants in the conventional recycling stream, the Eco-Reps and OOS recycling team embarked upon a plastic film recycling educational campaign. This involved a range of efforts, including but not limited to:

A plastic film specialty recycling bin
  • Starting a new plastic film specialty recycling bin at the Boston campus (currently on hiatus during COVID)
  • Creating new audience-specific plastic film recycling signage (a general sign, a mail room sign, and a sign for the Dining Center kitchens catered to their specific items)
  • Fielding staff and faculty Eco-Ambassador requests for new bins in select spots
  • Creating and sharing social media and newsletter content educating about plastic film and the specialty recycling program
  • Eco-Reps put out “pop-up” plastic film recycling collection bins in the residence halls

How can I recycle plastic film at Tufts?

Plastic film items include soft plastics such as grocery bags, bubble wrap, plastic padded-envelopes, air pillows, and even bread, cereal, and produce bags.

Our general plastic film recycling sign.

These items cannot be conventionally recycled because they get tangled in the machinery at the sorting facility. This can shut things down, costing time and money and posing a safety hazard to the people working at the facility. Watch this video to learn more about the hazards that plastic film poses when placed in the conventional recycling bin.

Reducing waste is a great away to avoid this problem, such as through using reusable bags instead of grocery bags. However, if you do find yourself with a plastic film item, specialty recycling it at Tufts or at your local grocer is a great way to divert it from the landfill!

Though the plastic film specialty recycling program was paused at Tufts due to challenges created by the COVID-19 pandemic, as of February 2021, the program is back up and running. Learn more about what to recycle on our webpage and find specialty recycling bin locations on our Eco-Map.

What happens when I recycle plastic film at Tufts?

Here’s how the full process works:

  1. Tufts community member drops their plastic film items into a plastic film specialty recycling bin on campus
  2. The Office of Sustainability’s specialty recycling intern services the bins on a regular schedule, taking the plastic film to a local grocer accepting plastic film in partnership with Trex
  3. Trex picks up the film from the grocery store. They clean and grind the film into granules and combine and heat it with sawdust. The resulting mixture is formed into boards.
  4. Plastic film is recycled into eco-friendly decking, benches, and other outdoor living products! You can learn more about this process from Trex here.
The circular economy and product transformation of plastic film recycled at Tufts.
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