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January 19, 2010, Volume 56, No. 18

RecycleMania

RecycleMania is a 10-week competition for students, faculty and staff, designed to encourage both recycling and waste minimization. Penn’s goal this year is to have the campus community recycle 30 percent of the waste.

All community members are invited to put their creative talent to good green use by entering the RecycleMania poster and video competition.

Throughout the campaign, Bon Appetit at Penn Dining will offer a free fountain drink or coffee from 2-5 p.m. Mondays and Fridays to customers who bring a reusable cup, mug, or bottle to Accenture or Houston Hall. Also on RecycleMania Mondays at Au Bon Pain, customers with their own mugs can receive a free coffee with any purchase all day.

Additional information on Waste Minimization and Recycling at Penn  is available at  www.upenn.edu/sustainability/waste.html or by e-mailing sustainability@pobox.upenn.edu

RecycleMania 2010 Tournament

While waste may not be the largest contributor to Penn’s carbon footprint, it is certainly the most visible. A 2008 waste audit revealed the potential to double Penn’s diversion rate of traditional recyclables by adopting campus standards for signage, receptacle design, and collection protocols.

The Climate Action Plan calls on the University to reduce its overall waste stream and increase its diversion rate of paper, cardboard, and commingled recyclables to 40 percent by 2014. To make progress toward this goal and generate awareness about reducing waste and increasing recycling on campus, Penn will compete in the national RecycleMania competition for the third straight year.

RecycleMania is an annual competition between over 400 colleges and universities in the United States and Canada. Campuses compete in different contests to see which institution can collect the largest amount of recyclables per capita, the largest amount of total recyclables, the least amount of trash per capita, and achieve the highest recycling rate.

The 2010 RecycleMania Tournament will run from January 17 to March 28, with Penn competing in a division against its “Ivy Plus” peers at Brown, Columbia, Cornell, Harvard, MIT, Princeton, Stanford, and Yale. See www.upenn.edu/sustainability/recyclemania.html.

2010 RecycleMania Events

Monday, January 25
Lunchtime Recycle Bin Rally: noon–2 p.m., Bistro Lounge, Houston Hall. To kick off RecycleMania at Penn, the Sustainability Team will be on hand at Houston Hall for a personal recycling bin give-away to the first 200 Penn students or staff members. The team will also provide members of the Penn community with educational resources, informational posters for use in campus buildings, and offer best waste reduction and recycling practices for daily routines.

No Impact Night: 5–6:30 p.m., Berger Auditorium, Skirkanich Hall. Join the Penn Sustainability Team in Engineering’s Levine Hall for a screening of No Impact Man, the story of a Manhattan resident who abandons his high consumption lifestyle and tries to live for a year while making no net environmental impact. Opening remarks and RecycleMania announcements will be made by Environmental Sustainability Coordinator Dan Garofalo and Director of Penn Dining Services Laurie Cousart.

Tuesday, January 26
The University’s Sustainability Efforts: noon; Golkin Room, Houston Hall (PPSA).

Wednesday, January 27
SAS Sustainability Town Hall: 6–7:30 p.m., Terrace Room, Claudia Cohen Hall G14. The SAS Student Sustainability Advisory Board will host the first of a series of sustainability town hall meetings to inform students, staff, and faculty of School and University initiatives currently underway, and answer questions regarding sustainability. Guest speakers will include in-house experts on the topics of waste and recycling, purchasing and business services, architecture and design, energy conservation, and academic opportunities.

Thursday, January 28
Sustainability 101 Brown Bag Lunch: noon–1 p.m., Class of 62, John Morgan Building. The School of Medicine will host this, with an introduction to green initiatives at Penn, presented by Dan Garofalo. This will introduce the Penn’s strategy to reduce its impact on the environment, and provide participants with tips on how they can reduce their own personal footprint and help the University reach the sustainability goals established in the Climate Action Plan.

Friday, February 12
Love Your Planet @ SPEC LoveFest: 11 a.m.–3 p.m., Bistro Lounge, Houston Hall. Join the Penn Environmental Group to show your love for sustainability at SPEC’s annual LoveFest. Stop by to learn more about how to live more sustainably at Penn and pick up resources for your dorm room or office space.

Tuesday, February 16
School of Medicine Recycling Fair: 11 a.m –2 p.m., Biomedical Research Building II Lobby.

Wednesday, February 17
Panel Discussion: Trash Talk: noon–1 p.m., Event Area, Bookstore. Learn more about waste reduction and recycling initiatives at Penn at Trash Talk, a panel discussion with key players in the campus recycling process. The panel will be moderated by Dan Garofalo.

Wednesday, February 24
Panel Discussion: The Business of Recycling: 4:30-6 p.m. Dhirubhai Ambani auditorium, G06, Jon M. Huntsman Hall. The Wharton School will host a panel discussion on The Business of Recycling that will feature representatives from waste management and recycling companies to provide an inside look at the recycled materials market and what it means to the national economy.

Thursday, March 12
Green Labs Brown Bag Lunch: noon-1 p.m., Class of ’62 Auditorium, John Morgan Building. The School of Medicine will host this event.

Friday, March 26
RecycleMania Poster/Commercial Contest Awards Gallery. The Environmental Planning and Ecological Design Club (EPED) presents an exhibit of the winners of the 2010 RecycleMania Poster and Commercial Contest. See details on RecycleMania website.

Tuesday, March 30
Penn Purchasing Fair: 9:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m., The Palestra. Check out the newest green products from Penn vendors. See www.purchasing.upenn.edu/green-initiative/index.php

 

Almanac - January 19, 2010, Volume 56, No. 18