| Overall Rating | Gold - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 69.45 |
| Liaison | Yumiko Jakobcic |
| Submission Date | March 3, 2017 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
Grand Valley State University
IN-4: Innovation 4
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
1.00 / 1.00 |
Yumiko
Jakobcic Campus Sustainability Coordinator Office of Sustainability Practices |
Title or keywords related to the innovative policy, practice, program, or outcome:
A brief description of the innovative policy, practice, program, or outcome:
The project involves creating T-shirt tote bags out of old and unusable T-shirts from GVSU’s lost and found. The tote bags are then donated to a local food pantry. An Upcycling Committee gathered T-shirts from lost and found, specifically looking for old T-shirts that would have been thrown away due to stains or holes. To minimize the need for additional materials and skillsets, this project employed a no-sew method of cutting and tying T-shirts into tote bags to be used to transport grocery items from a local food pantry. This local food pantry previously used disposable plastic grocery bags. The program provided the local food pantry with 131 tote bags to be reused. The environmental impact of eliminating plastic bags was a purposeful goal of this project, but moving beyond environmental sustainability into the realm of social sustainability by working with an organization to positively impact food security was also a rewarding outcome of this upcycling project.
A brief description of any positive measurable outcomes associated with the innovation (if not reported above):
131 reuseable tote bags were made from lost & found t-shirts (otherwise headed to the landfill) and were donated to a local food pantry.
A letter of affirmation from an individual with relevant expertise:
Which of the following STARS subcategories does the innovation most closely relate to? (Select all that apply up to a maximum of five):
| Yes or No | |
| Curriculum | --- |
| Research | --- |
| Campus Engagement | Yes |
| Public Engagement | Yes |
| Air & Climate | --- |
| Buildings | --- |
| Dining Services | --- |
| Energy | --- |
| Grounds | --- |
| Purchasing | --- |
| Transportation | --- |
| Waste | Yes |
| Water | --- |
| Coordination, Planning & Governance | --- |
| Diversity & Affordability | Yes |
| Health, Wellbeing & Work | Yes |
| Investment | --- |
Other topic(s) that the innovation relates to that are not listed above:
The website URL where information about the innovation is available:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.