Overall Rating Gold
Overall Score 74.49
Liaison Brandon Trelstad
Submission Date Dec. 8, 2021

STARS v2.2

Oregon State University
EN-5: Outreach Campaign

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 4.00 / 4.00 Leticia Cavazos
Sustainability Program Specialist
Sustainability Office
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Has the institution held a sustainability-related outreach campaign during the previous three years that was directed at students and yielded measurable, positive results in advancing sustainability?:
Yes

Has the institution held a sustainability-related outreach campaign during the previous three years that was directed at employees and yielded measurable, positive results in advancing sustainability?:
Yes

1st campaign 

Name of the campaign:
Res Hall Move Out Donation Drive

A brief description of the campaign:
OSU Campus Recycling and Surplus Property, in collaboration with University Housing and Dining, coordinated an effort to reduce waste during residence hall move-out by educating residents and giving them the tools to recycle and donate as much as possible.

Each residence hall room received a move-out kit, which included a door hanger with details on how to donate and recycle unwanted materials, along with bags in which to sort their material in their room. Grocery-style plastic bags were provided for food and toiletries, and 13-gallon blue bags were provided for clothing, bedding, and small housewares. Labeled donation bins were located in the lobby, along with all the recycle bins.

Residents were made aware of the upcoming donation drive starting one month in advance. Info was provided via abundant signage inside the halls, large posters at each UHDS service center, notices in the Campus Living eNewsletter, a presentation to the Residence Hall Association General Assembly, posts on social media, and a web page made just for residents.

Donations were given to local non-profit organizations.

A brief description of the measured positive impact(s) of the campaign:
In 2021, 5,936 pounds of donations were received. There was a significant decrease in donations due to the fact that many residents moved out much earlier than expected because of the COVID-19 pandemic. While the drive didn't collect as much as it did in previous years, OSU is proud of the almost 3 tons that were donated this year.

if reporting an additional campaign, provide:

2nd campaign

Name of the campaign (2nd campaign):
Kilowatt Crackdown: Electricity Reducing Competition in Residence Halls

A brief description of the campaign (2nd campaign):
The Kilowatt Crackdown was a month long competition with weekly tips on how to reduce electricity consumption. The Eco-reps of five residence halls educated residents about how to turn out the lights, walk the stairs, unplug electronics, and more energy saving tips.

The goal with the Kilowatt Crackdown was to get students involved and educated about electricity usage, and empowered them on ways they could make a change, and reduced their personal electricity usage.

A brief description of the measured positive impact(s) of the campaign (2nd campaign):
All five residence halls showed an average decreased in electricity consumption totaling 1,871 kWh. This is significantly lower savings than previous years due because of lower than normal occupancy levels in the halls due to COVID-19 protocols as well as limited face-to-face outreach tactics.

Optional Fields

A brief description of other sustainability-related outreach campaigns:
Campus Race to Zero Waste is a national and civil war recycling competition between universities that runs for eight weeks every winter term. Oregon State Campus Recycling coordinates a resident hall recycling competition along with other events during the duration of the event.

Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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