Overall Rating Platinum - expired
Overall Score 86.82
Liaison Richard Demerjian
Submission Date March 28, 2018
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

University of California, Irvine
EN-5: Outreach Campaign

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 4.00 / 4.00 Rachel Pennington
Program Coordinator
Office of Sustainability
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

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

Name of the campaign:
Recyclemania (employee & student campaign)

A brief description of the campaign, including how students and/or employees were engaged:

UC Irvine actively encourages employees and students to participate in RecycleMania, a friendly, national competition among colleges and universities to determine which institutions have the best recycling programs. Employees are engaged via social media and outreach programs hosted by UCI Facilities Management.

The UCI Recycles Facebook page provides ongoing updates and information about programs: https://www.facebook.com/UCIRecycles/

The UCI Sustainability Events page provides details about Recyclemania programs and events: http://sustainability.uci.edu/events/recylemania-tournament/


A brief description of the measured positive impact(s) of the campaign:

Of more than 390 colleges and universities that participated in the competition in 2016, UCI placed 6th in the Grand Champion category, which measures the highest recycling rate for overall waste generation, and 7th in the Gorilla category, which measures the highest gross tonnage of combined paper, cardboard, bottles and cans, regardless of population.

In 2017, UCI placed 7th in Diversion (formerly Grand Champion) and Total Recycling. This is the sixth year in a row that UCI has placed in the top 10. UCI completed the eight-week 2017 springtime competition with a 71.3% overall recycling rate.

Detailed information is available at: https://recyclesearch.com/profile/recyclemania/report/321?node_id=9317&generate=1

Summary of UCI Recyclemania Results: http://www.fm.uci.edu/files/units/2017RecycleManiaResults.pdf


The website URL where information about the campaign is available:
Name of the campaign (2nd campaign):
Wiping Out Waste (employee & student campaign)

A brief description of the campaign, including how students and/or employees were engaged (2nd campaign):

Wiping Out Waste is a quarterly event held in the on-campus dining commons through which the UCI Hospitality & Dining Green Captain* team and the Sustainability Coordinator educate students about the environmental impact of food waste and the power students have to alter the footprint they leave behind. Students and employees can see directly how much food is wasted in a single meal period. Green Captains also provide simple tips to reduce food waste and celebrate successes when students and employees come to the bins with no waste. By letting students see the impact, educating them with steps they can take to reduce waste, and engaging them through activities and incentives (such as a bonus themed meal), this campaign successfully reduces post-consumer waste. Additionally, through feedback gathered during events about portion sizes and taste and texture, we are able to alter our food preparation to reduce waste by increasing customer satisfaction and to ensure recipes are followed correctly. This involves educating employees about how better preparation can also reduce waste.

*UCI Hospitality & Dining identifies student employees who are passionate about sustainability to be Green Captains each year. Green Captains are responsible for implementing practices designed to reduce the environmental impact of campus dining locations and for educating students through events about environmental sustainability and UCI Hospitality & Dining.


A brief description of the measured positive impact(s) of the campaign (2nd campaign):

Waste per person has typically continued to decrease each year, as follows:

October 2012: 2.17 ounces per person average post-consumer solid food waste.
October 2013: 1.7 ounces per person
October 2014: 1.44 ounces per person.
October 2015: 1.31 ounces per person.
October 2016: 2.15 ounces per person.
October 2017: 1.38 ounces per person.
The most recent measurement was in January 2018, with 0.96 ounces per person.


The website URL where information about the campaign is available (2nd campaign):
A brief description of other sustainability-related outreach campaigns, including measured positive impacts:
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The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
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Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:

The individuals who provided responses for this credit are:

Anne Krieghoff
Recycling and Sustainability Program Manager
Facilities Management, UC Irvine
akriegho@uci.edu
(949) 824-9097

Lotus Thai
Sustainability Coordinator, Aramark Higher Education
UCI Hospitality & Dining
Thai-Lotus@aramark.com
(949) 824-3170

The campus’s Facilities Management recycle team, Waste Management of Orange County and Aramark Campus Dining Services have worked together to curb food waste since 2010, when Waste Management opened its food waste and organics recycling facility in Orange and accepted UC Irvine as a pilot-phase partner. Food waste delivered to the facility is processed and transformed into a Waste Management proprietary organic bio-slurry that has a number of sustainability applications, including the creation of green energy.


The individuals who provided responses for this credit are:

Anne Krieghoff
Recycling and Sustainability Program Manager
Facilities Management, UC Irvine
akriegho@uci.edu
(949) 824-9097

Lotus Thai
Sustainability Coordinator, Aramark Higher Education
UCI Hospitality & Dining
Thai-Lotus@aramark.com
(949) 824-3170

The campus’s Facilities Management recycle team, Waste Management of Orange County and Aramark Campus Dining Services have worked together to curb food waste since 2010, when Waste Management opened its food waste and organics recycling facility in Orange and accepted UC Irvine as a pilot-phase partner. Food waste delivered to the facility is processed and transformed into a Waste Management proprietary organic bio-slurry that has a number of sustainability applications, including the creation of green energy.

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.