University of Iowa
ER-2: Student Sustainability Outreach Campaign

The Sustainability Festival is held every spring semester to showcase student class projects and research related to sustainability. Students, student organizations, and local organizations are invited to present their work as a poster or at a display table. The event also includes an essay contest. Students compose and read an original essay on what sustainability means to them. The winners are announced at the festival. Game Day recycling at Kinnick Stadium is an effort led by the UI Athletics, the UI Office of Sustainability and UI Facilities Management. Students and staff can volunteer during any home football game to help visitors recycle. The Sustainability Rally is held every fall semester with the goal of getting new students connected to sustainability-related student organizations. The Rally features student leaders and gives new students the opportunity to learn more about what's happening on campus. The President's Block Party (held immediately after Convocation) welcomes new students to the University of Iowa at this completely green event. All food served and all materials used are recyclable or compostable. Recyclemania is a fun competition that promotes recycling among students. The Greek Energy Challenge is a fun energy reduction competition among fraternities and sororities.

Over thirty students were recognized last spring at the UI Sustainability Festival as graduating with the undergraduate certificate in sustainability studies. Roughly 100 students, faculty and staff attended the fall Sustainability Rally to help raise interest and awareness in sustainability issues on campus. Home game day recycling at Kinnick Stadium netted over 50% diversion and raised awareness of the importance of recycling in building a sustainable campus. Approximately 4,500 incoming first-year students are invited to Convocation on the UI Pentacrest and then to the UI President's block party. Volunteers staff collection bins to help educate students about recycling and to collect compostable food materials, plastics, aluminum, cardboard and redeemable beverage containers. At the block party, diversion rates as high as 90% have been achieved. Iowa's first competition year in Recyclemania was successful. In the Spring 2013 competition, the UI was ranked 5th among the Big Ten with a recycling rate of 28.20%, and ranked 138th nationally. The Greek Energy Challenge netted impressive results. A collaborative effort between Fraternity and Sorority Life and UI Student Government (UISG), the houses were challenged to reduce their energy bills for the month. The Spring 2013 competition’s final data showed savings of $608.66 and 597.06 kilowatt hours (kWh) for the entire Greek community that participated. Phi Kappa Psi fraternity won the competition, reducing its energy consumption an average of 44 percent per day, comparing kWh used in 2012 and 2013. Phi Kappa Psi was awarded $500 to its philanthropy. Delta Zeta sorority came in second place, recording a 39 percent energy decrease and joined Phi Kappa Psi at a paid, nonalcoholic social at Airliner for their award.