Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 60.60
Liaison Jay Price
Submission Date March 2, 2018
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

University of Tennessee at Knoxville
EN-5: Outreach Campaign

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 4.00 / 4.00 Preston Jacobsen
Sustainability Manager
Facilities Services
"---" 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:
Power Challenge

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

The POWER (Programs of Water, Energy, and Recycling) Challenge is a way for the UT community to demonstrate its commitment to reducing the university’s environmental impact in the month of October by pitting UT residence halls against each other in a battle to see which halls are greenest. We engaged students, Resident Assistants, and Hall Directors directly by encouraging them to participate in events and service projects that promote environmentalism, as well as encouraging them to plan their own events and activities. The halls were scored based on their water consumption, energy consumption, and waste output, in addition to earning participation points throughout the month.


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

During the Power Challenge, the university saw a reduction of $65,099.09 in energy, water, and waste disposal costs. Additionally, there were 68 total sustainability educational materials created and shared that month, and 498 people signed the Power Down Pledge.


The website URL where information about the campaign is available:
Name of the campaign (2nd campaign):
My Tiny Trash

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

My Tiny Trash is a waste reduction pilot outreach campaign within the Facilities Services Complex at UT. This building houses 145 employees. Rather than each desk having its own individual 3 gallon trash bin with its own individual plastic liner that would all go to the landfill, each desk features a “Tiny Trash” receptacle (roughly 6”x 3”x 6”) that nests neatly in their 3 gallon recycling bin. Employees place all non-recyclable materials in their “Tiny Trash” receptacle (like candy wrappers, chip bags, foil, straws, etc.). This outreach program has provided written materials to all employees about what common waste items go in which waste stream.


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

Employees are responsible for sorting their own waste and emptying their own bins once a week (or as necessary) into the larger bins located in convenient locations throughout the facility. This campaign encourages employees to be more active and conscious of their daily waste, and has made responsible waste habits a part of their day-to-day routine. This campaign also reduces the workload of the janitorial staff, allowing them to focus on other services throughout the building and campus, and it prevents excess waste (individual plastic liners) from going to the landfill.


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:

Positive impacts unmeasured and ongoing


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:
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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.