Overall Rating Gold - expired
Overall Score 66.38
Liaison Olivia Shehan
Submission Date Nov. 13, 2018
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

Wellesley College
IN-25: Innovation B

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 1.00 / 1.00
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Name or title of the innovative policy, practice, program, or outcome:
Food for Free

A brief description of the innovative policy, practice, program, or outcome that outlines how credit criteria are met and any positive measurable outcomes associated with the innovation:

In 2018, Wellesley College joined a group of Boston-area schools and organizations in donating left-over food to the nonprofit Food for Free. Food For Free picks up cooked food and fresh fruits/vegetables from Wellesley’s dining halls (which are run by vendor AVI Foodsystems) and deliver them to its operations center in Cambridge, where they are repackaged into single-serve meals. This program reduces our campus's food waste and also helps those who are food-insecure in the Boston area. In 2017, Food For Free distributed 2 million pounds of food; the food they collect helps feed 30,000 people in the Greater Boston area.

Alison Cross, a lead coordinator of the Food Rescue, who tracks individual donations, said Wellesley donated 600 pounds of food since February and is projected to donate about 2,000 pounds—enough food for 1700 meals—in the current school year.

As part of the program, the Metrowest Food Initiative, which coordinates the Food for Free Program, Wellesley won an EPA Merit Award in 2018. See here for more: https://www.epa.gov/environmental-merit-awards-new-england


Which of the following impact areas does the innovation most closely relate to? (select up to three):
Public Engagement
Food & Dining
Waste

A letter of affirmation from an individual with relevant expertise or a press release or publication featuring the innovation :
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The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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