Williams College
EN-5: Outreach Campaign
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
4.00 / 4.00 |
Christine
Seibert Sustainability Coordinator Zilkha Center for Environmental Initiatives |
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?:
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?:
Name of the campaign:
A brief description of the campaign:
Give It Up! is a program that enables students to donate their unwanted items at move-out time to local charities and non-profits, benefiting the local community and preventing waste. The campaign takes place from the beginning of Reading Period (prior to final exams) in mid-May through Commencement in early June. Large pods are placed in front of populated student dorms so students moving out can donate items instead of throwing them out. Student employees are vital to the success of this important program, as they sort, transport, deliver clothing, books, food and other items to local charities that would otherwise head to landfills.
This campaign creates multiple “wins” for the college, students, community and environment by reducing the volume of items left in the dorms and the amount of waste generated during the move-out process, while giving students a convenient way to donate their belongings, all while financially benefiting small local nonprofits. The last “win” of this reuse/recycle program benefits incoming Williams students in the early fall, when the clothing and tag sales at the First Congregational Church offer students (and community members) access to needed items at very affordable prices.
https://sustainability.williams.edu/initiatives/give-it-up/
A brief description of the measured positive impact(s) of the campaign:
While we are working on gathering more complete data on all materials collected, the impact from collected books alone is impressive:
GIU collected and packed a record number of 126 boxes of donated books in 2019. In addition to the over $1,500 raised for Nyanam International from resold books, the environmental impact metrics from the books resold or recycled by Better World Books between May 2019 and August 2020 report the following totals collected and saved through recycled/post-consumer fiber production:
● ~4,100 books (~5,600 lbs)
● 66 trees
● Over 40,000 gallons of water
● 8 cubic yards of landfill space
● Over 13,000 kWh of electricity
● Nearly 9,000 lbs of methane and
greenhouse gases
Name of the campaign (2nd campaign):
A brief description of the campaign (2nd campaign):
Green Offices is a voluntary program which aims to increase the sustainability of workspaces at Williams. The goal is to encourage folks to make their office more sustainable and tell us what sustainable practices they're already engaging in by completing the Green Offices checklist. The categories are: Energy Conservation, Waste Minimization, Purchasing, Meetings & Events, Recycling, Engagement, Safe, Healthy, & Equitable Work Environment.
This program was supported by Zilkha Center interns in the 2019-2020 school year, then put on hold due to COVID. It is now coming back in the form of department-level sustainability plans (as part of our college-wide strategic planning).
A brief description of the measured positive impact(s) of the campaign (2nd campaign):
This program utilized a spreadsheet where offices would record what they were already doing and what they planned to do to improve their sustainability practices. The spreadsheet gives a multitude of ideas and action items for offices to pursue and continually improve their sustainability. The template can be found here: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1QMLRodhjD7nuySkS4IwJUH0Dygra26SYWvh0d1vGNjQ/edit?usp=sharing
A brief description of other sustainability-related outreach campaigns:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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.