April 2,
2007
Rochester joins hundreds of schools nationwide for
Recyclemania
Carl Adair ’07 (left) is the Recyclemania
coordinator for the River Campus. He and a few other students, some
shirtless, paraded through Danforth Dining Center in late January, raising
a few eyebrows as they announced the beginning of a 10-week recycling
competition. This is the first year Rochester has joined the effort in
which more than 200 schools are competing nationwide.
All conversations stopped abruptly during brunch on
Sunday, January 28, as a few dozen students paraded through Danforth Dining
Center. Some were shirtless, others covered in green paint, some in all
green clothing. They banged on makeshift recycle bin drums and chanted
“Recyclemania!”
The parade was a dramatic kickoff to the
University’s first Recyclemania campaign, part of a national effort to promote campus awareness about
recycling and waste reduction. The student environmental action group
Grassroots has teamed up with University Facilities and Services for the
challenge.
“Our peer institutions are moving towards
sustainability and students recognize this,” says Carl Adair
’07, Recyclemania coordinator for the River Campus. “They want
to be a part of the movement.”
Recyclemania is a 10-week competition among colleges
that started in 2001. This year, 201 schools are taking part. Recyclables
are collected from residence and dining halls and weighed weekly. Schools
can compete in various categories, including the amount of total recyclables, amount recycled per capita, or the
highest recycling rate overall. Rochester is competing in the amount
recycled per capita category, or pounds recycled per student. Rochester is
ranked 120th through week seven.
As a daily reminder to recycle, signs have been placed
near garbage collection areas and recycling bins explaining what can
and cannot be recycled. To support the effort, Facilities and Services has
increased the number of recycling bins available on campus.
Adair and others have looked for creative ways to get
the message out, even producing and posting four video clips on YouTube.
“I’m willing to physically injure or embarrass myself to spread
the word,” says Adair, and he proves it in a video titled Bielecki Says . . . , where
Adair is tackled by Yellowjacket running back Matt Bielecki ’08 after
failing to recycle a plastic bottle.
While the videos are a lighthearted attempt to draw
attention to the issue, Adair says he and others involved in the campaign
hope to raise awareness about the benefits of recycling. Beyond the obvious
environmental advantages, there are economic perks, too. Each ton of
garbage that is sent to the landfill costs the university $32, but
recycling is free, notes Adair. “The money that is saved through
recycling could possibly go towards the development of a recycling
coordinator or waste minimization director in the future. This could
dramatically increase the efficiency of our recycling
program.”
The Recyclemania competition continues through April
7, but Adair hopes students will incorporate the message into their daily
habits. “We can all help out and be aware of our actions each
day.”
Learn more at http://sa.rochester.edu/grassroots/recyclemania.php.
Jill Endres, who is majoring in psychology and
English, is from Grand Island, NY.
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