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Volume 3, Issue 4

March 2011

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Sustainability Grants in University Housing

As the sustainability coordinator for University Housing, the thing I have been looking forward to is working with student-driven ideas and initia-tives. For that reason, I was most excited about the campus sustainabil-ity grant program because it was tar-geted to students with the purpose of providing funding for competitive, student-proposed projects and initia-tives designed to advance campus sustainability through education, re-search, service and operations.

Proposals were due on February 1st, and interest was strong for the first year of this initiative. Eighteen pro-posals were submitted for considera-tion. Of those, five related directly to University Housing. The competition was tough, and four individuals re-ceived funding the first year of the program. Two of the winning pro-posals will work directly with Univer-sity Housing.

One grant was awarded to senior Nick Martin, who is a member of the Go Green Alliance. His winning proposal was to enhance and expand upon last year’s residence hall move-out waste reduction program that was started by the student organization Hillel and lead by student Marnie Bronstein. The heart of this project is to collect items that would otherwise be discarded as waste by residential students moving out for the summer. These reusable items are collected and distributed to local non-profit charitable organiza-tions as opposed to heading to the landfill. So as you are preparing to move out this spring, take note of those things you no longer need or want. If there is life still in them, make sure you are donating them to this cause.

Sheena Zhang, a senior and member of the Students for Environmental

Action, was also awarded a grant this year. Her project is a pilot bike share program for students living in Build-ing 1516, the first and only LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environ-mental Design) proposed residence hall on campus. The program will provide a small fleet of bicycles for residents of 1516 to rent. Residents who wish to have these bikes availa-ble to them would participate in some training/orientation prior to being able to do so. We are hoping to see Building 1516 residents biking all around the campus soon.

Student will also benefit and the cam-pus will be more sustainable due to the other two winning projects. Emily Karol’s project will fund the installa-tion of a water bottle refill station in the Miller Learning Center and An-drew Douglass’s project will lead to the installation of a rainwater har-vesting cistern at the UGArden.

Projects related to University Housing that were not awarded, but are de-serving of mention are Taylor Ladd’s proposal to implement a pilot food waste composting program at Family and Graduate Housing, Jake Harris’s ideas to create a sustainability orien-tation and housing program, and Eli-jah Stagger’s plan to initiate a card-board (think pizza boxes here) in the primarily first year student residence halls.

As this grant program moves ahead, I look forward to seeing Sheena and Nick’s great projects take root and harvest many rewards. I also cannot wait to see more ideas sprouting from the students at UGA.

Article contributed by Kim Ellis, Assistant Director for Family and Graduate Housing and Coordinator for Sustainability, and can be reached at kimellis@uga.edu.

Did you know . . .

Two recycled plastic bottles can be used to make one square foot of carpet.

Page 2 L iv ing Green

RHA’s Green Tuesday Update

The Residence Hall Association (RHA) is the second largest stu-dent organization at the University of Georgia. Each year, RHA hosts a large-scale program in March in celebration of sustainability. In the past, the program was held on St. Patrick’s Day and was titled, “Kiss Me: I’m Sustainable” as a link with the Irish holiday theme. Since St. Patrick’s Day took place during spring break this year, RHA decid-ed there would be no better way to celebrate sustainability than to have the program on the same day as Mardi Gras (Fat Tuesday). Thus “Fat ‘Green’ Tuesday” was con-ceived.

“Green Tuesday” certainly did not fail to deliver a sustainable Mardi Gras themed event. There were tables of free food on purple and green table clothes that promoted healthy eating, including purple and green bowls filled with fruit, sub sandwiches on wheat bread, organic cookies and vegetable trays. The first 200 people to at-tend the event even received a

free, green Nalgene bottle and free “Green Tuesday” t-shirt. RHA even provided an inflatable obstacle course to help promote healthy liv-ing.

This year, RHA worked in conjunc-tion with the Office of Sustainability for the first time on many aspects of the event. The Office of Sustain-ability was very helpful in providing booths with information about wa-ter conservation, the Go Green Alli-ance and RecycleMania. They also created a “recyclympics” that had contestants crushing cans and toss-ing them in recycling bins to score points and racing through an obsta-cle course with a glass of water at-tempting not to waste any.

Myers Hall lobby was filled to ca-pacity with residents and staff members waiting to enter the event. “Green Tuesday” even had a special guest from the county—Binny, Athens-Clarke County Recy-cling Division’s mascot. Binny greeted participants as they en-

tered the Myers programming room and was even available for photos.

The goal of the event as stated by the program coordinator, Barrett Beck, was to “demonstrate to resi-dents that small changes in their lifestyles can have large effects on the environment.” Beck is the ex-ecutive director of the National Residence Hall Honorary and has spent the past year as the chair of the RHA Sustainability Committee. “RHA is committed to doing its part to aid in the preservation of our environment, and this program is a key way in which we do that,” said Beck.

“Green Tuesday” was a great suc-cess that reached out to many res-idents showing them the im-portance of their decisions and ways in which they can lessen their carbon footprints. No matter what the theme is or the day of the year it falls on, it is clear that a sustain-ability program is going to be on RHA’s calendar for years to come.

UGA Sustainable Initiative: New Tree Plantings

The entrance to Brumby Hall and several locations around Family and Graduate Housing are slated to receive plantings of large shade trees as part of an ongoing dona-tion from the Select Trees Sustain-able Tree Trust. The trust, which is affiliated with Select Trees nurse-ries in Oglethorpe and Oconee counties, has pledged to provide 700-1,000 trees to UGA over a 10

in the areas where they are plant-ed. The trees at Brumby Hall are to be planted as part of an overall land-scape renovation in the entrance area that will also include new shrub and groundcover plantings. Contractors working for the UGA Grounds Department will be in-stalling the trees.

year period in an effort to re-green the campus with sustainable shade trees. The trees planted in the different housing locations represent the final phases of this year’s installation of 200 trees around the UGA campus. The new, 20-25 feet tall trees will provide instant shade and will re-place dead and deteriorating trees

Volume 3, Issue 4 Page 3

With More Amenities Comes Greater Responsibility

The Department of University Housing is working to provide more and more amenities to stu-dents: independent heating/cooling controls, more private bath facilities and more electric recepta-cle capacity. However, providing these amenities shifts not only the ability to control the environment to the student but also the envi-ronmental responsibility. Just to illustrate, in the cooling season (when it is hot outside), raising the temperature and clos-ing the blinds before you leave your room can reduce energy use significantly (5-20%). The blinds will block the sun’s radiation from warming the inside of your room. The higher temperature setting requires cooling less often. Once returning to your room, most sys-tems can effectively cool your room quickly (within 15 minutes). Consider allowing your room to rise to 80 degrees for a balance of reduced energy consumption and quick cooling. Housing has noticed a trend with private bathrooms. Water usage increases when residents are given more bathroom privacy. This effect can be minimized by managing your shower time wisely. A few changes in behavior can make a significant difference in your water consumption. Think of each task that requires shower water. Turn the water off when tasks do not require water. Modify your shower

approach to limit how much time each task each requires. For every shower minute reduced, you save approximately 1.6-2.5 gallons of water per shower. This equates to 11.2-15.75 gallons per week, 340-479 gallon per month and 4088-5749 gallons per year. If 104-147 students saved one minute from their daily shower, the savings could fill an Olympic-sized swim-ming pool (600,000 gallons) in one year. For men, use your bathroom sink for shaving. You can fill the level to just the right amount of hot water to be effective. If it takes one mi-nute to shave, the shower will use 1.6-2.5 gallons of water. The aver-age bathroom sink will not hold the water you can waste shaving in the shower. If you utilize a quart of hot water for each shave, you can save 1.45-2.25 gallons per day, 10.15-15.75 gallons per week, 308-479 gallons per month and 3,704.75-5,748.75 gallons per year (still fill-ing that pool?). Simply stated, we have a lot of stuff to plug up in our residence halls. A steady stream of new appliances and electronics have made it onto campus. As a result, additional re-ceptacle capacity is added to each new and renovated space. This al-lows more devices to be utilized at the same time. However, the aver-age electronics and appliances will utilize a surprising amount of ener-gy even when the system is off.

This effect is known as phantom power loss. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, 75% of the estimated power consumption due to electronics is attributed to phan-tom power loss. A very effective and responsible solution to this problem is to attach all of your electronics to a power strip with a single on/off switch. When the de-vice is not is use, simply switch the power strip off. Another responsible way to man-age your receptacle power usage is to purchase and use ENERGY STAR appliances and computers. Many students may already be familiar with this label. However, the standard is raising the bar. By September 2011, new ENERGY STAR appliances must save 40% energy over conventional devices to qualify for the label. Read more about this and other energy im-p r o v e m e n t s a t h t t p : / /www.epa.gov/. University Housing is committed to providing students with space that meets the comfort requirements to increase student satisfaction and scholastic achievement. However, with great control comes great re-sponsibility. The students must arm themselves with the knowledge necessary to live re-sponsibly in the new and renovat-ed spaces. Go to http://www.sustainability.uga.edu/ for more information regarding sus-tainable living.

UGA Office of Sustainability Upcoming Events . . . April 1 First Friday EATS “Energy Use at UGA: Strategies for Conservation” 12 p.m.; Joe Frank Harris Commons, Rotunda (1st floor) May 6 First Friday EATS “Water Quality: Improving Stream Networks on Campus and Beyond” 12 p.m.; Joe Frank Harris Commons, Rotunda (1st floor) For more information about these events and additional upcoming events, visit http://www.sustainability.uga.edu/index.php?

Page 4 L iv ing Green

Sustainability: You are a Piece of the Puzzle

“Congratulations Martha you are the new chair of the housing staff sustainability committee for the 2010-2011 academic year!” I must admit that when I found out I would be chairing this committee, I was very nervous and began to question myself, “How can I lead a group of my peers?” “What do I know about sustainability?” “What can I do to make a positive im-pact?” I quickly received my an-swer by meeting with individuals on the committee who are very knowledgeable about sustainabil-ity. How can I lead a group of my peers? The group was so willing to share the history of the committee and provide me with information to ed-

ucate myself on the importance of my position as it relates to the de-partment. What do I know about sustainabil-ity? The only thing I knew about sus-tainability was recycling, turning off the lights when not in use, not run-ning the water while I brush my teeth and in general, not being wasteful. This was my definition of sustainability. The great thing about life is that we have our own inter-pretations of what it means to be sustainable. If you were to ask someone else what sustainability means, he or she might say, “leaving the earth better than the way I found it” or “doing my part to ensure the next generation is aware of its carbon imprint.” By serving on

this committee, I learned being sustainable could include so much more than I once thought. What can I do to make a positive impact? After serving on this committee, I have extended this knowledge and wisdom to my children by educat-ing them on the importance of be-ing more sustainable. With this article, I hope to encourage you to do whatever you can, no matter how small, to live a more sustaina-ble life! We all have our piece of the puzzle, and it is up to us to connect with others in order to complete the bigger picture.

Article contributed by Martha Matlock, Assistant Area Coordinator, and can be reached at mmat-lock@uga.edu.

“Green Living” in Creswell

Think you can’t be sustainable in the residence halls? Would you like to get involved in being sustaina-ble but just do not know how? Well, the Green Living Committee in Creswell can help you out. The Green Living Committee is a group of Creswell RAs and one GR that put on programs about being sustainable. A few of the programs they have presented include mak-ing sustainable grocery bags out of old t-shirts, putting up recycling posters around Creswell’s recycling bins (which are located on every floor of the building) and decorat-ing personal recycling boxes.

Recently, the committee presented a program called, “Dirt Does Hurt.” Ellison Fidler, from Athens Storm Water Management, came to speak with residents about how to proper-ly recycle electronics, discuss ero-sion, and share how everything we flush or throw away pollutes our dirt, which in turn, pollutes our wa-ter. After she spoke, the residents were able to indulge in a dessert made with pudding, Oreo cookies and gummy worms. The next pro-gram they are planning should be a fun one—a rave to promote lights out to save electricity! Here are some tips from the Green

Living Committee to help you be more sustainable: 1. When you are leaving your

room, please remember to turn off the lights.

2. When brushing your teeth, don’t let the water run.

3. Have two trash cans. One for trash and the other for recycla-ble materials.

4. Only do laundry when you have full loads.

5. Use resea lab le bo t t l e s (Nalgene, Camelbak) instead of buying water bottles.

Film Series

Tuesday, April 12, 2011 Fuel

Uncovering America’s dirty secret

Record high oil prices, global warming and an insatiable demand for energy—these issues will be the catalyst for heated debates and positive change for many years to come. Fuel exposes shocking connections between the auto industry, the oil industry and the government, while exploring alter-native energies such as solar, wind, electricity and non-food-based biofuels.

Film begins at 7 p.m. in the Creswell TV Lounge; snacks and drinks provided.

Sponsored by the Department of University Housing

Fill in the blanks to the statements below. All missing words can be found by reading articles in this issue of Living Green. E-mail your completed word search answers to klwalker@uga.edu by April 15th for the chance to win a free, sustainable gift!!!! 1. The _____ _____ _____ in Creswell Hall is a way for students to get involved in programs about being sustainable.

2. Every year the Residence Hall Association (RHA) hosts a large-scale program in the month of March in cele-bration of sustainability. This year the program was on the same day as Mardi Gras (Fat Tuesday) and was thus named “_____ _____."

3. The last film in the sustainability film series is ____ and will be held on Tuesday, April 12, 2011 @ 7:00 p.m. in the Creswell Hall TV Lounge. Snacks and drinks will be provided!

4. For every shower minute reduced you save approx-imately _____ gallons of water per shower. If 104-147 stu-dents saved one minute from their daily shower, the sav-ings could fill an Olympic sized swimming pool (_____ gal-lons) in one year!!

5. Average electronics and appliances will utilize a surprising amount of energy even when the system is off. This effect is known as _____ _____ _____.

6. The heart of the residence hall _____ _____ _____ _____ pro-gram is to collect items that would otherwise be discarded as waste by residential students moving out for the summer and to distribute those items to local non-profit charitable organizations. 7. Building 1516 is a LEED-proposed residence hall. LEED stands for _____ in _____ and _____ _____. 8. The Select Trees Sustainable Tree Trust will result in plantings of _____ trees at UGA over a 10 year period in an effort to re-green the campus with sustainable shade trees.

Page 5

Living Green Word Search!!!

Russell Hall Athens, GA 30602

The Un ivers i ty of Georg ia Div is ion of Student Af fa i rs

Univers i ty Housing

Phone: 706-542-1421 Fax: 706-542-8595

E-mail: housing@uga.edu

Living Green is a quarterly news-letter distributed to University Housing residents and staff mem-bers and is written and published by the Department of University Housing at The University of Georgia.

For information about this issue of Living Green or to submit arti-cles for future publication, please contact:

Carla Dennis, Editor cadennis@uga.edu

Contributors for this issue:

Barrett Beck

Matthew Deason

Carla Dennis

Joel Eizenstat

Kim Ellis

David Hale

Martha Matlock

Angie Switon

Kristy Walker

www.uga.edu/housing

Housing Website Addition

The University Housing website now has a link showcasing department ini-tiatives with regards to sus-tainability. This link in-cludes resources, recycling locations and a list of up-coming programs and events. See for yourself at h t t p : / / w w w . u g a . e d u /hous ing/susta inabi l i ty/index.html.

Volume 3, Issue 4