Talking Stick - January/February 2009 - (Page 10)

Just in ning gree Uses P cAm The Trayless Trend With rising food costs and the popularity of sustainability efforts, trays are disappearing from campus dining halls all over the world. Why? Students often load their trays with enough food for two people; in one day in a single dining hall, they can end up wasting almost 250 pounds of food. At New York University, 50 percent of the dining halls are now trayless, an effort that began with one location at the start of the 2008 fall semester. The University of Connecticut in Storrs went trayless in all but one of their eight dining halls, after a semester-long trial run of going trayless at dinnertime last year saved them 760 pounds of food and more than 913 gallons of water. Western Connecticut State University in Danbury hopes to ease students into the adjustment slowly, working on going trayless one day a week. ARAMARK completed two research studies on removing trays from college dining halls in July 2008. ARAMARK estimates that 50 to 60 percent of its 500 campus partners will go trayless this year. In one study, ARAMARK measured food wasted from more than 186,000 meals served at over 25 higher education institutions during the academic year. ARAMARK reports that the quantity of food wasted was reduced by 1.2 to 1.8 ounces per person per meal when trays were removed from dining facilities. This represents a 25 to 30 percent reduction in food waste per person. In a complementary study, ARAMARK also surveyed 92,000 students, faculty, and staff at 300 institutions across the country to gauge their support of tray removal, revealing that 79 percent of respondents said they would support such a plan. In an effort to rally student support of the system, the University of Florida in Gainesville tied stacks of trays up during Earth Week, displaying signs about how much food and water was being saved. They now save 60,000 pounds of food per year; and, because water isn’t being used to wash the trays, they also save 470,000 gallons of water. ARAMARK reveals their research, best practices, and case studies in a report titled The Business and Cultural Acceptance Case for Trayless Dining. To learn more and view the report, visit www.aramarkhighered.com/ ThoughtLeadership/Articles.asp. ACUPCC Releases Vital Sustainability Guidelines In November 2008, the American College & University Presidents Climate Commitment’s (ACUPCC) Voluntary Carbon Offset Protocol and accompanying guidelines were released at the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) conference. Gathered by ACUPCC institutions, experts from carbon markets, and Second Nature, this information is designed to help institutions evaluate their own efforts for sustainability and to help them implement carbon-offset projects on their campuses. For more information and to view the guidelines, go to the sustainability resources on the ACUHO-I Web page at www.acuho-i.org/Resources/ SustainabilityResources/tabid/695/Default.aspx. Qatar Foundation Captures Green Award The Education Division of the Qatar Foundation for Education, Science, and Community Development in Doha has won the Environmental Leadership Award for the design work on their multi-building student complex, including male and female housing, which will allow students to live in a zero-waste and sustainabilitydriven environment. The design is aiming for Platinum LEED status which is determined by the U.S. Green Building Council. The award was given by Qatar Today, the country’s monthly news and business magazine. The Qatar Today Green Awards are the country’s first environmental awards. They were created to increase awareness and motivate behavioral change with regards to protecting and preserving the environment. Kevin Konecny, director of campus and residence life, expressed his appreciation of the design team’s great work by saying, “It was a true team effort, and you should all be very proud of your contribution to the project!” 10 Talking STick http://www.acuho-i.org/Resources/SustainabilityResources/tabid/695/Default.aspx http://www.acuho-i.org/Resources/SustainabilityResources/tabid/695/Default.aspx http://www.aramarkhighered.com/ThoughtLeadership/Articles.asp http://www.aramarkhighered.com/ThoughtLeadership/Articles.asp

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Talking Stick - January/February 2009

Talking Stick - January/February 2009 Contents Online Now Vision Just In Your ACUHO-I Transitions Res Life Facilities Business Special Focus Calendar Assessing Assignments On Your Honor Conversations First Takes Reporting Out Welcome Snapshot

Talking Stick - January/February 2009

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