The Shower Coach Challenge: Can you take a 5-minute shower?

In conjunction with the annual Eco-Challenge, the Department of Housing and Residence Education Green Team/Recycling/Sustainability Committee is encouraging residents to take shorter, cooler showers. Residents of the Yulee Area residence hall piloted shower timers in the fall semester. Residents responded positively to the Shower timers—some say it helps them keep track of time when they are running late for class!

And the numbers clearly indicate the shower timers are working. When November 2008 water usage was compared with November 2009’s, Yulee Hall residents saved, per resident, per day, 3.43 gallons of water, Reid Hall residents 3.43 gallons, and Mallory Hall residents 3.39 gallons.

Due to the success of the pilot program, two additional residence areas, Graham and Murphree, were outfitted with shower timers this month. A five minute shower uses 12.5 gallons of water. Each additional minute uses 2.5 gallons of water.

Additional water conservation efforts are also being encouraged through reminders posted in residence halls. Recommended actions include turning off water while brushing teeth or shaving and reporting leaking faucets, shower heads, and “running” toilets through iService, the online maintenance request program.

“Battle of the Halls” Kicks Off

Residents looking to live more sustainably are in luck. The annual Battle of the Halls eco-challenge competition encourages residents to reduce resource consumption and compete for great prizes. The challenge aims to help students integrate sustainable practices into their daily lives and reduce their environmental impact.

Watch for bulletin boards and activities around waste reduction, water and energy conservation developed by Eco-Reps. The Sustainability Hut will also be tabling with fun, interactive activities at housing locations throughout January and February. Residents who are “caught green handed” doing environmentally conscious activities will be eligible for prizes.

During the months of January and February, residence halls at UF will be competing to see which group of students can reduce their water and energy consumption the most (based on a percentage reduction from last year’s readings). Points for the waste reduction competition will accrue throughout the challenge. Everyone can make a difference with small changes in their daily routines:

* reducing waste by recycling, printing double sided, and using a reusable water bottle or to-go container

* reducing energy use by turning off computers at night, unplugging electronics when not in use, and washing clothes in cold water

* reducing water use by taking shorter showers and turning off the water while brushing their teeth

The winning residence hall will be announced during the Earth Day celebration on campus, Wednesday, April 21. The winning team will win a trophy made from recycled goods and a celebration sponsored by the Office of Sustainability, a party from Gator Dining Services and a structural improvement to their hall.

It is our hope that all students will carry the skills they will learn with them into the future, implementing them for the rest of their time at UF and as they become citizens and leaders in the world.

Happy Holidays

From our office:

With the holiday season upon us, we are reminded to reflect on what is important to us. Here at the Office of Sustainability, we are grateful to the UF community for all of the support and dedication you give to our collective efforts to realize a sustainable future for our institution, our state, and the world.

We hope that you have a joyful and relaxing holiday, and that you will take some time this season to reflect on how to make your holiday a celebration that is both joyful and sustainable—one that is focused on how to enjoy your blessings, rather than count the gifts or worry about the trimmings. We wish you moments of peace amid the bustle.

Thank you for all you do,

The Office of Sustainability

Tailgator Recycling

Tailgator Green Team Recycling celebrated its fourth year this football season. The program is more successful each year, with more volunteers getting involved and more seasoned tailgaters on the lookout for green-shirted volunteers handing out recycling bags to reduce waste.

Football game-days have a huge environmental footprint, with an estimated 16 tons of waste associated with each game. This year, the stadium also increased access to recycling, with a recycling bin for each trash can within the stadium. This effort, in conjunction with the Tailgator Recycling program captured nearly four tons of recyclables per game!

The Tailgator Green Team relies on a student intern from the Office of Sustainability for management, and exclusively on student volunteers to spread the word about recycling and distribute bags campus-wide. This year, Jordan Weinstein led the program, supporting over 190 volunteers who came from a wide range of student groups to help the cause. Volunteers donated more than 600 hours over the 7 home games.

“Everyone can make a difference by recycling their cans and bottles on Game Day,” said Weinstein. "We truly appreciate all the hard work the volunteers and the staffers put into helping to make this season a resounding success. Seasoned tailgaters know who we are now and are looking for our volunteers before they get out there. We're looking forward to growing success in the years to come."

Trashformations 2009

At the end of November the Florida Museum of Natural History and Alachua County Office of Waste Alternatives hosted the 11th Annual Trashformations program. Trashformations is a juried art competition open to all middle school, high school and college students in Alachua County. Each piece entered into the competition must be comprised of at least 70% recycled, recyclable or reused materials.

This year, over 40 entries were displayed at the Florida Museum. Each piece demonstrated new, expressive, and innovative ways to recycle household materials. With nearly 300 people in attendance, awards were presented in three divisions: middle school, high school and college. Awards were given to local students from schools including Westwood Middle, Oak Hall, Santa Fe College and the University of Florida. A winner was also selected from each division to receive a Waste Watcher Award, for artwork demonstrating the best use of recycled materials as well as a Museum Choice Award, for pieces with natural history related themes.

Award winning sculptures ranged in subject matter from a tree-hugging robot to a giant angler fish. Inspired by the positive feedback from the public, some Trashformations participants have even gone on to sell their recycled creations following the event. Trashformations provides students with a unique opportunity to display their work in a museum gallery and to gain public recognition of their skills.

For more information about Trashformations, please contact the Alachua County Office of Waste Alternatives.

One Less Car Wraps As Alternative Transportation Increases

The second annual One Less Car challenge was a success, with nearly 1,000 people participating. More than 100 teams represented students, faculty, and staff from departments and units across campus. Together, One Less Car participants avoided over 260,000 miles of driving during the challenge. Through alternative transportation commutes, such as busing, biking, and walking, approximately 246,370 pounds of carbon dioxide were kept from entering the atmosphere.

The teams that used alternative transportation for the most miles were: The Office for Student Financial Affairs, The Florida Museum of Natural History, and The College of Dentistry. Final prizes were awarded to the teams with the highest average points per member: Extreme Backroads, Los Tamales Calientes, Radical Gainesville, Geography, and No glass on the bike lanes. Individuals also earned prizes for logging the most trips and avoiding the most miles of driving. Final prizes included: lunch from Satchel’s Pizza, bike tune-ups, Hippodrome Tickets, Gator Dining meal coupons, and tickets to the Butterfly exhibit at the Florida Museum of Natural History.

The Office of Sustainability would like to thank everyone who participated this year and all of our sponsors for providing such great incentives to participate.

FLMNH Enthusiastic For Sustainability

The Florida Museum of Natural History (FLMNH) is dedicated to understanding, preserving and interpreting Florida’s biological diversity and cultural heritage. Research published by museum faculty, staff, and students working in Dickinson and McGuire Halls, as well as the public exhibits in McGuire and Powell Halls that interpret these works, aim to communicate the value of natural systems to policymakers and the public alike.

In line with its institutional purpose and the desire to serve as a model for sustainability practices, the FLMNH and its Green Team strive to implement best sustainability practices into the daily rhythms of museum life. The FLMNH Green Team is conscious of their resource consumption, with approximately 200,000 ft² of campus building space and nearly 500 staff and students.

Frequent reminders of ways in which staff and students can reduce their consumption of natural resources occur periodically via e-mail and staff meeting presentations. A number of initiatives are underway to reduce the impact of the museum and educate students, staff, and visitors. Early successes include:

• Reducing demand for printed campus and community phone directories by over 95%

• Partnership with the Physical Plant Recycling program for scheduled pickups of clean, glass specimen containers too large for standard campus bins

• High annual level of participation in the annual One Less Car alternative transportation campaign—this year, 76 team members avoided 22,642 miles of driving

• Responsible material usage by the graphic design department including a commitment to FSC certified materials and reusable event signage

• Eco-minded gift presentations at the museum’s annual holiday party in order to promote awareness

• Installation of towel bars and reusable towels near high-traffic sinks (in a nod to the UF International Center Green Team)

The Florida Museum has adopted Office of Sustainability Programs into our year-round operations, including “Think Before You Ink,” “Chomp Down on Energy,” and the “One Less Car” campaign.

Much work remains to be done and a number of great things are planned for 2010. Stay tuned!