The Importance of Sharing: Teaching Others How-to-be Sustainable Students

One of the most important factors to help our campus reach its goal of "Zero Waste", is the process of teaching one another on how to be sustainable. The best way to reach a diversion rate of 95% or better at UCI is through the contribution of our students and staff. It is critical that we share our knowledge of recycling, composting, and water and energy conservation with others. This process can be accomplished in classroom facilities, UCI zero waste events where you’ll find friendly “trash-talkers” by our Zero Waste stations to teach you how to properly dispose of your waste, and also in our housing communities.

Recently, a team of our student workers from Facilities Management were given the opportunity to share their knowledge of zero waste and water conservation to a group of our 2015-2016 housing resident advisors (RA’s). Having the opportunity to teach amazing leaders on our campus, like our RA’s, is greatly beneficial in spreading the word of zero waste and sustainability. By teaching our RA’s the importance of sustainability and conservation, they will then be given the opportunity to take what they learned to teach other students within their own housing facilities. This will then help improve the average housing diversion rate at UCI.

Currently our average housing diversion rate is about 45%, which means that 55% of potentially recyclable and compostable waste is still being thrown into landfill. However, as sustainable students we can help change this. From 2006-2015 we have been able to change our overall campus diversion from 47% to 83%. It was raised by almost a half! We believe that through education and awareness, we can achieve this same goal within our housing communities.

Together we can help raise our housing diversion rate, conserve water and energy within those communities, and help our campus as a whole reach its goal of zero waste and a 95% diversion rate by 2020!