South Quad serves around 8,000 meals every day. There are more than ten food stations. Burgers, stir fry, a deli counter, a grill; the options are essentially endless, and people move through them quickly. Over the past year, I spent a lot of time in that dining hall and witnessed whole slices of pizza tossed away, half-eaten burgers pushed aside, … Read More
The FreeStore, a once-a-month event run by the Planet Blue Student Leaders (PBSL), is an ongoing effort to reduce waste, promote reuse, and build a more resilient campus community. The PBSLs collect and sort items from donation partners, the student move-out program, and unclaimed lost & found items. Using these materials, they create the event and curate an incredible, free … Read More
The hidden process behind your campus dining meals — and why it matters more than you think. Every time you swipe into the dining hall, your choices are just getting started. Behind the scenes though, an intricate web of decisions has already unfolded about what food will be on your plate. This is part of the procurement process. Is the … Read More
We all want to get it right with plastics recycling, but with varying recycling rules and discouraging sounding statistics about recycling, it can be a bit confusing. Additionally, there isn’t just one type of plastic; in fact, there are 7 main types of plastics. Despite the confusion, properly sorting and recycling plastics is a key part of the University of … Read More
Sustainable living habits are often misconstrued as an ‘all-or-nothing’ mindset, where positive impact can only occur through perfection in every area of action. But in a recent conversation with Dr. Peter Oelkers, an Associate Professor of Biological Sciences and Biochemistry at University of Michigan-Dearborn, he emphasized that sustainability can be more than just a box to check. For him, it’s … Read More
When I first began my journey as an intern working in sustainability programming at the University of Michigan-Dearborn, although they were happy for me, I was initially met with some confusion from my friends and loved ones. I was studying health and human services, and my interests were in social work. One of the most common questions I remember being … Read More
Last month, I had the opportunity to volunteer at the University of Michigan’s Campus Move-Out Donation sorting—a behind-the-scenes space that quietly holds stories of excess, care, and possibility. As I sifted through the things students had chosen to part with, I found myself pausing: a half-used journal with a single, powerful quote on the first page—“You are becoming the person … Read More
The University of Michigan Lab Reuse Program is a testament to the university’s commitment to being environmentally sustainable through redistributing unused laboratory materials. This initiative aims to reduce lab waste and increase the utilization of resources. As a large research institution, lab work has a huge environmental impact on our campus and on campuses around the country. Previously known as … Read More
At the University of Michigan, sustainability is not just about pushing changes in campus plans and infrastructure—it’s about building a culture of sustainability at every level. Recognizing that changing work culture relies significantly on faculty and staff, the Office of Campus Sustainability (OCS) came up with the Staff Sustainability Mini-Grant, a funding source for supporting small-scale workplace sustainability initiatives. Bridging … Read More
This is not my first Michigan winter. And yet, I feel more bothered this year than others. I recently got a memory on my phone from last year where it was an abnormally warm day in February and I ran in shorts outdoors and seeing this made me long for the freedom of summer months. But unfortunately, I cannot rush … Read More
