Office of Sustainability: Valparaiso University

We love any opportunity to help our community and reduce food waste at the same time!

We are so happy to help our community!

Every year at the end of the term, Valparaiso University’s students clean out their dorm rooms and donate their unused dorm room food to the Hilltop Food Pantry before they leave for the summer! This year Valparaiso University donations collected six boxes filled with miscellaneous food items, approx 400 pounds to pass out at the pantry! Thank you students!

The final numbers are in and Valpo ranked 19th out of 105 universities in the per capita classic for the Campus Race to Zero Waste Competition! ♻️

For 8 weeks, the University community recycled 15.75 pounds per person 🗞 In total, Valparaiso University recycled 27 tons or 54,591 pounds of material. That saves 94 metric tons of CO2 equivalent from going into the atmosphere. 94 metric tons of CO2 is akin to removing 18 cars off the road or the energy consumption of 8 homes 🍃 The Office of Sustainability gathered benchmarking data two weeks prior to the competition and by the end, we saw a 12% increase in recycling efforts across campus.

This is the first year that we have participated in this national competition and we managed to finish in the top 18% overall AND came in FIRST PLACE of participating Indiana universities! 🏆 This competition has shown difference that Beacons can make in the world when they come together for a great cause. Congrats, Valpo!

Zero waste starter kit! We will be at the passing out free reusable water bottles and bags! Valpo has made many efforts to reduce plastic and waste on campus. Make the impact bigger by using these items everyday! Come visit our table at the union from 11-1. FREE!

We want to know if our students understand the meaning of environmental sustainability. Take our survey and earn points for you res hall for the Campus Conservation Competition! https://docs.google.com/forms/d/18cdidRc0uE5bUiwiLLusxXtAqXM2GnZDonqR6LnAXE4/edit?ts=63f7a0d6

It’s time to save! Reduce electricity consumption and water usage during the month of April! Currently, GM is the biggest saver! We are half way through the competition so keep pushing! Winner will be announced on April 21st!

Big shout out to the VU Geography Club for cleaning up our environment! This property is special because it’s has 5 acres of pollinator friendly plants, and is the start VU FeederWatch program. The FeederWatch program combines remote imaging and bird feeders to analyze bird diversity and migration across the US. This clean up provides a clean habitat for these birds! GO GEO!

New waste and recycling signage for campus waste receptacles. ♻️

Beacon and Blaze, Reduce and Recycle! Last nights Green Game our team sorted 226 pounds of waste, a total of 108 pounds was recycled! Thanks for passing out free reusable straws and for passing out reusable bags. We hope our fans learned how to properly recycle at the event and are more equipped for their zero waste journey.

Clothing Upcycling Event is today!! Shop for FREE at the union from 12-3!

Who’s ready for tomorrows Clothing Upcycling Event! We have collected over 400 pounds of clothing to give away for FREE. Come see us Feb 2 at the Union from 12-3!

Who’s ready for SPRING! 🍃 We have floral dresses, tye dye shirts, shorts and tank tops at our FREE CLOTHING SWAP. Visit us at the Union on Feb 2, 12-3.