Sustainability

Be a zero waste champion

Everyone can help us achieve #ZeroWasteUoE. Why not set your office a challenge to go single use plastic free for a week, or see who can produce the least waste in your shared accommodation? 

Laura Young at a refill grocery shop
Laura Young, Less Waste Laura

If you need inspiration, check out Environmental Protection and Management MSc student Laura Young's Ted Talk on 'Kicking the plastic habit'.

Read Laura's blog post

Share your zero waste stories

We want you to share your experiences of being zero waste on campus, or to point out where improvements could be made. Tag us in your pictures on social media using the hashtag #ZeroWasteUoE.

Find out how to write a blog post for us

Become a Sustainability Champion

Set up a TerraCycle point

TerraCycle is an innovative company that recycles typically hard-to-recycle waste, such as crisp packets and biscuit wrappers. They offer free recycling programmes to allow individuals to set up recycling boxes in their place of work to encourage more people to recycle. Each individual takes ownership of emptying their bin and sending the contents to TerraCycle.

The scheme has the added benefit of accumulating reward points, which are redeemable for cash donations to a chosen charity.

  1. Ask your colleagues & students if they are interested in one of the Free Recycling Programmes offered by TerraCycle, and if they will use it
  2. Create an account on the TerraCycle website
  3. Create a collection box and label it clearly to state what can and can't go in
  4. Inform your building's Cleaning Supervisors about the scheme, explaining that you are responsible for emptying the bin and not the building's Cleaning Staff
  5. Advertise the location of your bin in your building (get in touch to add it to our TerraCycle point list)
  6. When full, take the contents to a designated public drop off location as specified on the TerraCycle Website, or post it to TerraCycle

Note: when you set up a TerraCycle drop off box, you are responsible for emptying its contents, not your building's cleaning staff.

More organisations to check out