Purdue Recycling
GOAL:
To raise awareness for the recycling program on Purdue’s campus that encourages students and staff to engage in the program, while providing accurate data that educates them on how the process works.
Community Project Partner:
Office of Sustainability, Residential Housing Operations, and Boiler Update (Newsletter) of Purdue University
Team Members
» Julia Martin
» Alex Weidman
» John Shin
» Nixon Williams
Summary:
Recycling is important because it allows us to conserve and reuse our resources. Recycling can conserve energy, reduce pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, as well as create a more sustainable lifestyle. With the declining state of our environment, recycling is not only beneficial but necessary to counteract the environmental issues that stem from our society’s relationship with hyper-consumerism, which has been brought to us by late-stage capitalism. To make sure users follow the current recycling program, we must expand and improve educational programs for students, faculty, and staff on campus to improve recycling efficiency and increase recycling bins in various locations. Therefore, our project aims to gather data on Purdue's recycling system by conducting an online survey (March- May 2023) and sampling materials in Lilly Hall's recycling bins (mid-Feb to April 2023). The findings will be presented at an Earth Day event in April and shared through flyers in residence halls to promote awareness and engagement. Through literature review, status quo analysis, and collaboration with partners, this project developed deliverables including a Qualtrics survey on student opinions and media materials using Canva. While limited to Lilly Hall due to time constraints, the project aims to enhance recycling understanding, anticipating future studies and improvements in Purdue's Sustainability Office initiatives within two years.
