Two interns in the Office of Sustainability Jack Boger '13 and Benji Kessler '13 are working closely with summer Greek organization sustainability chairs to initiate a new Greek council on sustainability. The council will provide a forum for Greek organizations to share ideas and work together to promote efficient resource use in their physical plants, Boger said.
At the beginning of July, the council convened for its inaugural meeting to discuss its short and long-term goals, the first of which is to increase recycling in Greek houses, Boger said.
He compared recycling with picking a "low-hanging fruit," adding that while recycling is a simple, single-sort process, members of Greek organizations do not always perform it correctly.
Greek houses that do not currently have sustainability chairs are encouraged to create such a position, according to Boger.
"A lot of houses have diverted around two-thirds of waste to recycling, which they can leave right on the curb," Boger said. "[Facilities Operations and Management] has been great in helping us out with the pick-up."
Kessler said that during the first council meeting, he learned that recyclables needed to be placed in a clear bag before being placed on the curb for pick-up. Sharing this fact with members of other Greek organizations is important for increasing recycling rates, he said.
Launching the council at the beginning of Summer term was intentional, because there are "fewer people on campus and it is a lot easier to make real changes," according to Kessler.
If sustainability becomes part of the Greek culture before Fall term, incoming members will see it as part of the organization's responsibilities, Kessler said.
"By doing this, people's ideas could work on a larger scale and also on a larger time frame," Kessler said. "Instead of being a few motivated people there could be a lot of people carrying the torch."
In addition to recycling, the council has also identified long-term goals like conducting energy audits, which involve bringing in an expert in energy efficiency to recommend improvements for physical plants, Boger said. An energy audit would create a concrete understanding of where exactly a Greek house can cut costs and how much those savings would amount to in the long-run, according to Boger.
Other goals include upgrading to more energy-efficient lighting and ensuring that there is insulation in place for the winter, Boger said.
"If we take these numbers and solutions to the College and say, This is how we can save money,' and if that solution requires funds, the Greek house will hopefully get the capital they need because it will pay for itself in a year or two," Boger said. "Insulation usually pays for itself in a couple of years.
Additionally, the council hopes to organize a competition that would award a cash prize to Greek organizations for improvements in sustainability in several categories, Boger said.
"Creating a competition that would reward a Greek house with a few thousand dollars over the course of a term, whether it's in terms of recycling produce or kilowatt hours saved, would incentivize this particular cause and really drive for change within the Greek system," Boger said.
While incentivizing energy conservation is the main goal of the competition, Kessler noted that the measurements will be hard to quantify.
"Having a tangible motivation, such as a cash prize that can be used for social reasons, seems like a very effective motivator," Kessler said. "We don't have energy data for Greek houses right now and it is hard to calculate recycling data [the council] is trying to figure that out."
Kessler recalled a conversation he had with Boger about waste quantities in basements, especially plastic cups and aluminum cans, that could easily be recycled. While the council has bigger goals than "putting people's cups in clear bags," Kessler said he is optimistic about the long-term goals of the council because the College has been especially supportive of its efforts thus far.
Implementing changes in Greek houses is particularly important because the system is "an under-utilized part of campus life that is not particularly sustainable for a number of reasons, though it has great potential to make itself sustainable," Boger said.
Boger offered the example of encouraging students to plug all electronics into power strips as a big first step because residents will only need to remember to turn off one switch before leaving a room, Boger said.
Boger is a member of The Dartmouth Staff.
