Zero Waste

Welcome Back Picnic in the fall and Aestavalia celebration in the spring are both zero waste events. Menus are carefully planned, games and crafts planned, and activities designed to ensure everything used is compostable, reusable, and/or recyclable. These events, while not 100% zero waste, generally allow us to divert over 90% of the waste from landfills. 

Through collaborative partnership between the Alford Community Leadership & Involvement Center, the Food Recovery Network, and Harvest Table, students at Denison donate leftover food from the dining halls. Student volunteers organize and provide leftovers to Salvation Army and Newark Homeless Outreach. The Food Recovery Network is award-winning and was the first in the county to use reusable containers to transport the food. In a normal year, we donate over 5,000 lbs of food.

Every year, Denison faculty and staff are able to exchange or freecycle unused and/or unneeded office supplies. Items exchanged include pens, pencils and folders, printer cartridges and even desk organizers. By taking part in the exchange, offices are able to save resources and reduce department purchasing for items that are already in stock on campus. Items can be taken to the Burton Morgan mailroom area.

The Purchasing Office at Denison conducts surplus sales, as needed, of used items that the college no longer needs or intends to use. These items generally include: file cabinets, desks, tables, chairs, bed frames, mattresses, and various other residential hall and office materials. Items can be purchased by Denison employees and nonprofit organizations that service the local community. The goal of these sales is not necessarily to generate funds, but rather to ensure that usable items are not thrown into the trash or kept in storage until they become too old to be of value. Surplus sales isare one of many ways that Denison works towards reducing its waste and impact on the environment.

In an effort to reduce waste and encourage recycling and the reuse of discarded or unwanted items, each year Denison’s Facilities Department organizes “Operation Move-Out”. As students move out of their dorms at the end of the academic year, they can place any non-trash items they no longer want into moving PODS, which are brought to campus and placed near residence halls. All the items in the PODS are donated to local service organizations.