Community on the Commons not only provided students with an opportunity to get to know one another and have fun but also gave them an opportunity to participate in sustainability at Elon. This event was planned around the ability to compost or recycle all items provided with the meal.
The plates, silverware and cups were made from plant-based material, all of which could be composted.
Eighty-four percent of the waste was composted, 15% was recycled and 1% went to the landfill.
The event by the numbers:
Total number of meal swipes: 1896
Compost: 845 pounds
Recyclables: 153 pounds
Landfill: less than 10 pounds
Thank you to everyone who participated in this event. By using compostable and recyclable materials, we significantly reduced the amount of waste that went to the landfill from this event.