Eco-representatives, a newly formed student group, is hoping to educate students about the dos and don'ts of recycling in an effort to increase the level of recycling on campus.
Through word of mouth, eco-representatives are trying to educate the community about recycling facts while also actively engaging in the process by going through the trash bins of their dorms to record students' recycling habits.
"It's important to take ownership over recycling," said Allie Silverman '05, one of three recycling coordinators who initiated the program earlier this year.
The group, founded by Silverman, Nadia Diamond-Smith '06 and Chris Bennett '07, includes about 40 members who check the trash bins of their dorms once a week and report their findings back to the Center of Environmental Studies. The information the eco-representatives report is collected in a database, which helps recycling coordinators know what to fix. Potential problems could be a lack of signs and bins or the improper mixing of recyclables, Silverman said.
If the recyclables are contaminated, the coordinators will not sort the items themselves but will let students know what they're doing wrong. Contamination can include simply putting recyclables into incorrect bins - combining cans with bottles, for example.
"It's more appropriate for us to educate folks to get it right," said Research Efficiency Manager Kurt Teichert.
By taking these steps, eco-representatives hope to lessen the workload for Facilities Management workers, who often sort items in trash bins so that they have a better chance of getting recycled, Silverman said.
"It's about time that students took responsibility for themselves," she said.
Brown has had an organized recycling program since the early 1970s, but the University has stepped up its initiative over the past 20 years. Student groups such as the Brown Environmental Action Network and the eco-representatives are working in conjunction with Facilities Management and the environmental science department to form a direct line of communication with students and faculty about recycling.
"What we've had most difficulty with is in closing the loop - what you can and can't recycle," Teichert said.
In response to that problem, the eco-representatives' initiative gives structure to what the recycling coordinators had to do last year. Before, because of limited dorm access, fixing the problems at the trash sites was like a "giant campus sweep" that was inefficient and time-consuming, Bennett said.
Now, eco-representatives work in direct contact with first-year units and can educate younger students who might not know much about Brown's recycling program, Teichert said.
The group also plans to expand its influence at school events. At the next football game, eco-representatives will make sure that attendees, many of whom are unfamiliar with Brown's recycling methods, recycle according to protocol.
For now, the program is still forming and continues to spread its influence through word-of-mouth and support from BEAN, many of whose members are also eco-representatives.
"Like starting any other organization, it's touch-and-go," Bennett said.
