Get ready! The University of Rochester will compete against colleges and universities across the nation, in this year’s GameDay Recycling Challenge, a waste reduction and recycling competition.
The competition will take place during our home game vs. Ithaca College this Saturday, October 26 at Fauver Stadium beginning at 12:00 pm. But instead of touchdowns, the GameDay Recycling Challenge competition is measured in pounds of material diverted through recycling, composting and via food donations versus the amount thrown away in the stadium and tailgate areas.
University Facilities and Services, Athletics and Recreation, Dining Services, Waste Management and several student volunteers are working together to give UR an edge over the competition. Several zero waste stations will be set up to collect recyclable and compostable material and our “zero waste rangers” wearing Go Green! t-shirts will be there to guide people.
We were so proud to have won the diversion category nationally last year!! Additionally, the past four years UR achieved zero-waste event holding a waste diversion rate above 90%. We are excited to make the achievement again this year!
Winners for each athletic conference will be recognized in the national GameDay Recycling Challenge, with five different categories per conference. National winners will be recognized in two categories: 1) total amount recycled, composted and donated; and 2) diversion rate – or the percentage of waste diverted from the landfill.
“Leveraging the school spirit that comes out during these classic football rivalries presents a unique opportunity to build awareness and connection to waste reduction and recycling among college football fans of all ages,” said Brenda Pulley, Senior Vice President, Recycling, Keep America Beautiful.
“As more and more college football stadiums step up their sustainability game, the GameDay Recycling Challenge showcases the top zero waste college stadiums in the country while offering technical assistance and support to stadium-based recycling programs that want to achieve more,” said Stacy Wheeler, RecycleMania, Inc. president. “The response to the Challenge so far has been remarkably positive and growing.”
For more information about this challenge please visit http://gamedaychallenge.org/