Little things CAN Make a Difference

There is so much going on at the University and beyond in the realms of sustainability these days. We are in the middle of RecycleMania which involves many activities and events for a 10 week period, our student groups are working hard to make Earth Day this year a much bigger and more spectacular event than ever before, we are working to increase our academic programs in the field of sustainability; the list goes on and on. Sometimes it feels as if the wheels are spinning at such a fast rate that we find ourselves getting swept away in a tailspin. Every so often we might stop and ask ourselves if what we are doing is worth it and if we are REALLY making a difference. No matter how big the project is or how small, the answer is YES. Even if it’s just an awareness event that made just one person think a little bit differently, it matters. These things tend to have a ripple effect as that one person might make one small change and then somehow impact someone else to make a positive change of their own.

It’s so great when the things we do that benefit our natural habitat also end up having a social benefit as well. A perfect example of this is the annual Moveout Cleanout where items that would otherwise be disregarded as trash by students are collected and donated to help those in need. It all comes back to the three pillars of sustainability; society, economy, and ecology.

Another great example of this concept is participating in a simple recycling program to benefit the Ronald McDonald House. This email that was sent by our building administrator in the Facilities department, sums the program up perfectly:

Subject: Little things CAN make a big difference.

The Ronald McDonald (RMH) house can’t make medicine taste better or remove pain from treatments, they do, however, help lessen the burden and ensure families have stability and resources to keep their child healthy and happy while here. In Rochester there is one house located on Westmoreland Drive that accommodates 20 families and one located inside Golisano Children’s Hospital at Strong and it accommodates seven families.

In the kitchen areas of both floors, you will find a small house set up to collect tabs for the Ronald McDonald House. Please collect the little tabs you pull to open soda, soup, or other aluminum cans and put them into the collection house. The RMH will redeem them for cash through their recycling partner – Metalico. Once the houses are filled, I’ll collect them and get them over to the RMH. If you are interested in a house for your home – great project for kids or grandkids – let me know and more will be ordered.

Here are a few approximated fun TAB-ulations

1 inch – 1 TAB

1 foot – 12 TABS

1 mile = 63,360 TABS

800 pounds = 1 million TABS

1 pound = 1,430 TABS

I guess little things can add up to something BIG – thank you for participating.

-Marie Torrens, Administrator for Richard Pifer, AVP for Facilities & Services

One Reply to “Little things CAN Make a Difference”

Great piece, Barbara. I am a master’s-prepared family nurse practitioner, and although I am planning to pursue my DNP in a few years, I likely will not introduce myself as “Dr.” in clinical practice. I will use the title in academia, within my profession, and within professional communications. I have enough problems with family practice docs in my area having a conniption fit about nurse practitioners “telling them what they need to do” or some such thing without causing a turf war. As far as I’m concerned, the gauntlet in my area has been thrown down, by the docs, since they choose not to use or acknowledge nurse practitioners as quality providers of primary care to the fullest of their capabilities. Although state statute gives us more freedom than a number of states, most large practices in my state use NP’s as “mid-levels” or (eeek) “physician extenders,” not letting them carry their own patient load, participate in practice decisions, or function as an independent provider. Even though DNP’s will be able to be called “doctor” by right, this isn’t the battle to fight. The fight is for NP’s to practice to their fullest capacity with independent prescriptive authority.

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