Food Waste Buffet

Ever wonder how much food is wasted at the Dining Halls? A team of students, including UCSC Dining student employee Jessica Campos, Student Sustainability Advisors in the colleges, and the Student Environmental Center, have been hosting “Waste Buffets” across the campus Dining Halls to find out.

With the help of other dining hall workers and volunteers, the team collects all of the food that students leave on their plate and do not eat.  Instead of sending that food to be composted right away, they measure how much is wasted and assembles full plates of food for display. This “Waste Buffet” is effective in showing people the potential that their wasted food has in being meals in hopes of discouraging food waste.


According to their results from last quarter, Crown/Merrill wasted 2.91 oz of food per person per day; Cowell/Stevenson wasted 3.66 oz of food per person per day; College 8/Oakes wasted 2.9 oz of food per person per day; and Porter wasted 2.14 oz of food per person per day. If you multiple those per-person amounts by the number of students who visit the dining halls each day throughout the year, it adds up to a whole lot of food waste!

We spoke with Jessica Campos to learn more about she became involved with this project. She has an active role in the sustainability movement and plans on incorporating that experience into her goals for future waste buffets. As an Environmental Studies and Biology major, Jessica began working at Mesa Verde gardens where she connected with the Live Oak community through helping with drip irrigation, dry composting, gardening, and translating for Spanish speakers.  She then moved onto work with Sprout Up, a non-profit where volunteers visit elementary schools for free environmental education. With Sprout Up, she was an education liaison which entailed teaching to specific communities. For example, organic food is the ideal choice for the environment and our health but it is not always financially feasible for everyone.  Jessica says that “you can’t just tell low income students to go organic,” but there are still ways to be more connected to the food systems without spending money.

To demonstrate the interconnectedness of our food systems, Jessica wants to collaborate more with the farm to have more produce pop-ups at the Waste Buffets.  She wants to show students that “the Dining Halls are the kitchen and the farms are OUR farms.” This will connect our relationship to our food with food waste. She is also planning on working on a large poster to compare food waste at Dining versus food waste nationwide.

Some tips on reducing food waste:

• Try a sample
• Eat smaller portions, then come back for seconds
• Any feedback for making our dining halls more sustainable? Write it on comment cards for the Dining Hall​.
• Take what you like; Eat what you take

Want to see more Waste Buffets on campus?  Email Jessica at jercampo [at] ucsc [dot] edu

UCSC Welcomes Pacific Cookie Company as “Real Food” Vendor

In a strategic move to achieve their Real Food Challenge commitment by 2020, the University of California, Santa Cruz Dining Services (UCSC Dining) has partnered with the Pacific Cookie Company to bring local and sustainable cookies to the campus.

Pacific Cookie Company cookies have long been a favorite of Santa Cruz locals who frequent their downtown bakery, as well as cookie lovers nationwide who receive beautifully packaged cookies delivered right to their door. Now, the Banana Slugs at UCSC can enjoy these famous cookies at the dining halls, cafes, and coffee bars operated by UCSC Dining.

Josh Martin, UCSC Dining’s Executive Chef, shared, “We’re excited to welcome Pacific Cookie and we thank the Pearson family (owner/operators of Pacific Cookie Company) for their generous efforts in forming this partnership. We’re pleased to bring a Real Food-qualifying cookie to campus and get closer to achieving our Real Food Challenge goals.”

In 2012, UCSC Chancellor George Blumenthal signed the Real Food Challenge, committing to meet or exceed 40% Real Food purchases by UCSC Dining by the year 2020. The Real Food Challenge states that Real Food is “produced in a fair, humane, and sustainable manner,” and includes foods that are produced by local farmers, growers, and manufacturers within a 250-mile radius. Pacific Cookie Company cookies are made with locally-sourced, sustainably-farmed Giusto's Flour, and qualify as a step in the right direction for UCSC Dining.

The Dining Halls are Working Towards our Zero Waste Goal!

The dining halls are back tackling the big issue of food waste and helping to educate our new crop of UCSC Slugs! A new style of service was introduced this fall in an attempt to help minimize uneaten food scraps being sent to the compost facility--think zero waste! Many of the hot food service lines were converted from "self service" to "staff served" plates. 

It appears to be working after the first plate-waste food audit at Porter/Kresge dining hall during lunch on October 16. The amount of uneaten food was reduced from a previous 2.4 oz per plate to 1.7 oz per plate! 

This might not seem like a big deal, but the dining halls are serving 25,000 meals a day! Yes, UCSC's dining halls are all-you-care-to-enjoy, however we are still delivering the consistent message: "take what you like, but eat what you take!" Congratulations to our dining halls and thank you for supporting our campus-wide goal of moving towards zero waste!

October 24th is Food Day!

Come Out and Celebrate Food Day!

Food Day celebrates our food system when it works and here at UCSC it's working! Food Day is a nationwide celebration of healthy, affordable, and sustainably produced food and a grassroots campaign that culminates on October 24th. Food Day aims to help people eat real. UCSC Dining is about REAL FOOD and UCSC has taken the challenge (endorsed by Chancellor Blumenthal on 3/5/2012)!

On Friday October 24, Dining will feature a dinner meal at all five dining halls which will be 100% sourced local from within 250 miles.

What will this look like? Well, you won't find any pineapple mango relish on our locally sourced seafood, and don't look for your favorite chocolate chip cookie. Nope, those ingredients aren't local so we're leaving them off... The chef's are busy sourcing and looking for the freshest, most local proteins, veggies, fruits, and grains to create a special Food Day Dinner menu which will illustrate just what "eating local" looks like! Don't worry, they won't forget about creating something yummy for dessert!

Watch Dining's website, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for more details as they arrive! They've got a whole week of "Food Day" happening for you!

UCSC's Leaping Toward Real Food Goal

UCSC is proud to announce another move toward reaching our REAL FOOD goal of 40% by 2020! UCSC is now partnering with Sea to Table to bring fresh sustainable seafood direct from the fishermen! Traceable, delicious, wild-caught fish straight from the dock to our campus kitchens! Another move toward reaching our REAL FOOD goal of 40% by 2020!

 

Where the Health Can You Eat Around Here?

Dining recently hosted a Healthy Menu Tasting that was FREE to the campus community. The event was held at the Terra Fresca Restaurant in the University Center. From 3:30-5:00 PM students and campus members were served tasty and nourishing dishes from the new Spring Healthy Monday’s menu currently available at the campus dining halls, and several cafes. Even with a downpour of rain approximately 150 guests arrived & campus chefs were kept busy serving up items like: Green Curry Veggie Bowls, Eggplant Lasagna and Chipotle Seitan Fajitas. Campus partners including OPERS, Wellness Center, and our Health Center joined in for the afternoon and brought along resources and information to share with the crowd! 

If this interests you, on April 23rd from 11:30-2:30 PM in the College 9 and 10 Multipurpose room, Dining will be hosting their 4th Annual Organic & Local Foods Fair. This is also a free event. And everyone is welcome to stop in! 

Come meet and talk with our purveyors and vendors of local /organic products that are served here at UCSC. Meet growers, manufactures and supplies who are keeping engaged with REAL food! Plenty of free samples, tasting of new and interesting foods, share your likes and engage with others about what excites your palate!- Don’t miss this event, it only happens once each year! Yes, this will be another Zero Waste Event! 

Check out our website and Facebook for current updates!

College Eight/Oakes Dining Hall Reduces Food Waste by 14 Pounds

Congratulations to the College Eight/Oakes Dining Hall and residents for reducing their food waste to 49 pounds total during dinner service on January 24th! Since students decreased their food waste from 63 pounds during a dinner service waste audit last quarter, Dining celebrated with a delicious ice cream party.

When we reduce the amount of food waste, we reduce the amount of waste that needs to be hauled to a composting facility, thus saving money and reducing transportation carbon emissions. In addition to reducing our impact on the climate, this money in turn can be used to purchase more interesting and delicious food in the dining halls!

Viridis Aquaponics Begins Supplying Produce to UCSC Dining

The UCSC Dining Halls are now serving produce--in particular, lettuce--that is grown using aquaponics. A company in Watsonville called Vidris Aquaponics is partnering with UCSC Dining to provide sustainably grown food for all 5 dining halls. A recent Santa Cruz Sentinel article on the new partnership explains that "Aquaponics combines hydroponics -- growing plants in water -- and aquaculture, or fish farming, in a symbiotic relationship that strengthens both practices. Instead of massive amounts of fertilizer generally required by hydroponically grown fruits and vegetables, fish waste provides the nutrients. In turn, the plants act as the final step in a series of biofilters that makes it possible to recycle the water back to the fish tanks, where the process begins anew." For more information about how aquaponics works and why it's a sustainable practice, read the full article here, and look out for delicious-looking, aquaponics-grown lettuce in your nearest dining hall!

February 2014: Internships, Employment, & Volunteering

Chancellor's Undergraduate Internship Program - $8200!
The CUIP program is now accepting applications for the 2014-2015 academic year! CUIP provides on-campus internships in programs and departments throughout the campus, and there are many sustainability CUIP positions with offices on campus like Dining, the Student Environmental Center, and the Sustainability Office. Interns work with a mentor to develop personal and professional skills and take a leading role in a project. A two-unit leadership seminar class is required for fall, winter and spring quarters, and a stipend of $8,200 is paid towards the intern’s registration fees for the academic year. CUIP is a unique opportunity to learn, earn, and serve. For details on the list of internships and to apply please visit this website. The application deadline is Thursday, February 13. If you have questions email cuip [at] ucsc [dot] edu or call 459-3973.

Early Bird Applications for IDEASS Internship Program Open February 15
Impact Designs: Engineering and Sustainability through Student Service (IDEASS) will be accepting early bird applications for 2014/2015 on February 15. If you have a novel green-tech solution in mind, please fill out the application here and submit your idea. IDEASS can fulfill senior exit credit for some majors--including ENVS--and many alumni have been offered jobs related to their projects when they graduate. Project topics compatible with the IDEASS model must: A) Include a build/design track leading to some kind of deliverable; B) Be relevant to community stakeholders; C) Be attractive to off-campus / professional talent so that we can recruit a mentor; D) Be appropriate for a fall-planning winter/spring-implementation cycle. For more information, please email ideass [at] ucsc [dot] edu.

Volunteer to Help Plan and Table at Earth Summit
The Student Environmental Center is excited to announce the 13th Annual Earth Summit on March 6th, 2014! The Earth Summit is a space for students, staff, faculty, administrators, and community members to come together and celebrate the history and current actions in campus sustainability, plan for future projects, and strengthen student involvement. There will be empowering speakers, exciting workshops, delicious local food, and opportunities to table! If you would like to be involved in the planning, host a workshop, table, or volunteer at this great event, email Lily Urmann at lurmann [at] ucsc [dot] edu.

ESLP 2-Unit Internship Opportunity
The Education for Sustainable Living Program (ESLP) is looking for 2-unit interns for winter quarter. ESLP is a student organized and facilitated class that is put on in the spring at UCSC based on the Blueprint for Sustainable Campus. Interns will take part in planning and organizing the class. Tasks will include attending meetings, assisting with student outreach, going to conferences, and deepening the understanding of student involvement in campus sustainability efforts. If you are interested or have any questions about this opportunity, please email eslp [at] ucsc [dot] edu.

Santa Cruz METRO Seeks Volunteers for Advisory Committee - Cycling Bus Riders Needed
Santa Cruz METRO is seeking volunteers to serve on the METRO Advisory Committee (MAC). The Santa Cruz Metro Board of Directors looks to this citizen advisory board for policy and operational issues that impact Metro riders. Meetings are the third Wednesday of every month at 6 PM at Pacific Station in downtown Santa Cruz. MAC members are nominated by each Santa Cruz METRO Director and appointed by the Santa Cruz METRO Board of Directors. Santa Cruz METRO strives to balance the membership to reflect the ethnic, gender and geographic diversity of the County of Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz METRO’s service area. At this time, residents of Capitola, Scotts Valley, and Aptos are encouraged to apply for open positions on MAC. People who combine bikes with transit should be represented on this board because there are currently no cyclists who also use buses serving on MAC, according to Richard Masoner here. If you are interested, please apply for MAC.

IDEASS Seeks Waste Team Member
Do you want professional experience or an opportunity to fulfill senior exit credit through an innovative sustainable design project? Impact Designs: Engineering and Sustainability through Student Service (IDEASS) is looking for a few more passionate and hardworking student leaders to join a project team working on a waste reduction project with the Kresge Owl's Nest! Winter admissions to IDEASS requires a winter - spring (2 quarter) commitment. Students can expect to work in interdisciplinary teams with a professional mentor. For more information, or to apply email ideass [at] ucsc [dot] edu and check out the IDEASS homepage on the sustainability office website.

Gain Volunteer Experience Sorting Waste 
The IDEASS team project working on waste reduction at the Owl's Nest (described above) is seeking volunteers for a waste audit on Thursday, February 13. They need all the help they can get to sort through the different waste streams to measure and assess levels of cross-contamination in the different waste streams. Snacks will be provided, and they'll be listening to groovy tunes! To sign up, email Kelsey Smith at khsmith [at] ucsc [dot] edu.

Volunteer with Take Back the Tap
Are you interested in water justice? Do you appreciate every drop that flows out of the tap? Then you might be interested in joining the Take Back the Tap team, a social and environmental justice campaign aimed to end the sale of single use plastic water bottles on our campus. They meet every Thursday evening, 6:15 to 7:15 PM at the Common Ground Center, Kresge 166. Email takebackthetapucsc [at] gmail [dot] com for more information.

Alliance to Save Energy Seeks Program Associate
The Alliance to Save Energy is seeking a full-time Program Associate to assist with implementation of its PowerSave Campus Program. The program employs and manages paid student interns to develop and implement projects that promote careers in the sustainability field, generate energy savings on campus, increase awareness of the importance of energy efficiency, and encourage the infusion of sustainability concepts into academic curricula. The Program Associate will work in the Alliance's Oakland, CA office. For more information about the position and about the PowerSave Campus Program, check out their website here. Please apply via the following link, uploading your resume and cover letter in one single pdf when prompted. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis through February 5. The position is open until filled.

ZipCar Paid Internship
ZipCar is offering a paid internship to students at UCSC.  Some responsibilities will include: Communicating and working with campus-wide contacts to grow awareness on campus, Location management, Vehicle auditing, and Writing and executing a marketing plan.  To apply, and for more information check out this website here for more information.

Apply to Volunteer with Sprout Up
Sprout Up is a non-profit program that looks for undergraduate volunteers to help bring lessons of environmental science and sustainability to local elementary school classrooms. They are college student founded and operated non-profit that is always seeking new instructors. For more information about potential volunteering opportunities with them check out their website.

Internships with WaterLab Research Facility

The WaterLab Research Facility studies wastewater recycling and how to use recycled water to conserve unused water reserves. Though still in progress of becoming a full-fledged research facility, internship opportunities exist and will be expanding as the facility grows. UCSC students can learn more about WaterLab and internships by contacting Eli Weintraub at etweintr [at] ucsc [dot] edu and via the Center for Integrated Water Research website.

Find or Upload Projects to Sustainability Project Clearinghouse
Interested in getting involved in a campus sustainability project, but don't know how? Are you looking for partners for your current project? Have you completed a project that you would like others to learn from? Visit the Sustainability Project Clearinghouse, a centralized database of UCSC sustainability projects, today! You can view published projects or upload your own projects and ideas. For training on how to upload a project, please contact Shauna Casey at scasey [at] ucsc [dot] edu.

New Bottle Filling Station at Porter

If you've visited the lobby above the Porter Dining Hall recently, you may have noticed a new drinking fountain that is designed to fill up water bottles. As part of campus-wide efforts to reduce the use of single-use plastic water bottles, Dining installed the new water filler in the lobby in addition to one located downstairs by the soda machine. Now you can easily refill your water bottle in the lobby, as well as in the Porter Slug Cafe and downstairs in the dining hall.

In past years, a student-led initiative called Take Back the Tap, installed a number of water bottle filling stations around campus. They continue to work on projects to reduce our campus's dependency on plastic water bottles. To learn more, visit their Facebook page.

New! Healthy Mondays

Are Mondays a tough day for you? Come check out Healthy Mondays - where all health breaks loose- at a dining hall near you. Don't forget to celebrate the end of the week with us at Farm Fridays, where fresh and local ingredients are always on the menu. For an updated list of Healthy Monday and Farm Friday locations, check out the website.

Perk Bars Now Water Bottle-Free

Dining is pleased to announce that with the opening of Fall quarter, all Perk Coffee Bars are no longer selling bottled water! This now completes Dining's transition to a single-use-water-bottle-free department! All of the academic buildings that contain these coffee bars had hydration stations installed in convenient locations, allowing guests to fill their own reusable bottles with tap water.

This action supports the campus Take Back the Tap initiative and the Chancellor's Sustainability Challenge to reduce waste! You can purchase refillable bottles at all dining operated retail locations for only $4.99 +tax! Read more on Dining's website.

Summer Orientation Waste Diversion Success

Congratulations to the Orientation Office, UCSC Dining, and the Student Environmental Center on the 6th year of Zero Waste Summer Orientation!  This collaborative effort strives to not only divert as much waste as possible, but also to cultivate a zero waste culture within the campus community.  Thanks to the collaboration and the cooperation of this year's guests, 2,887.4 lbs of waste were diverted from the landfill over the course of six days during the 2013 Summer Orientation program.  Thanks to the commitment by Dining Services to provide sustainable food sourcing along with compostable cups, plates, napkins, and utensils; trash was only 2.5% of the overall waste recorded.  Dining fed over 1100 students and families each day of orientation with local foods sourced from Monterey Bay area farmers.  Who can resist a handful of those delicious Watsonville-grown organic strawberries?  Parents exclaimed "I wish I was coming here to go to UCSC and eat this kind of food every day!"

To find out how you can reduce waste on campus this year, click here to take on the Chancellor's Sustainability Challenge.  

Summertime Dining Updates

UCSC Dining has some summer updates and reminders to share:

Looking for a container to hold refreshing water in these upcoming summer months? Green water bottles are back in stock at all of the dining halls and cafes on campus! Ditch the disposable water bottle and get yours today--discounts on refills, too.

Staying for the summer? Three dining halls on campus will be open all summer long, so plan to come enjoy breakfast, lunch or dinner there. No need to drive off campus--eat fresh and eat local! Dining will be stocking up on plenty of organic greens and vegetables for their salad bars along with yummy fruits from the UCSC Farm! And if you're looking for a coffee fix this summer, select Perk locations will also be offering summer hours! In addition, there are staff dining discounts in effect all summer long.

Check the Dining website for details including open locations and times.

March 2013 Sustainability Profile: Provost's Sustainability Internship Program

Each month, our newsletter features a person or group on campus that is working toward a more sustainable world. This month's profile features Tim Galarneau, Food Systems Education & Research Program Specialist for the Center for Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems (CASFS), and Crystal Owings, an intern working with CASFS and the Food Systems Working Group (FSWG) through the Provost's Sustainability Internship Program.

This year-long program pairs students with staff mentors to work together on sustainability related projects on campus, year-round. The program introduces students to sustainability policies and practices through internship work experience, professional skills trainings, guest lectures, class discussions, and peer-to-peer advising.

Our Education & Outreach Coordinator interviewed Tim and Crystal about the program and their perspectives on student and staff collaboration in sustainability work at UCSC.

Melissa: Please describe the project you are working on together for the Provost's Sustainability Internship Program. Why is it important for sustainability efforts and the campus in general?

Tim: Crystal's internship is a partnership between Dining and the Food Systems Working Group focusing on mapping UCSC Dining’s sustainable food sourcing by conducting a vendor analysis and new coding initiative within a software program known as Food Pro that Dining uses to manage menu planning, inventory, and ordering through their broadline supplier.  She is hosting a set of “coding parties” that bring students together to learn about how to measure sustainable food and together they are working to code over 3,200 products from UCSC Dining’s broadline supplier in addition to secondary vendor contracts! Her role this year also entails developing co-curricular education and outreach materials & activities to increase meal-plan holder understanding of what sustainable (or “Real”) food is and what is happening in their campus food environment.  She is leading the development of a brochure and sticker design effort to promote “Real Food” efforts at UCSC set to go to print early next month.

Melissa: Crystal, why is the program useful to you beyond having an internship? What value does the program bring to you as a student at UCSC? Aside from the particulars of the project you are working on, are you gaining skills that you can use beyond this experience?

Crystal: I've benefited greatly from the program in a variety of areas. I learned firsthand what is required to have a successful project on campus, like a having a clear vision of the outcomes and creating SMART objectives to reach those overall goals. I also found the program useful because I've developed both as a student and a professional through the resources the program provides, like mentors and project developing documents. I've gained experience that will definitely help me when applying to other internships and jobs before graduation, like convening meetings and effective communication. It's also inspiring to see the other sustainability projects supported by the program blossom as weeks progress. It really adds value to the sustainability efforts on campus and reinforces sustainability principles at UCSC.

Melissa: Tim, what is useful about having student support for projects you are working on?

Tim: Students are essential to UCSC's sustainability efforts, from the context of fostering their leadership and learning through all avenues of pursuits within and outside of the classroom. This project provides scaffolding for students to understand how to contribute to a collaborative effort of tracking and planning to address our ""Real Food"" goal of 40% by 2020 that the campus has set in motion (that was spearheaded by student interest).

Melissa: How is it valuable to you to mentor an intern through the program?
                     
Tim: Being a graduate of UCSC and having had mentor support to achieve measurable impact with my sustainability work as student I could see no better avenue of expressing my appreciation to the campus than continuing to support student leadership development within UCSC sustainability efforts. Further, I hope to continue to extend their experience to meet and connect with broader agrifood efforts in the region, across the state, and even around the country.

Melissa: What made you want to participate in the Provost's Sustainability Internship program? What are some reasons why you would recommend this program to others?

Tim: My work involving campus food systems necessitates the need for supporting ongoing student involvement.  The Provost's Sustainability Internship Program provides critical project development skills, a cadre of peer support, and multiple sites for accepted participants to choose from to commit their academic year working within.  It directly supports strengthening the base of students who grow into leadership positions within our Food Systems Working Group and CASFS.

Crystal: I really wanted a sense of stability with an internship and the year-long program provides that through the weekly course and support by the coordinators and mentors. I would recommend this program to students because it's a great way to develop skills that are needed in today's job market no matter what sector or realm you desire to work for. The program also replicates what many careers entail, like forming a work plan for projects and working with a number of colleagues.

Melissa: What is the value and power of students and staff working together to foster a culture of sustainability at UCSC?

Tim: Collaboration can only occur when all involved parties feel adequately prepared to work together.  This programs allows mentors and participants to design projects that allow meaningful action steps and impact that can inform the unit and the students of their potential to work together making UCSC more sustainable.

This year's interns in the Provost's Sustainability Internship Program.

The Provost's Sustainability Internship Program is currently accepting applications for 2013-2014 academic year. Student Intern applications and Staff Mentor applications are available online and are due March 15, 2013. To learn more about the program, visit the website.

Dining Hall Waste Awareness Events

Would shoveling a plate of leftover food from your lunch into a bucket of wasted pizza, burritos, and salad motivate you to take less food next time? Maybe it would make you more aware of the impact of your choices and lead to more consciousness about the food on your plate. This exercise certainly raised some eyebrows this afternoon at the Porter/Kresge Dining Hall during the lunch hour, where a waste awareness event took place.

Over the past few weeks in dining halls across campus, student volunteers led by Victoria Salas, Chancellor's Undergraduate Intern for Sustainability in Dining, have been providing dining hall-goers with this opportunity to see how much waste they and their peers have generated over the course of a meal.

Rather than put their leftover waste on the conveyor belt with their dishes, where it magically disappears behind the corner, students faced their waste by adding it to the pile. There was also a display where volunteers placed especially wasteful items, such as full slices of pizza, unopened bananas that were thrown away, half-eaten burgers, and perfectly good curly fries.

Students who came to the waste assessment stations with a clean plate received a sticker that read "I ate my plate!" Some students expressed interest in learning more about waste efforts on campus during the awareness event, and many expressed feeling guilty for having wasted so much food. Over time, these reminders will hopefully lead to less food waste.

Each assessment lasts an hour, collecting any and all waste from used plates and cups. Most of the student volunteers helping at these events work on other sustainability projects on campus. During today's assessment, Kevin Green of the Student Environmental Center's Waste Prevention Campaign, Natalie Tran of the Campus Sustainability Internship Program and Food Systems Working Group, and Melissa Ott of the Education & Outreach Team in the Sustainability Office were part of the team. Throughout the past few weeks, many other student sustainability community members have helped out with these collaborative awareness events.

There will be at least one more waste awareness event in the dining halls this month in the Cowell/Stevenson Dining Hall on Thursday, February 21 during dinner. If you want to receive a snazzy sticker to proudly display your zero waste efforts, be sure to stop by and be conscious at the counter so you can "eat your plate" and have zero waste, too!

View the full photo album from today's waste audit at the Porter/Kresge Dining Hall on Facebook here.

Water Conservation Education

PowerSave Green Campus in partnership with the Central Waste Reduction Team has created a water conservation display that is rotating through the campus dining halls. It will be in Cowell/Stevenson Dining Hall February 4-10 and in the College 8/Oakes Dining Hall February 18-24. The display includes a three-dimensional map of where UCSC gets its water, stacks of gallon jugs that illustrate water use in old versus new toilets, a cookbook detailing dining hall dishwashing water use, and posters with tips for conserving this precious resource. Students can make pledges to make more sustainable decisions, and participants will be entered in a raffle. The goal of this display is to inform students about how precious water is, inspire them to make changes in their own lives, and tell them what they can do to conserve water. Be looking out for the display in your local dining hall and make sure to stop and take a look when you see it! For more information, please contact Delia Bense-Kang.

Crown/Merrill Dining take diet challenge

Beginning February 1, more than 25 students and staff members associated with the Crown/Merrill Dining Hall will be going vegan and/or participating in the Engine2Diet Plant Strong Challenge for 28 days. This is a drastic change of diet for most of the participants, giving up meat or dairy for a month. Many are doing it for health reasons, to lose some weight or because they have come to the conclusion that eating meat and cows in particular, just does not feel like the right or humane thing to do. Some are just doing it because they are curious and want to join their fellow coworkers and friends that are going vegan. Congratulations on making a sustainable committment, Crown/Merrill Dining Hall staff and students! Find out more about the Engine2Diet here, and contact Loni for more information about the Crown/Merrill participation in the challenge.

Cage Free Eggs in Dining Halls

UCSC Dining is pleased to announce that they have now transitioned to serving 100% cage free eggs across all dining hall and retail units. Working with the Food Systems Working Group (FSWG), students have long requested this switch, and due to a favorable system wide-strategic pricing policy, with Wilcox Farms, dining completed this implementation at the end of Fall quarter. To find out more about what "cage free" means, click here. For questions or comments, please email Candy Berlin.

Global Village Cafe Receives Green Business Certification

Congratulations! Global Village Café located at the McHenry Library is the first contracted food vendor on campus to receive their Green Business Certification from the City of Santa Cruz. This intensive program focuses on pollution prevention, water and energy conservation, solid waste and recycling, equipment and facility upgrades as well as staff training are part of this comprehensive City of Santa Cruz Green Business Program.

With the assistance from campus dining (which currently have all 13 locations certified) this 6 month implementation process was achieved in early December. 

Victoria Salas, Adam Hoffman, and Clint Jeffries in the Global Village Cafe at McHenry Library

“I felt it was a major priority to become a certified Green Business. Given the transitional environmental/sustainability issues our generation is facing, I believe our certification will help lead the way for other independent food vendors to demonstrate their commitment to support local agriculture, food waste awareness, and energy efficiency. Going through this process of being certified has revealed several minor measures that all of us can take to make a major difference in the food industry. Thanks to all who helped along the way!" said Adam Hoffman, General Manager at Global Village Cafe. 

“Collaborating with campus vendors to achieve certification is one of the dining department goals from the current 3 year campus sustainability plan and Adam was enthusiastic and motivated from the first contact,” stated Clint Jeffries, Green Business Manager for UC Santa Cruz Dining. 

Assisting Adam in the detailed process was the Chancellor's Undergraduate Intern for Dining, Victoria Salas.  If you want to make change happen on this campus and get involved in UCSC as more than just a student, you should apply for the Chancellor's Undergraduate Internship Program, which is currently accepting submissions until February 13. Find out more about the campus-wide internship program here.

To learn more about the Green Business Certification of Global Village Cafe, please contact Candy Berlin.