The Office of Sustainability and Facilities Management are proud to announce that the University of Illinois at Chicago is participating in a national recycling competition called RecycleMania. Over 600 colleges and universities participate annually.
The goal of this competition is to increase awareness of campus recycling. All participating schools are required to report measurements (pounds of recycled materials divided by campus population) on a weekly basis. Updates on UIC's results will be updated on this page.
Why is UIC participating?
Every month, UIC throws out on average over 100 tons of recyclable materials, including 60 tons of cardboard, with the trash. Had individuals chosen to place this cardboard in recycling bins, it would mean a significant cost-savings!
Through participating in RecycleMania, the Office of Sustainability hopes to increase the awareness of the recycling program at UIC, and to ultimately reduce the waste generated on campus by recycling more materials.
What can you do?
Increase Awareness
Talk to your friends, classmates and colleagues about recycling on campus.
Anyone who regularly disseminates promotional material in campus buildings or residence halls can use the following materials. Keep in mind that this program is about reducing waste, so try not to print too much!
The Office of Sustainability has extra campus recycling posters similar to those currently used around campus. If you would like copies of these posters, please contact us and we'd be happy to share them with you.
Recycle ALL appropriate materials
Students, faculty and staff are encouraged participate in the RecycleMania competition by recycling the following materials in existing bins. Occupants in buildings without bottles and cans recycling are encouraged to bring such recyclables to the nearest UIC Recycling building. Read more about materials accepted for recycling at UIC.
Tell us what you think
Contact us and let us know how we can better support recycling at UIC.
More Information about RecycleMania
RecycleMania began in February 2001 when Ed Newman (Ohio University) and Stacey Edmonds (Miami University) decided that something was needed to increase recycling in the residence and dinning halls on their campuses - the idea for RecycleMania was born! During the competition Miami U and Ohio U went head to head to see who could recycle the most. The first year Miami U took home the trophy with 41.2 lbs of material recycled per student. RecycleMania has since been gaining more and more momentum (approximately doubling participation each year).
RecycleMania has grown to a large and friendly competition among college and university recycling programs in the United States that provides the campus community with a fun, proactive activity in waste reduction. Over a 10-week period, campuses compete in different contests to see which institution can collect the largest amount of recyclables per capita, the largest amount of total recyclables, the least amount of trash per capita, or have the highest recycling rate.
The main goal of this event is to increase student awareness of campus recycling and waste minimization. All participating schools are required to report measurements on a weekly basis in pounds. RecycleMania provides many ways to gain recognition, including RecycleMania trophies, awards, and participant certificates. In the end, RecycleMania helps all participating colleges and universities make achievements in recycling and waste reduction!
Updates
The most recent data on RecycleMania will be posted on the RecycleMania Results Pages of this website, and announcements will appear below. Also be sure to check or subscribe to our Blog to stay up-to-date on Sustainability at UIC.