Campus Dining: a Hotbed for Sustainability Research and Course Work

1. Campus Dining: a Hotbed for Sustainability Research and Course Work Enid Cardinal, Senior Sustainability Advisor Scott Vadney, General Manager Grace Watson Dining Hall

2. Workshop Overview • Introduction and overview of RIT • Dining operations, past projects and a big vision • Using student research projects and project based learning • Sustainability Officer’s role • Current study: Packaging and Sustainability. • What’s next? • Engaging dining services • Q & A

3. RIT at a Glance 17,950 students 3,753 faculty/staff 1300 Acres (180 acres of federally protected wetlands) 5,742,730 ft2 9 Colleges

4. Sustainability Highlights • Golisano Institute for Sustainability • NYS Pollution Prevention Institute • Climate Commitment • Rochester City Scholars Program • LEED buildings • FSC Certified Print Shop • Dr. Destler’s electric vehicle challenge • Banning bottled water

5. Dining operations, past projects and a big vision

6. Dining Operations • 19 Facilities on campus generating $30 million in revenue • Self-operated, non-union department reporting to Finance VP • One 800-seat board facility • 560K meals, sales > $5 million • 35 FTE, 264 student employees working average 10,000 hours/month

7. BHAG Zero Waste Facility

8. Source Reduction • Trayless Dining • Reusable to-go containers • Eliminated 94,000 disposables annually • Composting • Recycling

9. Feed Hungry People 5 Tons of food donated to local soup kitchens!

10. advancing the vision through project based learning

11. How Dining Supports the Educational Mission • Blessed Facility • Engage Students, who then engage other students • Made it a goal on FT staff review

12. Moving Gracie’s closer to a Zero Waste goal Integrating curriculum and research for sustainability:The Gracies’ Project

13. To reduce waste, you need to know what you are throwing out 17,000 Students enrolled– I needed 20.

14. The Role of the Sustainability Officer

15. People Planet Economy Triple bottom line People – social performance Planet – environmental stewardship Economy - Prosperity

16. Aspirations Values Passion Nurturing the learner’s personal triple bottom line Passion – what resonates with them Values – what do they want to contribute Aspirations – how do they want to contribute

17. Pedagogical model • Accompany the students on their learning journey • Create a safe environment for exchange and transparency • Make the information come to life • Make time for reflection • Encourage discovery singularly and in a group

18. The Assignment

19. What’s Next? Can it be upcycled?

20. Engaging dining services

21. Your Typical Dining Director • Global view of department • Willing to engage other departments • Cost conscious • May have some preliminary idea on how to begin

22. Your Typical Dining Unit Manager • Understaffed • Budget Constrained • Time Crunched • Pulled in multiple directions.

23. Can You Help Me?

24. Your Homework • Begin with the end in mind • Offer to meet between 2-4 • Buy a meal. Have lunch there • Talk to your students

25. Questions?

26. Scott Vadney General Manager, Grace Watson Dining Hall Rochester Institute of Technology 585-475-2049 savfsg@rit.edu Enid L. Cardinal, LEED AP Senior Sustainability Advisor to the President Rochester Institute of Technology 585-475-7942 Enid.Cardinal@rit.edu