SU announces ‘Irish Today, Green Forever’ program to promote recycling, reduce bottled water consumption

Melissa Cadwell
(315) 443-9669

On Tuesday, March 17, Syracuse University’s Office of Residence Life, Residence Hall Association and Sustainability Division will launch the “Irish Today, Green Forever” program, designed to increase the sustainable behavior of the on-campus student population by increasing recycling tonnage in the residence halls and decreasing bottled water consumption on campus. This program is in response to increased student interest in sustainability and helping the campus become climate neutral. Through participation in this program, students can take an active role in the future of their campus and learn lifelong tools for use after graduation.

As part of “Irish Today, Green Forever,” the recycling/landfill rooms in the SU residence halls-beginning with pilot rooms located on several floors of Booth Hall-will have newly painted green doors and new posters and labels about how and what can be recycled to encourage students to take time to separate trash from recyclables and dispose of everything properly. Over the summer, all residence hall recycling/landfill rooms will receive a fresh coat of green paint and newly printed posters and labels. The process is taking place with the help and coordination of Kathleen Farrell, housekeeping manager; Andrew Tassini, maintenance manager; and the Onondaga County Resource Recovery Agency.

The “Irish Today, Green Forever” program also includes a water taste test in collaboration with University Food Services on March 17 at the Hildegarde and J. Myer Schine Student Center from 10 a.m.-1:30 p.m. and the Goldstein Student Center from 7:30-9 p.m. Students can taste both bottled water and tap water (provided by area lakes) to find out which is preferred. Students can also show their sustainability pride by wearing one of the four newly designed “Be Orange, Think Green” stickers.

For more information on the “Irish Today, Green Forever” campaign, visit SU’s Sustainability Division website at http://greenuniversecity.syr.edu/. For more information on what is recyclable in Onondaga County, visit http://www.ocrra.org/recycling_bluebins.asp.