First Year Sustainability Bags (Fall 2019)

In Fall 2019, first-year Pitt students got a bag stuffed with sustainability goodies to help them join our culture of sustainability and lead by example.

The University of Pittsburgh supports a culture of sustainability where all members of our community lead by example. In Fall 2019, the campus-wide Pitt Sustainability team helped ~3,800 on-campus first-year students get started on their sustainability journey with reusable gift bags containing a number of items to support sustainable campus living.

Inside the 2019 First-Year BYO [Bag]s (which reduce plastic bag use by 95%), are: 

  • A reusable mug, BYO[Mug]!
  • Reusable bamboo cutlery set
  • Choose to Reuse program information, including how to get a reusable to-go container for free!
  • Healthy Ride partnership information related to first-year undergraduate student bike share access and utilization.

Did you know? 

  • Whether you’re a student, staff, of faculty, you can order your meal in a reusable container at participating dining locations across campus — and your first is free!  Use your Pitt ID to claim your first container at participating campus food locations  by asking for a reusable container when you order, exchanging your used container at any Choose to Reuse machine for a token, then exchange that token for another clean container the next time you order a meal!
  • More than 12,000 disposable mugs are used on campus each week — and none are recyclable. You read that right. Hot coffee cups are NOT recyclable. Cold, clear plastic coffee cups are. Learn what CAN be recycled on campus!
  • Plastic cutlery cannot be recycled.  Learn what CAN be recycled on campus!
  • Single-use plastic bags cost 25 cents at stores across campus. Wait, what? Why?  Read about it here!
  • 3 to 5% of all Pitt commuters bike to work?  Looking to hop on your bike to get to Pitt?  Learn more!

Special thanks to the Pitt departments and offices that supported the 2019 First-Year Sustainability Bags!

TAGS: equity & access , Teaching & Learning ,