Residents of Lothrop Hall now have a unique opportunity to help reduce waste on-campus just by doing their laundry. Starting in February 2024, Pitt Housing is piloting a zero waste refillable laundry sheet dispenser from Generation Conscious. The dispenser eliminates consumer packaging and the sheets are made without water, reducing the waste and carbon impact of laundry on campus – and best of all, it’s currently available for free to Lothrop Hall residents from a laundry room dispenser.

Evolving from a student project in Pitt’s GEOL 1333: Sustainability course, Emily Gagliardi explains,

“We saw a sustainable laundry project as an excellent opportunity to make progress towards the 2018 Pitt Sustainability Plan’s Health & Well-being, Equity & Access, and Materials & Waste impact areas. We wanted to educate students about decreasing their laundry-related carbon emissions while expanding access to sustainable hygiene products. By switching to a sustainable laundry detergent, students can avoid exposure to synthetic polymers, microplastics, and excess water polluting our environment.”

After exploring several vendors, students recommended the University partner with Generation Conscious based on their product and mission to build a cleaner world by enabling a zero waste reality for all.

Generation Conscious laundry detergent sheets produce 50 to 70% fewer carbon emissions than other laundry detergents, helping eliminate plastic packaging and water use. Under the Housing pilot, the nontoxic, hypoallergenic, and cruelty-free laundry sheets are available for free to the more than 700 students living in Lothrop Hall.

Generation Conscious is a certified minority-owned business enterprise, started by CEO and Founder G.L. who grew up near a waste transfer station in Jamaica, Queens, New York City. Seeing the health impacts of the waste station on his community motivated him to found Generation Conscious. In 2023, Generation Conscious won a “Reusie” award for Most Innovative Reuse Company in the Consumer Packaged Goods category.

The Lothrop Hall Zero Waste Laundry Sheet Pilot was funded by both Pitt Green Fund and a Year of Emotional Wellbeing grant. Pitt Green Fund supports student-initiated projects that advance campus sustainability. As part of this pilot, two Lothrop Hall residents also work for Generation Conscious as product managers, refilling the laundry dispenser and engaging with residents and Pitt Housing about the program. Students who don’t live in Lothrop can still support zero waste initiatives with their detergent choices and purchase directly from Generation Conscious or other laundry sheet vendors. 

Over two semesters, a total of seven Pitt students contributed to the project, including: Breighan Burke (Environmental Science), Lydia Ciani (Environmental Science), Emily Gagliardi (Environmental Science), Emily Greenland (Environmental Studies), Rhyan Lewis (Environmental Studies), Gillian Schwartz (Environmental Science), and Delaney Wright (Political Science & Environmental Studies).

Pitt Housing has a number of other sustainability initiatives, including the Pitt Green Resident program, and Pitt EcoReps. A number of Pitt residence halls have also been undergoing lighting retrofits that will reduce energy consumption, including Irvis Hall, Litchfield Towers, Panther Hall, and the Schenley Quad dorms.