As part of the University’s effort to become a more sustainable Grounds, the Office for Sustainability sponsors the Reusable Office Supply Exchange as a resource to reuse school supplies.
The ROSE program is an initiative that works to keep reusable office supplies out of landfills and reintroduce them back into other office usage, Recycling Programs Superintendent Sonny Beale said in an email statement.
“It is offered, free, to our U.Va. students, staff and faculty, as well as local nonprofit organizations and schools with supplies that would normally go to a landfill,” Beale said.
While this program was started in 1998 and was based on a similar program at the University of Oregon, the University has added to its sustainability program in recent years and expanded programs like ROSE.
“In U.Va.’s recently-launched Sustainability Plan, U.Va. committed to significantly reducing the amount of waste generated as well as the amount of waste sent to landfills,” Andrea Trimble, director of the Office for Sustainability, said in an email statement. “We need everyone’s help in achieving these goals, to protect resources for this generation and generations to come.”
The program not only serves as a source of recycling at the University, but also has many supplies that students, staff and faculty might need for the upcoming school year. All supplies are free to take and are all donated to the program.
“Our shelves carry three-ring binders of many sizes, hanging file folders, desk organizers, pens, pencils, markers, staplers, paper clips, envelopes, sometimes paper, hole punchers and other reusable office supplies,” Beale said.
The sustainability department is striving now for more awareness about its programs to allow them to improve on the standard set by the green initiative from the University.
“The help ROSE needs or could use is increased awareness of material usage,” Beale said.
Every department, as well as all staff and students, can take part in sustainable practices by either reducing what is used or reusing items until they are not useable, Beale said.
The Office for Sustainability also wants people to become aware of how they can buy and use supplies in an environmentally-friendly way.
“Some ways to help include purchasing new items only when necessary, reusing materials and products, reducing food waste, properly sorting recyclable and compostable materials and being an advocate to help others do the same,” Trimble said.
The office wants all students to take advantage of this opportunity and reuse old school materials.
The warehouse of supplies is located on Leake Drive on the left behind the Astronomy and ROTC buildings. It is open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m.-3 p.m.
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