Conserve, Reuse, Recycle

Sustainability at Northland goes beyond building designs to the more complex issues of human behavior. Student residence hall competitions seek to reduce energy use. An art course incorporates environmentally-friendly materials. Campus native landscaping reduces the need for watering and mowing, showcasing our northern environment, and provides native seed stock for student projects. Collection basins filter storm water runoff to slow the rate of water moving into neighboring creeks. Chemistry classes check area water quality. Work-study students monitor campus waste and recycling and create educational campaigns to improve our habits. Our cleaning service uses a majority of Green Seal Certified cleaning products in campus buildings.

Recycling is one of the most basic of our sustainable practices. We collect all plastic materials, cans, glass, mixed paper, cardboard, batteries and ink cartridges for recycling. Cell phones are also collected and refurbished through a program called Cell Phones for Soldiers. Food waste is also collected and composted and used items, such as clothing, are collected and placed in The Reuse Center. Northland also hosts an electronics recycling collection event for the community to recycle used electronics responsibly.

Northland is participating in a ten-week inter-college competition called RecycleMania. The goal of the contest is to collect the most recyclables per capita, the most recyclables total, and the least amount of trash per capita or the highest recycling rate. To learn more about Recylcemania visit www.recyclemaiacs.org.

Northland has pledged to organize a post-consumer waste and biodegradable dinnerware composting program, create active programs to educate employees and students about waste minimization practices, and to purchase office equipment with waste prevention in mind. Northland has a goal of becoming a zero waste campus as part of its climate action plan.

To learn more about energy and water conservation, recycling, and The Reuse Center at Northland, download a .pdf version of our Sustainability Tips for Campus Living Brochure.