VOLUME 9
Bright Green News
October 2009
IN THIS ISSUE
 Sustainability in the News
 Sustainability Week at the Resi-
dence Halls– Nov 2-6
 Buying Local in Berkeley
 Re-Used Stuff Emporium– Free
Exchange of Goods on Campus!
 Engineering Joins Tap Water
Bandwagon
 Creative Alternative Transpor-
tation: Longboarding on Campus
 Keep FOG out the Drain & Bay
The
Office
Update
 On Friday, October 23rd the
Office of Sustainability is
moving to the campus A&E
Building - Room 203. The
mail code is 1382. All other
contact information will
remain the same.
 Please encourage your friends
and colleagues to join our list
serve.
 Become a fan of our Facebook
Page!
Contact us:
Sustainability@berkeley.edu
Meet Our Sustainability
Team!
Check out our website:
http://sustainability.berkeley.edu
The Campus Sustainability Newsletter
S u s t a i n a b i l i t y i n t h e N ew s
UC Berkeley students, faculty, and
staff make an innumerable amount
of sustainability efforts daily. Lately,
this has caused multiple news
sources to take notice. Covering
stories about waste diversion to
highlighting
positive steps
made by the
College of
Chemistry,
media outlets
are vouching
for UC Berke-
ley’s dedication
to be green.
Here are some
October high-
lights:
“A Moving
Photo credit: David Wilson
Story” featured by UC
Berkeley News
UC Berkeley’s Marchant Building
has been acting as a warehouse for
over 20 years, housing an array of
items from old issues of the New
York Times to a large bear statue,
but the day of reckoning has finally
come.
UC Berkeley’s Moving and Event
Services unit has been given a diffi-
cult task of figuring out what items
belong to who and what to do with
them; but with the aid of student
group ReUSE, eight huge truck-
loads of items have been donated
to various local nonprofits.
With still so much left over, Moving
and Event Services is now selling
un-claimed items to the public
through Cal Overstock and Sur-
plus. Don’t miss out on their free-
give away day on Friday, October “College of Chemistry Steers
23, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Course to Sustainable
Marchant Building, 6701 San Pablo 'Green' Chemistry” featured
Ave. in Berkeley. Look forward to
by UC Berkeley News
free office supplies, tables, chairs,
and desks. The College of Chemistry has
teamed
To read “A Moving
with other
Story,” click here.
UC Berke-
ley col-
“A Growing Passion” leges to
featured in The create the
Monthly new
A regional magazine re- Photo credit: Michael Barnes
cently highlighted several
Berkeley Center for Green Chem-
notable Berkeley sustain-
istry. This marks the first program
ability stars. Senior Irene
in the country to focus on a multid-
Seliverstov and Junior
isciplinary approach to green chem-
Sarah Cowen were recog-
nized for their dedication
istry. The College has also ap-
pointed Alexis T. Bell as the Dow
to campus waste reduction, while
Chair in Sustainability and is plan-
Campus Refuse and Recycling Man-
ager Lisa Bauer was noted as a
ning to redesign its curriculum and
labs for undergraduate chemistry
leader in shaping and envisioning
courses to stress sustainability.
campus sustainability efforts. Cal
Dining director Sean LaPean and
To read the Green Chemistry
assistant director Michael Laux are
article, click here.
also men-
tioned for
“Master Planning for Sus-
greening up
tainability” featured by Cam-
food opera-
pus Ecology
tions in
regards to All around the country, universi-
the con- ties are shaping their master
struction of plans around the idea of sustain-
Crossroads ability. For Berkeley, this means a
dining commitment from top adminis-
Photo credit: David Wilson
com- trators to make sustainability a
mon and increasing amount of or- priority and to give an opportunity
ganic food being offered. to individual groups to initiate new
ideas.
To read “A Growing To read “Master Planning for
Passion,” click here. Sustainability,” click here.
Article by Vickie Ly
 Bright Green News VOLUME 9 October 2009

S u s t a i n a b i l i t y We e k a t t h e R e s i d e n c e H a l l s – N ov 2 - 6
The Residential Sustainability cerns caused by through Thursday, November 2-5. the event outside the Crossroads
Program (RSP), a student-run pro- our consumer RSP will be educating residents Dining Common on Monday and
gram in the campus residence halls, is culture - like the about the environmental impacts of Friday, and outside the Cafe 3 Din-
a dedicated group of coordinators use of millions of plastic water bottles, ing Common on Wednesday.
and volunteers who aim to promote plastic water raffling off free reusable In addition to selling and swap-
sustainable living through peer edu- bottles and barely water bottles, as well as ping clothing (donated by
cation. RSP's annual Sustainability worn articles of clothing that end up selling them for cheap. ReUse), RSP will also be giving
Week will take place during the first in landfills. The events will also focus So come score a free water bottle, away free in-room recycling boxes.
week of November, starting on Mon- on solutions to address these issues some FREE FOOD, and learn about Students will be able to trade in
day, 11/2. This year's theme by educating and encouraging recy- why you should RETHINK before their used clothing or donate
is "RETHINK before you drink! RE- cling and waste diversion. you drink! money in exchange for the clothes
DUCE before you REUSE!" on display. So come shop with RSP,
If you live in the residence halls – The Clothing Swaparama/
grab a free recycling box, and learn
RSP will be hosting events through- check out these events: Recycling Box Giveaway will
why you should REDUCE before
out the week to bring awareness to take place from 5pm-8pm on Mon-
The Water Bottle Campaign will you REUSE!
and shed light on some of today's day (11/2), Wednesday (11/4), and
take place in the Unit 3 courtyard,
most pressing environmental con- Friday (11/6). RSP will be holding Click here for more info.
near Cafe 3, from 6pm-8pm, Monday
Article by Elizabeth Chan
B u y i n g L o c a l i n B e r ke l e y
What does it mean to buy local? Does local cused on farmers Want to buy local fruit, vegeta-
mean within 10 miles, 20 and food, but also bles, and flowers? Check out the
miles, or 30 miles? At the advocates the deliv-
grocery chain An- ery of fresher foods Berkeley’s Farmers’ Market!
dronico’s, there are small with longer shelf
LOCATIONS AND HOURS:
tags next to items the lives, supporting
chain considers “local.” endangered family (All year round, rain or shine)
For Andronico’s, an farms, safeguarding Saturdays 10 a.m. - 3 p.m.
heirloom tomato one’s health by buy- Center Street @ M. L. King, Jr. Way
grown in Win- ing pesticide-free
ters, CA Tuesdays 2 p.m. - 7 p.m.
foods, and shorten-
Derby Street @ M. L. King, Jr. Way
(approximately ing miles and energy to transport the
60 miles away food to one’s plate. Buying local calls Thursdays 3 p.m. - 7
from Berkeley) is local. However, the Buy for one’s own discretion for there are different p.m.
Local Berkeley campaign calls a restaurant local ways of measuring how “local” a business, item, or All Organic
if it is a "locally owned and independently oper- Shattuck Avenue @ Rose
food is.
ated business,” without regulating whether or Street
not the restaurant sources its food locally. The Using the Buy Fresh Buy Local website, find farms,
Buy Fresh Buy Local Campaign, a project of the groceries, bakeries, restaurants and more that are
Community Alliance with Family Farmers, helps close by and provide local foods. And yes, there are
consumers find local products by zip code and farm fresh foods grown and sold near Berkeley! Here
distance, ranging from 10 to 200 miles. The are a few close by
word local is so broad that the meaning of sources:
“buying local” varies from person to person,
locality to locality. Nonetheless, there are
City Slicker Farms Buy a local
1448 16th Street
reasons and benefits to buying local. pumpkin this
Oakland, CA 94607
(510) 763-4241 year!
According to Buy Local Berkeley cam-
Available at Berkeley’s
paign, buying local will keep dollars in the
Farmers’ Market.
community, foster uniqueness, create local People’s Grocery
jobs, help the environment through less trans- 3236 Market Street #103
portation and energy usage, and invest in en- Oakland, CA 94607
trepreneurship. The campaign originally fo- (510) 652-7607
Article by Joanna Young

Page 2

R e - U s e d S t u f f E m p o r i u m - Fre e E x c h a n ge o f G o o d s o n C a m p u s !
Reusing is the perhaps
the simplest and easi-
est way to reduce
your consumption.
The beauty of reusing
is that it requires no
re-processing and
allows us to save
money, energy, labor,
and resources. On campus, ReUse is working
diligently to divert trash from landfills and put
useful items into new hands.
ReUSE (Re-Used Stuff Emporium) is a student
run initiative that is dedicated to ex-
actly what their name describes—
reusing! ReUse has been a part of the
campus Refuse and Recycling program
for ten years. It acts as a system for
students, faculty, and staff to exchange
free items, including ReUse stations in
numerous campus buildings and special
annual events. Currently, ReUSE is
working on a website to create an
online exchange similar to the widely-used
“Craig’s List.” It’s name is to be determined, but
is temporarily referred to as the “Online Materi-
als Exchange.” The development of this new
program is funded by an internship grant from the
Chancellor’s Advisory Committee on Sustainabil-
ity (CACS).
“We’re basically looking for a format similar to
Craig’s List, but it’s going to be limited to people
E n g i n e e r i n g Jo i n s Ta p Wa t e r B a n d w ag o n
Got water? You bet!
Plenty of clean, delicious H2O
flows to faucets and spigots
throughout the UC Berkeley
campus every day, sourced from
Sierra Nevada snowmelt and
processed by East Bay Municipal
Utility District. But the campus
still consumes more than 2 mil-
lion beverages in plastic contain- Tap water activists Alison Powell (left) and should be doing every
ers—only half of which get recy- Sylvia Bierhuis, at their water station in day,” says Alison Pow-
McLaughlin, are doing their part to minimize ell, explaining how she
cled—each year.
the College of Engineering’s environmental
The College of Engineering
Dean’s Office is one of many departments to
join the “I ♥ Tap Water” campaign, sponsored
by four campus units and funded by The Green
Bright Green News
associated to UC Berkeley [students, professors,
and staff]. It’s mostly to reclaim value within UC
Berkeley…I think that makes it a little bit safer
and supports the community at UC Berkeley, “
says ReUSE Manager Junior Sarah Cowan.
The website will act as a virtual interface where
people can search for an item and directly con-
tact the person who posted the advertisement.
ReUse will also post items, but the website
would place most of the responsibility on the
parties involved in the transaction. To access the
online exchange, one will have to use a Berkeley
email address.
The prospect
of the project
is exciting for
ReUSE and
the campus
community.
Cowan hopes
to add a fea-
ture to esti-
mate the total amount of trash that is diverted
from landfills. Though the plans are not finalized,
she is considering asking users to estimate the
weight or value of their listed item(s). “The great
thing about doing things online is that it opens
doors to what ReUSE can’t do alone,” Cowan
notes. ReUSE is aiming to have the project run-
ning by the end of spring 2010 semester, just in
time for student move-outs.
Initiative Fund. The goal
is to convince the cam-
pus community that tap
water is better than
bottled for our health
and the environment.
“Since we’re the Col-
lege of Engineering, this
is the kind of thing we
and colleague Sylvia
footprint.
Bierhuis got involved.
Both are development associates, certified meet-
ing planners and self-confessed “big personalities”
who are enlisting their colleagues to join them in
VOLUME 9 October 2009
Besides concentrat-
ing on this project,
ReUSE also held
their annual
“Second Chance
Clothing Sale” this
month that diverted
an estimated 700
pounds of waste. At
the end of last year,
ReUSE provided
each of the resident
halls with donation
bins to collect unwanted clothing. Volunteers
sorted the items into categories during the sum-
mer and then put them out for sale during Octo-
ber. Each item for sale was priced below $3,
with shirts and jeans going for $1.
As ReUSE Assistant Manager Sophomore Kim
Lam said, “Everything is really cheap because the
main goal is to find a home for everything, not
really to make a profit. Most of the things being
thrown out were in really good condition; so
why not provide it back to students at a low
price?”
If you would like to volunteer, help monitor
your own ReUse station, or donate items, email
reuse_contact@lists.berkeley.edu for more
details.
Article by Vickie Ly
Photo credit: Kira Stoll
hydrating offices and meetings with tap water to
conserve resources and minimize waste.
“We spend $1.25 per bottle for beverages at
events,” Bierhuis says. “And you end up with all
this waste because people drink half the bottle
and leave it on the table.” She is now filling pitch-
ers from the kitchen sink and setting out com-
postable cups rather than rows of bottled water.
“If you cut up an orange in there,” she adds, “it’s
even better!”
For more on the campaign or to take the tap
water pledge, click here.
Article and Photo by Patti Meagher
Page 3
 Bright Green News VOLUME 9 October 2009

C re a t i ve A l t e r n a t i ve Tr a n s p o r t a t i o n : L o n g b o a rd i n g o n C a m p u s
Observe longboarders on campus and feel the aiming to unite longboard-
exhilaration of this new low-impact alternative ers around campus. Coordi-
transportation. Whether you are a seasoned nator Carson Lee takes
longboarder or a curious by-stander, understand- pride in how longboarding
ing UC Berkeley’s longboarding presence and not only facilitates transpor-
campus policies for wheeled transportation will tation to and from class but
enhance everyone’s experience. also builds strength in the
calf and quadriceps muscles.
Longboard skateboards—different from
“Longboarding is a creative
shortboards used for
expression in which Map showing the Dismount Zone on UCB Campus.
ollies and 360 flips—
people can ‘dance’
are becoming a trendy
with tricks and leisurely cruise.” Lee high-  Walk, don’t board, through the Dismount
form of transportation.
lights how Berkeley has some really nice Zone: In the area of Sproul and Dwinelle
Often compared to
spots to skate; for example, the long, smooth Plazas, riding and rolling is prohibited dur-
surfing on concrete,
flat spot near the Campanile makes for idyllic ing peak periods of pedestrian traffic –
longboards are longer
transportation. between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m., Monday through
and wider than most
Friday.
skateboards, which However, the campus does not offer ideal
produces a fluid mo- skateboarding locations everywhere. Safety is UCPD Sergeant Andrew Tucker encourages
tion ideal for transpor- key, and campus policy lays the foundation slowing down and being courteous to all in or-
tation. Advocate and for responsible riding. Longboards, as well as der to best address our limited campus space.
second year under- scooters, skates, bicycles, and skateboards Tucker is optimistic about hosting alternative
graduate Dominic need to follow the same laws as motor vehi- forms of transportation on campus as long as
Molinari urges that Second Year Dominic Molinari cles. First and foremost, to pay attention to people respect one another.
longboarding is here doesn’t ride in the Dismount Zone pedestrians—and give them the right-of-way.
to stay because stu- but has his longboard nearby. Also to stay on designated paths and road- Ready to cruise? Contact Longboard Connection
dents can conven- ways and help keep the campus landscape at Berkeley student group coordinator Carson
iently ride to class without having to figure out and built environment pristine. Lee to see if longboarding is for you and to con-
where to park it securely. Molinari, who walks nect with longboard riding classes and other
A few additional rules to keep in mind and practice: practical and creative advice.
into his classes with his personalized board in
hand, has embraced the longboard convenience.  When crossing campus, no one should travel
faster than safe conditions permit. The speed Article by Nicole Campbell
Longboarders are devoted - the Longboard
Connection at Berkeley is a student organization on campus paths is 5 mph within 10 feet of a
pedestrian and 10 mph elsewhere.

Ke e p F O G o u t o f t h e D r a i n & B ay CORRECTION:
September 2009
As you clean up after streets. What happens next?
Newsletter Waste
special meals, re- The over-flowing wastewa-
member that many ter can get into the storm Reduction 101 article:
of the holiday sea- water system and pass into We mis-
son’s delights contain San Francisco Bay un-
stated that
fats, oils and grease treated, polluting our envi-
the
(FOG) that may cling ronment. Pain in the drain
campus’s
to your sewer line can be avoided with a little
Find out more about how to keep waste
and cause a sewer backup. Pain in the help from you - pollutants – FOG and more – out
drain can be avoided with a little help keep your kitchen diversion
of the drains and the Bay:
from you. Scraping plates, pots and FOG – including rate was 57%, including
http://www.ebmud.com/wastewater/
pans before washing or loading the dairy products and construction waste, in 2008.
residential_pollution_prevention/
dishwasher not only reduces water olive oil – out of In fact, the campus waste
consumption, but also avoids FOG. the drain. diversion rate was 95%!
Article Credit: East Bay Municipal
FOG clogs the pipes and causes sani-
Utility District (EBMUD)
tary sewer overflows in neighborhood

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