A sustainability report released by Augustana College in 2021 reports the work that has been done and that Augustana continues to do with recycling. According to the report, the goals were to increase the number of recycling pickups, add two yard-sized dumpsters, and to create new recycling locations.

Augie is currently an environment-friendly college where most of the waste is recycled. Bins can be found everywhere, from classrooms, to restrooms, to residential halls. 

Kai Swanson, special assistant to the president, handles many of the environmental protocols on campus. He says recycling is a great way to deal with waste. 

“There are macro-level things that can be done at the institutional level. However, there are also individual things and the fact of the matter is a campus community like ours, the people who make it up change every single year,” Swanson said.

One such “macro-level” way to deal with recycling includes the use of second-hand electronics. 

“In the spring of 2020 when we had to go on COVID separation and some students did not have adequate laptops or devices. So giving laptops and devices to students was a way to recycle some of that stuff and get it into the hands of people who could use it,” said Swanson. “Nothing is simply thrown away. As new devices are added the old ones have to be discarded in a proper way.”

The Gerber Center is an area of the college that produces both degradable and biodegradable waste. The waste includes lots of big containers, cans, tins, cardboard, plastic papers, spoons and leftover food. 

There are around 4,000 transactions a day going on in the different dining locations, which create a lot of opportunities to recycle. 

Director of Dining Services Fred Kurt said that dining services work to be as sustainable as possible. One way is by making recycled materials more compact and easy to transport. 

“We specifically have a cardboard baler, which compacts the cardboard as tight as possible. We get about four of those in a week,” Kurt said. 

Augustana is currently making positive strides to improve how it recycles. This is partially because President Andrea Talentino is concerned about this issue. 

“One of the things that we’re doing is, President Talentino would like to restart a campus conversation. So not just any one department but the entire campus community needs to work on how we can do a better job at it as a community,” Swanson said.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), recycling reduces the amount of waste that is sent to landfills and incinerators, and is helpful in preserving natural resources like timber, water, and minerals.

Despite its importance, some workers at the college believe there is more work to do with waste management.

“I will say recycling gets a little disappointing when we go outside of dining. And I don’t think people take recycling to heart and they cross-contaminate the product. Our facilities people end up just throwing it in the garbage because it’s contaminated,” Kurt said.  

While the system isn’t perfect, efforts are still being made in the Gerber Center. Assistant Manager of the dining center Brian Stone said the department is still recycling high amounts of products.

“I do feel pretty confident that within the Dining Center, we’re capturing probably 95 percent of our possible recycled product,” Stone said. 

Beyond recycling food waste, the college is also making an effort to offer more sustainable dining ware. Rather than throwing away plastic that doesn’t decompose, alternatives are being offered.

“The silverware spoons, forks, and knives we use are not plastic, it’s made out of potato starch,”  Swanson said. “If it does wind up in a landfill, it will break down and so that’s what an institution can do.”

Students take a lot more food in the dining hall than they need. This can prove frustrating to consumption and sustainability for food waste.

“I still get a little bit concerned when I see students piling up a plate overflowing and then having two nibbles and then putting it down to the aisle,” Swanson said. “Who does that help? I don’t get it.” 

However, some students do say they work on being mindful of what they can recycle, to avoid waste. 

“I have four waste bins in my room, one is for recycling and three of them are for other trash which cannot be recycled. The three bins go to the dumping zone whereas the other one is recycled,” First-Year Lesli Gamez said. 

Students should also contribute to making Augustana a healthy, clean, and environmentally friendly zone. It’s our responsibility and a small act can change a huge difference in society, according to Swanson.

“We have to be careful about what we consume and what we dispose of, if we don’t consume as much, then we don’t have as much to dispose of in the first place,” Swanson said.