IU Bloomington Greenest Floor Challenge sees record number of rooms certified
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- The second year of Indiana University Bloomington’s Greenest Floor Challenge saw the certification of 525 student rooms through the Green Room Certification Program, an increase from just 200 rooms certified from last year’s competition.
"We have been very impressed with the student interest in the Green Room Certification Program this year," said Emilie Rex, assistant director of sustainability for IU Bloomington. "I think we’re seeing a real commitment to sustainable living among residents and resident advisors who are helping support the program within the halls."
Run concurrently with IU’s Energy Challenge, the Greenest Floor Challenge rewards the floor in each residence center that certifies the highest percentage of occupied beds. Thirteen floors will receive a pizza party funded by the Office of Sustainability and Residential Programs and Services' Academic Initiatives and Services Committee.
Special congratulations go to the sixth floor of Clark Wing in Read Residence Center, where 90.5 percent of the students certified their rooms. Results are as follows:
- Read Residence Center, Clark 6, 90.5 percent
- Wright Residence Center, Hall 1, 84.6 percent
- Foster Residence Center, Martin 2, 65.4 percent
- McNutt Residence Center, Crone Basement, 54.5 percent
- Briscoe Residence Center, Gucker 2, 52.9 percent
- Teter Residence Center, Elkin 3, 50 percent
- Forest Residence Center, West 3, 39.6 percent
- Collins Living-Learning Center, Hillcrest 2, 37.5 percent
- Eigenmann Residence Center, 10th floor, 34.1 percent
- Willkie Residence Center, South 8, 10.7 percent
- Ashton Residence Center, Vos 2, 8.6 percent
- Union Street Center, Birch 3, 4.2 percent
- Rose Avenue Residence Hall, North 4, 3.8 percent
"I’m so proud of the students who took the time to make a difference and live more sustainably," said Rachel Joseph, Greenest Floor Challenge coordinator and sustainability intern. "Even though students were competing against each other to win the challenge, they were effectively working together to make IU a greener university."
Beginning Oct. 7, students living in the residence halls had four weeks to meet a minimum of 20 out 47 "green criteria" and officially certify their rooms through the Green Room Certification Program. With eight categories of criteria, residents had diverse opportunities to incorporate sustainability behaviors into their daily routines. Criteria categories include energy; water; transportation; reducing, reusing and recycling; computing; laundry; and involvement.
Individuals had the opportunity to choose from criteria such as taking the stairs instead of the elevator, using no-carbon transportation to get around town and campus, and using cold-water wash settings when doing laundry. By the end of the first week, 188 residents had certified their rooms.
"I hadn’t considered turning off the shower while lathering my hair. Everyone knows that you should turn off the sink while brushing your teeth, but I didn’t think that it applied anywhere else," first-year student and Collins resident Jennifer Baumgartner said when asked what she learned through the certification process. She said activities such as the Green Room Certification Program "raise student awareness, and we’re the next generation that’s being affected by environmental issues. It’s our time to be responsible."
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Collins resident Jennifer Baumgartner, one of 525 IU Bloomington students who certified their rooms through the Green Room Certification Program this fall, poses with her reusable water bottle and bag.
Media Contacts
Emilie Rex
- IU Bloomington Office of Sustainability
- Office 812-855-2678
- ekrex@indiana.edu