By Valeree Catangay, Anna Thomas, Zachary Alter, Alicia Kwan, Owen Emerson, and David Zeng. Edited by Melissa Ikeda.
The 2018 Sustainability Action Zero Waste Events Team is wasting no time analyzing how events on UCLA’s campus can be more sustainable. Check out what they’ve been up to in the first few weeks of their project!
Week 2: Hitting The Ground Running
Zero Waste Team wasting no time hanging together! The team is working on developing our research focus and project ideas.
And we made the agenda! The team’s first meeting with our fabulous stakeholder at UCLA Recreation, Katie Zeller.
Week 3: Having Fun While Getting Work Done!
We haven’t wasted any time getting silly and down to business on our Ze r o Wa st e events strategy!
Week 4: Getting Down To Business
No messing around here, working hard on narrowing our focus for our research!
Team bonding over the amazing blue blood moon.
Week 5: The Research Begins
Kicking off our event observations at Pauley Pavilion! For the next few weeks, we’ll be exploring different types of events and examining their waste patterns. Shout out to UCLA Women’s Basketball for their win against USC!
Zero snacks wasted from our apartments! While putting together our project proposal, we held a snack potluck at our latest team meeting.
Week 6: Networking
We’re dead serious, waste has got to go. Zach is optimistic about the future though. Currently in meeting updating each other on latest event learnings/observations and stakeholder meetings.
Can’t hold in the excitement because we’re finally going to talk to Asucla catering on campus who could potentially make a huge impact on event waste. We are figuring out contacts at this meeting and drafting questions to ask them.
Week 7: Strategizing
Huddle for Zero Waste Event Strategizing!
Zero Wasted Time! On our way to the next meeting
Week 8: Overcoming obstacles
Important lesson learned today; not to get too discouraged. With many changes and challenges, the team is still excited to make an impact.
Team bonding on the hill after this week’s meeting. Being mindful and making sure to take only what we need and reduce food waste at the dining halls!
Week 9: Shooting for the Stars!
Weekly team meeting- discussing our plan of action for the week and creating a list of questions for each stakeholder we were meeting for the week.
After a long day of meetings with ASUCLA catering and a staff member from Anderson, we are still able to channel some energy into our creative activity of making trash into art. Speaking of creativity, here’s a photo of our group in space-we’re always shooting for the stars!
Week 10: Midterm presentations!
We love each other, we love our new stakeholder Erin, and we love that we’re heading into spring quarter ready to tackle zero waste!
Read more about the Zero Waste Event Team’s mission on their Project Page. To check out other current and past SAR teams, visit the “Our Work” page, and don’t forget to give our Facebook page a “like” to keep up to date with what we’re up to!