Hey, Recyclemaniacs! It’s that time of year again—time to pitch in and recycle your bottles, cans and paper.

For the past six years, Temple has been an award-winning finalist in RecycleMania, an intercollegiate competition to promote waste-reduction activities. This year’s goal is to collect 415,000 pounds of recycled material before March 29.

Temple Athletics kicked off the competition Jan. 29 by hosting its first-ever Zero Waste Game in the Liacouras Center. All vendor items were 100-percent compostable or recyclable, and Zero Waste stations were set up throughout the concourse. Volunteers assisted fans with the waste-sorting process, and the Computer Recycling Center sponsored a T-shirt giveaway.

Now, with spring break just around the corner,  the Office of Sustainability encourages the Temple community to complete a paper purge before the Recyclemania deadline.
“Staff and faculty can play a big part of Temple’s success in RecycleMania by hosting a paper purge during spring break,” says Kathleen Grady, director of sustainability. “It is a great way to get rid of unnecessary paper files, old promotional materials and other paper clutter.” Those interested in hosting a paper purge can contact the Office of Sustainability for promotional materials and directions on handling large amounts of recyclables.

Other eligible materials include catalogs, books, junk mail, magazines, newspapers, phone books and all varieties of office paper; bottles and cans; and cardboard, including boxes, boxboard and chipboard. For the first time this year, electronics recycled through the Computer Recycling Center between March 1 and March 28 will count toward Temple’s Recyclemania goal.

And, periodically during March, Office of Sustainability staff members will head out on campus to catch those who are recycling or performing other “green” activities, such as filling up their water bottles. Owls who are caught “green-handed” will be rewarded with a Zero Waste T-shirt.

To learn more about Recyclemania, visit the Office of Sustainability’s website.