The Eco-Rep program at Castleton University offers students the ability to promote eco-friendly initiatives for sustainability on campus. Established in 2014 as a part of the university’s Green Campus Initiative, the group consists of four representatives who run the school’s recycling program and work with faculty members, facilities, and classmates in order to help the school become a greener environment.
“These guys are the voice that gets people thinking about that,” said Christine Palmer, a Natural Science professor and faculty coordinator for the program.
The members split duties among Castleton’s residence halls, where they are responsible for supervising recycling in their respective buildings and educating fellow classmates on how to recycle properly. They receive a stipend every semester for their work.
Biology Major and Program Coordinator Celine LaRose said that with new students enrolling every year comes new projects to work on. She said they are currently encouraging cleaner recycling to help reduce plastic bag usage and communicating with classmates on how to be more sustainable.
“There’s definitely different aspects of sustainability that we can focus on that keep it more exciting,” LaRose said.
In addition to educating the school about ways to eliminate waste, the Eco-Reps run “Earth Week” every spring. This entails a week full of events including speakers, fundraisers, and competitions between residence halls to increase environmental awareness.
In conjunction with the Green Campus Initiative, the Eco-Reps helped pass sustainable measures on campus including the school’s idling policy, the establishment of neutral temperatures in campus buildings for energy consumption, and the installation of LED lights in the Calvin Coolidge Library to reduce wattage usage. Because faculty members and staff are on board with a greener campus as well, representatives said they that feel their thoughts and ideas are coming into fruition.
“They actually want to make a difference,” LaRose said. “They want to hear what you think should be implemented.”
The program also extends its commitment beyond Castleton’s campus. Representatives said they are currently trying to develop a recycling program at a local elementary school and are encouraging students to vote in March for “Article 50” a measure on the Town of Castleton ballot that would foster climate change solutions in the area.
“It’s to show a community commitment to wanting to improve stormwater infrastructure, get some car charge imports for electric vehicles, and just general sustainable measures,” senior Eco-Rep Drew Hersom said.
Hersom added that he gets a lot out of working with the program, allowing him to meet new people while working independently.
“Since it’s a one-person job, you can really approach it on your own terms,” Hersom said.