Eco-Reps 2006: First Reflection
Thinking on your first week, what was your biggest challenge getting started as an Eco-Rep? What would have made the process easier/better?
posted by UVM Eco-Reps Program Coordinator @ 3:07 PM
Thursday, September 21, 2006
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17 Comments:
Just testing the system... I hope this works!
Honestly, I can't think of a particularly large issue that I had during the first week of being an eco-rep. Honestly, I'd have to say that if anything it was just figuring out how to manage my time with work and our responsibilities to the program, and also designating what parts of the building I am in charge of. After going through it though, I figured out a good schedule and from discussions with other eco-reps in CWPS, we figured out a system for getting the word out to the entire building.
I don't know exactly what could have made this process easier for me, perhaps to have gotten some more feedback and tips from last year's eco-reps on how they took care of the many responsibilities we have as college students and as eco-reps.
I'm so excited for this year!
This is Phil-I can't think of any problems or concerns that I had about getting going as an Eco-Rep. The training was clear and I felt pretty confident of what I was supposed to do when I left.
Things went well for me as well. The biggest challenge was trying to get a bulletin board, since there appears to be a shortage in my building. Hopefully that will get figured out soon..
Other than that, it was smooth sailing!
-Katie
I didn't really have any major probelms in the first week. Handing out the Green Guides allowed me to introduce myself to a lot of the residents in my hall- though it was a bit scary approaching everyone. It might have been eaiser if I had brought another Eco-Rep with me.
-Naomi
This first week has really been fine in the eco-rep department. its great to have mollie and erin in my dorm building to work with, so that helped a lot, and i felt pretty confident about my responsibilities after training. I actually had a really good time doing the recycling audit with Mollie; it was really interesting to see what people are and arent recycling (although at times intensely disappointing...) and i have a good idea of what needs work and what is working well now. I had some trouble getting in touch with my RD but the bulletin board got started really well and im just excited to start the first focus...topic...thing so we can get some good eco-friendly info up there!
-Grace
I didn't run into any big problems either. To be totally honest, my biggest hurdle was probably trying to fill up my massive bulletin board (it's still a work in progress). But my building managers and staff fellow students are very welcoming and very willing to work with us. OH! actually I did run into trouble trying to get a bulletin board for us in C building, I have to email the RAs again.
-Anna
The biggest problem I had was a communication issue with my RD - it took a really long time for him to respond to my email, which was a big halt in the plan I had worked out to get my checklist completed. The lesson to be learned I think is that I need to be more flexible and have a back-up plan when I'm not getting the cooperation I planned on.
-Hannah
I had a great first week as an Eco-rep! I meant a ton of great people who were really excited to see me going around. A lot of Freshmen never heard of Eco-Reps and thought it was the coolest thing ever! I went around my complex distributing UVM Green Guides and students seemed really interested and asked me questions about recycling, compost, etc! The hardest part of this week was getting ahold of people and trying to fill up my bulletin board! Besides that, things are going great! Looking forward to the rest of the year!
Getting a bulletin board in B building is always a challange but I'm getting my info on the wall wether I have a board or not. Other than that everything has gone pretty smooth. Sometimes it is difficult to find the time to do everything, but I think it will be a good semester.
-Emily
I did not run into large problems in my first week of being an eco-rep. Showing my interest in helping the dorms become a more sustainable place will hopefully rub off on all of my residents.
I had a bit of trouble in managing my time. i found that it was hard to find an appropriate time to go door to door, so I really took advantage of a floor meeting we had on Wednesday. I thought I was going to be intimidated by others not interested in what I was doing, or that I was imposing upon their privacy. However, when i was dumpster diving, a couple of kids asked if I was doing homework or crazy. It was cool to update them on what was going on in the program, and get their attention. i figured that students would be uninterested. But I made it clear that there still were problems with recycling, even if a lot of students were doing so conscientiously, and the kids I talked to seemed very responsive and insightful. This one kid saw me putting up a bulletin board, and we chatted for a bit. Probably the most trying thing was realizing how poor some people were at recycling. i found tin foil, styrofoam, plastic wrapping. My fear is that I won't have as big an impact as i'm hoping for, but I think that will just get me working harder.
PS I'm terrible with computers, and made the last comment, OOPS
James (Do we have blogger identities?)
Generally speaking, the first week was a smooth one. I walked around the different floors in Davis and met people, handed out some green guides and talked a little bit about mixing paper and cans etc. Everyone was pretty accepting, but the largest challenge was actually getting to speak with people. I probably only spoke to 60% or so of each floor--though I suppose this is probably normal. There actually aren't any bulletin boards at this point in Davis, though I have recently been able to secure a board just before the key-card entrance. Overall, the process was easy enough, and I feel it doesn't really need that much improvement.
-Dave
I think this past week went really well. I didn't realize how different all of the floor's recycling rooms were. My floor was definitally the worst so I'm glad I put up the bulletin board in my hall. None of the rooms had signs with products that could and could not be recycled so I made some for each room. Hopefully that will help residents with seperating recyling and trash. I'm psyched for this year!
Hey, my first week of being an eco-rep has gone very well. except for a few problems like my RD never being around when i have checked in, every thing has gone well. i was very disappointed by how my dorm is doing with recycling, but i guess that just means that its a good thing i'm working to improve that. - mollie
I think the hardest thing about the first week was contacting everyone. I still need to meet up with people, and it can be hard when they're not around or they don't respond to emails. So hopefully that will work out in the future. Another hard aspect of the first week was setting up a board, it was hard to pick through important information that would be interesting to an onlooker. I feel that once I'm able to meet with the floors and find out more ideas from my peers, it will be easier to attract viewers.
~Meshia
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