The Wonderful World of Waste
Now that you’ve completed both a basic audit of the recycling bins in your building, and perhaps even participated in our first waste sort, what do you think are the motivators for students to recycle (i.e. why do students recycle?) On the flip side, what are the barriers that you’ve seen or experienced in your residence halls (i.e. why don’t students recycle?)
~Christina
posted by UVM Eco-Reps Program Coordinator @ 7:21 AM
13 Comments:
I think most people would really like to recycle - they just don't remember to in practice. Making sure that everybody has a recycling bin and knows where the garbage room is helps a lot. Also making sure that people know about the single-stream system is a good incentive, because it makes it so much easier. So I guess information is both the best incentive and the biggest barrier.
-Hannah
I think the motivation for people to recycle really comes from background and outside influence. If someone grew up recycling with their parents, they are most likely going to continue that pattern once they get to school. I also believe outside sources, such as a friend/roommate being an eco-rep or just someone who practices recycling will also influence someone to particpate in it as well. In terms of people not recycling, I get the feeling it just comes from being unaware or perhaps even lazy. Students may not pay attention to what bin they are about to chuck their trash into or just don't feel like making the trek over to a real recyaling bin to throw out their can.
I hope that this will change and I think were off to a good start!
You'd like to think that when there are recycling bins available, students will in fact recycle, but there have been many instances in class where I'll see students throw out something recyclable when there's a recycling can right next to the trash. So..I think a lot of it is face-to-face communication that encourages people to recycle, because obviously signs don't always get the job done. Why people don't recycle, especially in the dorms, is often just based on laziness or true apathy, I think. A lot of people are just too careless, and maybe uneducated about recycling, to take the time to separate their trash.
I feel that for my dorm, whether people recylce or not depends on how educated they are about how they are helping by recycling. The bulletin boards deffinitely help, and posters as well. The fact that recycling bins are always in peoples rooms is a big help because its taking up space so they might as well use it. A barrier that I have encountered is sometimes the cleaning people switch the barrels around, so one day the trash bin is on the left, and then the next day it is on the right, so sometimes things get mixed up and thrown in the wrong bin. -phillip
I think most people recycle when they can visually make a connection or somehow really grasp the fact that they will be making an impact by recycling. I've noticed that people respond really well to facts we post around campus about recycling. Just by doing the waste sort I heard numerous comments about how much food waste there is, bottles, and even trash itself, ect. Students were just walking by making comments! One girl couldn't believe how someone could throw away so much unopened food, good food! But all these things are real and most people choose to ignore it. Once people actually see all the bad habits that we have, it really impacts them to change their own. I believe the only reason that most students do not recycle is because it has not become a part of their everyday lives. Maybe they are just lazy but I think if one student recycles, another student will change their habits too. I think we need to keep doing our jobs by making others aware and make recycling really BIG campus wide! ~Carrie
Motivation to recycle seems to come mostly from background and awarness, as well as financial gain in some instances. Someone told me the other day that they just took all their recycling to a recycling station and got $40 for it!. However, in dorms that very important money factor is not present so we have to rely entirely people's concience and education. I think that lots of people do and would recycle given enough information, however it seems like sometimes it's hard for us to see the immediate benefit of taking the time to put that bottle in a different bin when not doing so would save a few seconds time, it is kind of an abstract concept when you think about it.
I have encountered some interesting reasoning for not recycling lately. One was someone who didn't recycle certain things because she thought that it was better for the environment (for example, she believed that: the more paper we produce that means the more trees we need to grow to make that paper, and the more trees there will be in the world). Skewed logic if you ask me, but interesting.
Also, I have actually had a few friends of mine throw things that could be recycled into the garbage to watch me squirm, though it doesn't happen often (ah, the dangers be being labled the "tree hugger" of the group). Sometimes it seems like people resent frequently being asked to recycle and repeated attempts at recycling education, however it seems like the majority of people do benefit. -Anna
Why:
-- I think it’s obvious that students recycle for a variety of reasons. For one, there are many environmentally motivated students on campus that recycle because they understand the positive impact that such a simple task can have. Many others, though, give the recycling process much less thought, and I believe often recycle just because they know ‘that’s where recyclables are supposed to go’—as though its just a task that people are ‘supposed’ to do. I think this comes into play rather often as there is often a vast difference between the recycler who goes out of their way to actually recycle, and the recycler who recycles when the opportunity presents itself—without thinking twice when no recycling bins are present.
Why not:
-- Because recycling can often obtain the label of an ‘environmental’ or ‘green’ practice (because it is…), students do, I believe, sometimes choose not to recycle merely out of a lack of interest in ‘hippie-like’ policy. Perhaps this is an extreme view, but I honestly believe some people will literally actively choose not to care about recycling as a political statement.
-- Other than knowing disobedience, people probably don’t recycle either from a lack of concern, a lack of bins to allow them to actually recycle (more an off campus issue), or just plain blissful ignorance/lack of knowledge.
-Dave
SO many students are interested in recycling. I think what discourages them are other students that don't recycle. No one likes seeing trash in the recycling bins. Students telling other students to recycle is a great way to get people to care.
-Aliza
I feel like most students recycle only when a bin is in close proximity. You can easily see tons of examples of this when there are bottles throughout the greens of school, because there is nothing to put them in. Trash is easy enough to get rid of without litering, but to intentionally sort generic trash from a can, bottle, especially paper, or other things, a student must be motivated, or clearly know the difference. If a Trash can is distinctly separated from the recyling bin, by a barrier for example, I'm sure there would be at least an increase on recycling. Also, if a student has only one item, like a bottle, I'd think it would make more sense to recycle than if they had a barrel full of trash and recyclables combined, because sorting is time consuming and often tedious if there is something old in the trash(as we saw in the audit). -James
I think that most kids will recycle if it is easy. The people that recycle a lot understand why it is important and genuinely care to do the right thing. People that don't recycle just need more motivation to do so and it has to be made easy for them. So, I think it is important to have recycling bins readily available (which they pretty much are in most dorms) and clearly labeled. In order to get students to recycle more I think we need to keep educating about why it is important in order to motivate people to recycle.
emily
I think the difference between recycling or not is what their used to doing. if they were brought up to recycle, they will go out of their way to find a recycling can. If college is the first place where they have seen a distinction between trash and recyclables i think that they are less likely to recycle because they don't think twice before throwing something in the trash. Therefore, the easier we can make it for people to recycle the better our recycling rates will be.
Happy Birthday Christina!
- Mollie Klepack
With the school being in Vermont and all, I think a lot of students are just naturally environmentally conscious and this is what motivates them to recycle. Students who have not grown up being consicous of the environment or who just plain dont care tend to recyle if its easy and straight forward or if someone encourages them to. If students dont know what can and cant be recycled then it can be a little intimidating. I think students dont recycle because it seems to be a hassle to sort out recylable from nonrecylabe, as apposed to simply throwing everything in the trash.
-Naomi
I honestly believe that recycling has to be a self-motivated activity. Outside influences, like us, certainly help in getting people thinking about what it means to recycle, but it has to be important to people or they won't do it. I also know that my friends recycle, at least when they're around me because they know how passionate I am about it. So, peer pressure definately helps motivate people as well.
As far as barriers, I think that, like other eco-reps have said, people just forget. Throwing things away has become quite a mindless activity for people in general. If it's no longer in their hands it no longer exists. The disconnect between people and where their waste goes is a huge issue, which is why I think our job is so important! People need to know where their trash goes! Go us :)
Claire
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