Hofstra looks toward solutions for a more sustainable campus

Michael Runkel, assistant director of grounds, discusses the role of Hofstra’s arboretum in the goal of creating a sustainable campus. // Photo couresty of Nell Stultz.

To showcase and discuss ongoing initiatives, student proposals and community partnerships aimed at improving sustainability on campus, Hofstra University hosted the “Building a Sustainable Campus: Faculty, Staff and Student Initiatives” panel on Tuesday, Sept. 20, as part of the 2022 Presidential Symposium, “Solutions for a Sustainable Tomorrow.”

During the event, students from last semester’s sustainability and food studies programs on campus brought forth their class-generated proposals on how members of the Hofstra community can take further action toward living within a sustainable model. Intro to Sustainability students Natalie Correa, a sophomore double major in sustainability studies and geographic information systems, Camryn Gallagher, a senior double major in sustainability studies and geographic information systems, and Conor Latimer-Ireland, a sophomore sustainability studies major, proposed reducing food waste at Hofstra and bringing transparency to the amount of food waste being produced.

“When we made our initial proposal, we did ask Hofstra students in a survey how they felt about waste on campus,” Gallagher said. “Of the 67 responses that we received, 96% of the students said that they would be interested in seeing composting on campus.”

Since their proposal, Hofstra has already started to implement solutions to reduce food waste. The Yo! Bowl food station in the Student Center is now self-serve, where people can grab their own portions for 57 cents per ounce.

In addition, each food station now has a “Foodie Feedback” scannable QR code where students can give direct feedback to Compass Group, Hofstra’s dining service, on the quality of their food; this allows Compass to narrow in on which foods students are inclined to eat and which will be thrown away at the end of the day.

Andrea Millwood, associate director of the North Shore Land Alliance and project manager of the Roosevelt Community Garden, located about three miles from Hofstra’s campus, shared opportunities for Hofstra students to get involved with supporting community agriculture projects. In addition, Hofstra was able to provide plants for the garden over the summer.

“The community partners help enhance our educational programs that provide valuable tools for us,” Millwood said. “Partnering with Hofstra University in the summer was really nice ... having a partnership helps make the community garden sustainable.”

Michael Runkel, the associate director of grounds at Hofstra, shared ways that the university has already implemented more Earth-friendly groundskeeping practices; these methods include incorporating more native plants, removing invasive plants, sustainably caring for the turf on Hofstra’s athletics fields and using geographic information systems to map and better care for Hofstra’s collection of trees.

Runkel also shared goals which Hofstra hopes to accomplish, including adding more pollinators and native plant gardens like the one outside Bernon Hall.

“There’s a clear void of native plant material in abundance to attract and provide habitats for pollinators,” Runkel said.

The native plant garden was initially a proposal by J. Bret Bennington, a professor of geology and chair of the geology, environment and sustainability department at Hofstra, who also moderated the panel.

“I’m really passionate about native pollinators, native pollinator species and just the importance of planting native plants,” Bennington said. “The idea of using the Hofstra campus [and] restoring it so that it provides an ecological refuge for species that are sort of getting pushed out of suburbia, I just find that tremendously exciting and find that students want to work on these kinds of projects and study what’s going on on campus.”

Some students in attendance expressed frustration with a lack of knowledge about food waste and food-related waste, such as disposable containers and utensils, and what is and isn’t recyclable on campus.

“It’s great to hear that [Runkel] is so sustainability focused,” said Aleyana Boothe, a junior urban ecology major and sustainability studies minor. “But [I] definitely want to see Compass take more action.”

“It’s not transparent,” said Mary Madigan, a sophomore mathematics education major, discussing a lack of understanding among students on how to properly dispose of food-related waste in the recycling and trash bins in dining areas on campus. “If they’re not being used, what’s the point?”

Millwood encouraged students to volunteer and be more involved with the university’s greater community.

“My hope is to really encourage and inspire others to get into sustainability, because it’s real,” Millwood said. “We need to protect our environment.”