Plan Green 2011: We Planned, We Attended, We Conquered

Thursday February 24, 2011

We planned, we attended, we conquered.

On Wednesday, February 16, 2011 we did it again! What did we do exactly you ask? Well once again local and regional businesses and caterers together took a step toward making our community a greener place. This year's Plan Green Conference and Vendor Showcase proved to be yet another step in a positive direction toward making UC Davis and all of its partners' businesses a greener place.

Sustainability is an issue that the world is tackling, and here in Davis, California that is no exception. Plan Green 2011 is a conference and tradeshow put on by UC Davis Conference and Event Services annually to promote the basic principles of R4 (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Rebuy) and to promote establishing better sustainable practices for our businesses.

At this year's Plan Green Conference and Vendor Showcase we had six speakers: Molly Milner from Small Blue Planet Events and Consultanting, Tom Huetteman, Associate Director in the Waste Division of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Southwest Regional Office, Lin King, the Program Manager for the UC Davis Waste Reduction and Recycling Program under the Office of Environmental Stewardship and Sustainability, Andrew Larsen, art director for UC Davis Repro Graphics, Dean Parker, Executive Facilities Director of the Peppermill Spa Resort Casino, and last but not least, Danielle Lee, Sustainability Manager for UC Davis Dining Services. Each speaker touched on the different areas in the event planning industry that we can become more sustainable in. From facilities, recycling, printing, and more, each speaker was able to provide helpful tools for all of our great attendees to take back to their businesses and implement.

This year's tradeshow was a success once again, bringing organizations from as far as Long Beach and as locally as Downtown Davis. Vendors, caterers and attendees, chatted and snacked on some delicious food on what turned out to be rain free afternoon. The atmosphere of the tradeshow was pleasant again with all of the great vendors coming from as near as Downtown Davis to as far as Southern California. UC Davis CES would like to give a big thank you to all of our vendors and caterers this year and a special thank you to: UC Davis Repro Graphics, Ink Monkey Graphics, and Screaming Squeegee for being the 2011 Plan Green sponsors. *

Now that you all got the scoop on this year's Plan Green Conference and Vendor Showcase, we hope if you weren't able to make it this year, you make it out to the next one! And to all of those that participated this year, a big THANK YOU from CES, we couldn't make the event a success without you!

*Interested in partnering with UC Davis Conference and Event Services? Email Katrina Evans at kdevans@ucdavis.edu for more information!

Being Green While Knowing Your Limits

Tuesday August 24, 2010

The name of the game in event planning is green; however, that might not be the best way to conserve your budget. A lot of event planners are worried about making the green move, seeing that in the short run they will potentially be spending a lot of money. On the other hand, it's important to think about the long run and how you will not only be upholding your company's social responsibility, but helping the environment as well. Positive recognition is something every organization wants to hear and that's not just for services. What a lot of people want to see nowadays is an organization that not only takes care of the services they promise to their customers, but how an organization takes advantage of its position as a leader in the community to help anyway they can. Remember being green doesn't mean you jeopardize your business financially, but what it can mean is that you're doing your part and recognizing your limits. So whether you can add a composting services or keep the thermostat of your facility to an eco-friendly level, you're doing your part, and all anyone can ask is that you do all you can! Plan green, event green, be green!

How Our Campus Goes Green

We always do what we can to stay green and help the environment, which is why we are super excited that UC Davis has an entire page dedicated to the University's impact on the environment. As many of our clients know, we can offer Zero Waste Services to minimize your event's impact on the Earth. But, you might ask yourself, besides event planning what else does the University do to go green?

Well, to answer your question, a lot. The newest buildings in the University Gateway are Gold LEED Certified, 21% of the food purchased on campus is organic or local,the campus plans to reach 1990 emission levels by 2020 and compost bins were introduced into all the buildings on campus. The University's contributions to the environment, however, go much deeper than sustainable building and disposal -- members of the UC Davis take steps every day that make a difference. A 2009 campus travel survey found that over 75% of the UC Davis community uses earth friendly modes of transportation.

Since Davis is known as one of the most bike friendly cities in the United States, with miles upon miles of bike paths, the city had a bit of a head start on sustainable transportation. Bike lanes, bike paths, bike tunnels, bike teams, a bike museum, bike appreciation day -- okay, so maybe not that last one, but the bike-crazy city of Davis has everything else!

Everyday there are between 15,000 - 20,000 bikes on campus. That's right, THOUSAND. Pretty amazing, huh? So if its your first time on campus, be sure to look both ways before crossing the street, and if you are daring enough to take a bike ride on your first day here, please, go through the bike circle in the right direction!

And bikes aren't the only green way to get to campus. With their ID cards, all students have access to free bus rides to and from campus, on a bus system, Unitrans, run completely by students. 95% of all Unitrans buses are powered by clean-burning compressed natural gas.

The goClub, introduced by Transportation and Parking Services, rewards members of UC Davis community who commute by foot, bike, train, bus or carpool. As a thank you to these commuters, goClub offers on-campus bike maintenance, campus lockers and showers, and discount parking passes.

So when you come to UC Davis expect more than just green planning. Expect to see a community dedicated to a better future.

E-Waste: UC Davis's R4 Department Fighting Against Electronic Waste

Friday April 30, 2010

Did you know that it is illegal to throw away batteries and cell phones? Well, now you do! UC Davis's R4 department is fighting against electronic waste, and is doing so by placing multibin all over UC Davis. There are a total of 10 multibins strategically located throughout campus that provide a convenient way for people to dispose of their old electronic products. Currently, the R4 multibins support: CD's, Inkjet cartridges, electronic devices, non-rechargeable and rechargeable batteries. Although it may seem easy to merely throw away electronic appliances or peripherals into the dumpster, it is just as easy to recycle them in the specific multibin container. So the next time you break your mp3 player, or decided you don't want an old CD anymore, make sure to find the closest multibin on campus or located in your community to handle your waste responsibly. Remember that in our fight to make the world a greener place, every little bit helps!

O'Bon LLC

Tuesday March 23, 2010

Last week, our marketing team here at UC Davis Conference and Event Services were able to sample some of the great products presented us by O'Bon, and what great green products they have to offer! We sampled some of the numerous pencil and notepads that are made up of 100% recycled material. The pencils are quite sturdy and seem to last longer and stay better protected than regular wooden pencils, and the notepads are just as great as any notepad out there; however, these notepads being green, have a little bit of a leg up for being environmentally friendly! We'd like to encourage all of those in the community to try out O'Bon products as they are a great substitute to many products that you make already have! Don't forget to use a promotional code for 15% when purchasing online, just enter freakofriends in the promotional code field. Hope you all give O'Bon

The Scoop on Being Greener: Lunchtime

Did you know that bringing your lunch to work helps to stay green and healthy? Ordering from delivery and take-out restaurants can lead to heaps of unwanted waste, and tighter pants! To avoid extra waste (and extra waist!) try bringing your own lunch in a reusable container. This is your chance to dig out that old 'Howdy Doody' lunch box and give it a new life. When you bring a lunch from home, try to remember silverware from home, reusable tupperware instead of disposable plastic bags, and a reusable thermos or mug. The landfill and your body will be thanking you!

Save the peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for the kids, how about pasta salad, quiche, or a hearty soup? Check out chow.com for great lunch ideas!

We here at Conference and Event Services like to help you stay green and healthy-- what more could you ask for?