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  4. Bus, Bike, and Hike Week: Urbana’s initiative for alternative transportation

    Associated Project(s): 
    Community Bicycle Events and Rides

    Attached is a news article titled Urbana’s Feet Hit the Streets, 1977, covering Urbana’s "Bus, Bike, and Hike Week." This was among the initial initiatives promoting alternative transportation to reduce traffic, pollution, and encourage exercise. The event included a pedestrian parade, free bus rides, a film on automobile impacts, and bike trips across Illinois. Check it out to learn more about Urbana’s historical sustainable mobility efforts.

    Attached Files: 

  7. Battery Recycling for F&S

    Associated Project(s): 
    Battery Recycling

     

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    Battery Recycling at F&S
    There are three programs for recycling batteries at F&S.

    Rechargeable batteries for tools: The Tool Room provides new rechargeable batteries for F&S tools. When a tool’s rechargeable battery gets too old to hold a charge, return it to the Tool Room for a replacement. The Tool Room will recycle them.

    Uninterruptible power supply (UPS) batteries: The electricians purchase UPS batteries from Interstate Batteries and return them to the same vendor for recycling.  

    Hazardous waste pickup, including batteries: The Division of Research Safety provides a free waste pick-up service that accepts batteries. To request a pick-up, use the Illinois Sign On form at https://unillinois.chemicalsafety.com/unillinois/.

    Some departments at F&S may arrange for battery recycling of their own batteries, but there is no F&S-wide program other than the three mentioned above.

    As a reminder, personal-use batteries cannot be recycled through campus programs. Champaign and Urbana both provide this service. Please visit the appropriate website to learn more:

     

  9. Weekly digest

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center

    Still slow but have had a few people in looking for bikes or B-a-Bs but no sales on either. With the warmer weather this week, we’ll likely be busier. I’ve got a half dozen bikes to safety check while the weather is cooperating.

    Last week and today we made some more headway on the abandoned bike pile. Still coordinating with some other groups to take some of the junky bikes off our hands.

    Tonight is the Bike Project Monthly Meeting.

    The numbers:

    Visitors: 23
    Sales: $82
    Membership: 1 for $30
    Tire/tube: 1 for $6

  10. 02.20 Engagement Team Meeting

    Associated Project(s): 
    Advance Student Sustainability Outreach Efforts
    Sustainability Engagement and Outreach
    Engagement iCAP Team
    Certified Green Office Program (CGOP)
    Certified Green Chapter Program

    The meeting covered several key updates and discussions on sustainability initiatives. The Chair provided updates on the Green Training Program survey, seeking feedback on student engagement strategies. The Vice Chair discussed efforts for a greener campus, including outreach to Greek Life. The Clerk emphasized the importance of in-person meetings and marketing materials. Guest speakers highlighted upcoming events like Sustainapalooza and Illinifest, stressing the logistical challenges and opportunities for student involvement. Discussions included promotional outreach, sustainability projects such as Greener Chapters yard signs and low-maintenance greenery at ISR, and the importance of connecting sustainability efforts across campus. Additionally, engagement team members offered support for these initiatives, and an approved course for next semester was announced. Adam encouraged members to consider speaking at the sustainability film festival.

    Attached Files: 

  12. Weekly digest

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center

    Uneventful over here. Slow and cold. Plodding away at bikes and wheels to have a good supply of both come the busy times. This week I’ll meet some TBP volunteers to clean out the barn more, as it’ll be March soon.

     

    The numbers:

    Visitors: 19
    Sales: $281.50
    Bikes (B-a-B): 2 for $100
    Memberships: 3 for $90
    Tires/tubes: 1 for $4

  13. Archived project information

    Associated Project(s): 
    Styrecycle: Expanded polystyrene (EPS) recycling program

    Dart Container at 1505 E. Main St., Urbana, accepts expanded polystyrene (EPS), more commonly known by its brand name Styrofoam, for recycling. Departments are encouraged to take EPS there to recycle this bulky material. By doing so, we can reduce the volume of waste sent from campus to landfills and avoid the harmful environmental impacts of that practice. There is no charge to drop off EPS at Dart for recycling.

    There is currently no central funding source to pay for transportion of EPS to Dart, so departments need to arrange transport independently.

    The drop-off location is in a fenced-in area of the Dart parking lot and may be accessed 24 hours a day. Dart accepts foam packaging (except for packaging peanuts), foam cups, foam egg cartons, foam meat trays, foam ice chests, and other foam products that fall within these guidelines:

    • Make sure foam has the #6 chasing arrows symbol on it.
    • Deposit foam in a clear or translucent bag (large bags are provided at the drop-off site).
    • Rinse or wipe foodservice containers free from food.
    • Remove straws, lids, tape or any other non-foam material.
    • Do not include foam-packaging peanuts.

    From fall 2015 until summer 2017, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) ran the Styrecycle program in partnership with Community Resource Inc. (CRI). Ownership of CRI changed in July 2017, and the new owner was not able to continue the program.

  14. Feb. 10th Transportation Team Meeting

    Associated Project(s): 
    2024 Campus Bike Plan
    Commuter Program: Bus, Bike, and Hike
    Transportation iCAP Team

    The iCAP Transportation Team had our first meeting of the spring semester on Monday, Feb. 10th.

    There were a lot of exciting updates - the 2025 Campus Bike Plan has been published, student's research projects are progressing as they look into systems and infrastructures other universities have in place to encourage active and less environmentally impactful methods of transit, and we are working on finalizing the Campus Transportation Survey to send out in the next couple of weeks.

    Attached Files: 

  16. Weekly Digest

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center

    We have been surprisingly busy here at CBC so far this year. We’ve sold a few bikes thus far and seen a couple Build-a-Bikes head out the door—all good things!

    Over the weekend, TBP volunteers and I tackled the abandoned bikes in the barn. Made some good progress and had almost a dozen folks on hand helping to sort/strip/move bikes out. Will have to take a few more cracks at it before we completely empty the space but got a good start. Great to see so many volunteers come out—many hands make light work!
     

    The numbers (1/22 – 1/31):

    Visitors: 73
    Sales: 1,371
    Bikes (refurb): 3 for $610
    Bikes (B-a-B): 3 for $180
    Memberships: 15 for $450
    Tires/tubes: 4 for $19.50

  17. Engagement Team Meeting

    Associated Project(s): 
    Engagement iCAP Team
    Advance Student Sustainability Outreach Efforts
    Engagement iCAP Team Recommendations Summary

    The meeting covered updates on the Greener Campus (GC) initiative, including efforts to promote office certification and introduce decals for visibility. There was discussion on engaging Greek Life in sustainability efforts, with suggested contacts for outreach. The Sustainapalooza committee, represented by Kathrine Bruce and Liesl Schrag, provided an event overview and discussed promotional efforts such as digital signage, outreach to department heads, and MTD bus advertisements. Laurinda introduced a wildlife-centered gardening project under the Illinois Prairie Garden initiative, presenting engagement opportunities like prairie conservation and plant sales. Additional sustainability events were highlighted, including a short film event during Earth Week. Action items included Brigid coordinating scheduling and outreach, Quinn working on GC decals and office engagement, and all members providing feedback on marketing materials, brainstorming engagement strategies, and filling out a scheduling poll.

    Attached Files: 

  18. Fall 2024 Semester Update

    Associated Project(s): 
    Energy Models for Campus Facilities

    Professor Yun Yi provided an update on the building energy modeling project:

    With the help of students, I created initial energy models for three campus buildings: Newmark Civil Engineering, Bevier Hall, and Allen Hall. The students were able to build detailed models of the HVAC systems for each building. The next step is to calibrate these models using actual meter data. While the students made good progress, the calibration still requires some advanced fine-tuning.

    I’m planning to hire a student to focus on this calibration work. As we discussed, your help in hiring an assistant for the semester would be greatly appreciated. This would be a 25% appointment for a master’s student, with compensation similar to last semester.

  20. 2024 Campus Bicycle Master Plan approved

    Associated Project(s): 
    2024 Campus Bike Plan
    2014 Campus Bike Plan

    The 2024 Campus Bicycle Master Plan was approved by the Chancellor's Capital Review Committee (CCRC) on Thursday, December 19, 2024. This plan will be published on the University of Illinois Urbana–Champaign Master Planning website and an announcement will be sent out in January 2025. See attached the final document as approved by the CCRC.

    Attached Files: 

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