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  2. Redwood Materials: F&S, iSEE, and ACES introduced to GIES alum Seema Nilakhe to discuss battery recycling opportunities

    Associated Project(s): 
    Rechargeable Battery Recycling
    Battery Recycling
    Single-Use Battery Recycling
    Address Electronic Waste (e-waste)

    RE: Campus Sustainability - Redwood Materials

     

     

    Great – thank you all for your thoughts and connections.  I’m moving Madhu and Bob to bcc and can loop them back in as needed.

     

    Jennifer, Morgan and Daphne, can you please share your interest in joining a call along with your availability for the last 2 weeks in June?  I’ll get a call scheduled with Seema so that we can explore a possible collaboration.

     

    Best,

    Amy

     

    Amy Fruehling, MBA

    Senior Director of Corporate & Foundation Relations

    College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences

    1301 W. Gregory Dr.

    Urbana, IL  61801

     

    217.265.4045

    afruehli@illinois.edu

     

    From: Fraterrigo, Jennifer M <jmf@illinois.edu>
    Sent: Wednesday, May 31, 2023 12:06 PM
    To: Schooley, Robert Lee <schooley@illinois.edu>; Khanna, Madhu <khanna1@illinois.edu>; Fruehling, Amy <afruehli@illinois.edu>
    Cc: White, Morgan <mbwhite@illinois.edu>; Hulse, Daphne Lauren <dlhulse2@illinois.edu>
    Subject: RE: Campus Sustainability - Redwood Materials

     

    Amy,

     

    Bob is correct that campus no longer has a battery recycling program. I would be interested in following up about how we might restart the program. Colleagues in Facilities & Services, including Morgan White and Daphne Hulse, Zero Waste Coordinator, might also be interested in joining a call.

     

    On a related note, the alum may be interested in an initiative to recycle components of EV batteries (among other types) for reuse in Europe that leverages a partnership between industry and academia.

    https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/news-archive/2019/new-project-launches-focusing-on-the-sustainable-reprocessing-of-rare-earth-magnets

     

    Best,

    Jen

     

    Jennifer Fraterrigo (she/her)

    iSEE Associate Director for Campus Sustainability and
    Professor of Landscape and Ecosystem Ecology
    Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences

    University of Illinois

    W-423 Turner Hall, 1102 S. Goodwin Ave.

    Urbana, IL 61801

    jmf@illinois.edu
    ph 217-333-9428

    https://fraterrigolab.nres.illinois.edu/

     

     

    From: Schooley, Robert Lee <schooley@illinois.edu>
    Sent: Wednesday, May 31, 2023 9:27 AM
    To: Khanna, Madhu <khanna1@illinois.edu>; Fruehling, Amy <afruehli@illinois.edu>
    Cc: Fraterrigo, Jennifer M <jmf@illinois.edu>; White, Morgan <mbwhite@illinois.edu>
    Subject: RE: Campus Sustainability - Redwood Materials

     

    Hi Amy,

     

    Campus had a battery recycling program but it was discontinued in 2015 due to lack of funding.  It is now left to units to fund recycling programs if they want.

    https://icap.sustainability.illinois.edu/project/battery-recycling

     

    I also thought of Jen Fraterrigo for discussing potential partnerships on campus.

     

    Thanks,

     

    Bob

     

    Robert L. Schooley
    Professor and Head
     
    Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences

    College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences

    University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
    W-503 Turner Hall | M/C 047
    Urbana, IL 61801
    217.244.2729 | schooley@illinois.edu
    nres.illinois.edu
     
    Bu0VAhW8+s0AAAAASUVORK5CYII=

     

     

     

    From: Khanna, Madhu <khanna1@illinois.edu>
    Sent: Tuesday, May 30, 2023 5:24 PM
    To: Fruehling, Amy <afruehli@illinois.edu>; Schooley, Robert Lee <schooley@illinois.edu>
    Cc: Fraterrigo, Jennifer M <jmf@illinois.edu>; White, Morgan <mbwhite@illinois.edu>
    Subject: RE: Campus Sustainability - Redwood Materials

     

    Hi Amy

     

    Thanks for bringing this to our attention. This sounds interesting.  Would you know what kind of batteries she is interested in building a recycling program for?

    I am ccing Jen Fraterrigo and Morgan White to let us know if we have any current program for this and get their thoughts on potential opportunities for battery recycling on our campus.  

     

    Best

    Madhu

     

     

    Madhu Khanna

    Pronouns: she, her

    Alvin H. Baum Family Chair & Director, Institute for Sustainability, Energy and Environment

    ACES Distinguished Professor in Environmental Economics

    Co-Director, Center for Economics of Sustainability

    University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign

     

    Office: 1101 W. Peabody, Suite 336, M/C  635

    Urbana IL 61801

     

    email: khanna1@illinois.edu; phone: 217-333-5176; fax: 217-333-5538

     

    http://ace.illinois.edu/directory/madhu-khanna

    https://ceos.illinois.edu/bio-khanna

    https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=LPH4gbUAAAAJ&hl=en

     

    https://illinois.zoom.us/j/2173335176?pwd=Ri8rTzQ0S1RxZHpiY2tEWVdaSlhtZz09

     

     

    From: Fruehling, Amy <afruehli@illinois.edu>
    Sent: Tuesday, May 30, 2023 5:13 PM
    To: Khanna, Madhu <khanna1@illinois.edu>; Schooley, Robert Lee <schooley@illinois.edu>
    Subject: RE: Campus Sustainability - Redwood Materials

     

    Madhu and Bob,

    Checking in to bring this request to the top of your email again.  I’d like to get back to our alum contact at Redwood Materials this week. Did you have any thoughts on her request below, or are there others you’d suggest that I reach out to?

     

    Thanks!

    Amy

     

    From: Bollero, German A <gbollero@illinois.edu>
    Sent: Friday, May 26, 2023 3:18 PM
    To: Fruehling, Amy <afruehli@illinois.edu>
    Subject: Re: Campus Sustainability - Redwood Materials

     

    I will let Madhu and Bob to respond to this.

    Thanks

    GB

     

    From: "Fruehling, Amy" <afruehli@illinois.edu>
    Date: Monday, May 22, 2023 at 2:54 PM
    To: German Bollero <gbollero@illinois.edu>, "Khanna, Madhu" <khanna1@illinois.edu>, "Schooley, Robert Lee" <schooley@illinois.edu>
    Subject: Campus Sustainability - Redwood Materials

     

    Hi Bob, German and Madhu,

     

    Redwood Materials, founded by Tesla co-founder, JB Straubel, is a renewable energy company that focuses on making batteries sustainable and affordable by localizing the battery supply chain and producing components in the US from recycled batteries. A fantastic Gies alumni and former student that I worked with, reached out and is interested in creating a battery collection program at Illinois.  She referenced the campus-wide recycling program with Coca Cola.  While I think this could fit nicely into the Campus Sustainability program, I think that we could discuss possible research, project or funding collaborations that would enhance a program of this nature and support an academic partnership.

     

    I am reaching out to you given your roles in the college and campus sustainability initiatives.  Are there any programs within iSEE, NRES or that campus is working on that might align well?  Are there others within your units that you recommend that I pose this question to?  I’d like to have a follow up call with the alum, Seema Nilakhe, to share some options, and then can bring others into the conversation to hopefully begin talking about how to move forward.

     

    Thank you for your thoughts,

    Amy

     

    Amy Fruehling, MBA

    Sr. Director of Corporate Relations

    217.265.4045

    8DFIANu9afgYkAAAAASUVORK5CYIIA

     

  3. Weekly Update: Emptying the Round Barn, New staffers

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center

    All, We were closed yesterday for the Memorial Day holiday.

    Last week I moved bikes out of the barn. We’re not 100% done but only have 25 or so bikes left.

    This week I’ll move the rest of the bikes out of the barn and do some reorganizing to accommodate the influx. We also have a new staffer starting this week, so we’ll host a training session or two with them.

    The numbers:

    Visitors: 13
    Sales: $1,069.50
    Bikes (refurb): 3 for $530
    Bikes (B-a-B): 2 for $110

    Memberships: 6 for $180
    Tires/tubes: 11 for $86.75

    Jacob Benjamin
    Campus Bike Center Coordinator

  4. Reimagine our Future Partner Form

    Associated Project(s): 
    ReImagine Our Future

    Good morning friend of the Reimagine Our Future competition,

     

    We were wondering if you would like to continue to be a part of the competition for this upcoming school year. 

     

    If so, can you please fill out this google form?

     

    We appreciate your support and hope you will join us for another year of this amazing competition inspiring undergrads to come up with sustainable solutions.

     

    Thank you so much,

    Allie Garlin

    Reimagine Our Future Student Assistant

  5. Tracking/displaying Grind2Energy data.

    Associated Project(s): 
    Grind2Energy

    Hi Thurman,

     

    A recurring topic that’s come up in our zero waste conversations has been the desire to track and display more metrics under the zero waste theme on the iCAP Portal. Grind2Energy data was one metric that was brainstormed, as it relates closely to our Zero Waste Objective 5.5, “Plan for organic waste.” Since Dining already tracks that data, it would be easy for us to get it up on the portal. Would this be something that you’d be in favor of us doing? If so, any input on how the data is displayed (by month, or annually)?

     

    Thank you,
    Daphne

     

     

     

     

    Hi Daphne,

     

    Fate has it that I will be seeing the Grind2Energy people tomorrow at the National Restaurant Association show in Chicago. I would like to see if this is something that can by automatically updated from our system. They may have some functionality for this and if not, it may be some thing they could create and would be a selling point for them. I will find out the possibilities. I would rather that this be auotmatic so that the data is always current and nobody can "drop the ball" along the way.    

     

    THURMAN ETCHISON
    Assistant Director of Dining - Facilities and Equipment
     

     

     

     

     

  6. Weekly Update: Updated hours, Moving bikes

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center

    All, Last week we started our Summer Hours of M/W/F 2 – 6p. No complaints so far and if visit numbers are any indication, it’s the correct move. A lot fewer folks through the doors this time of year.

    On Wednesday, with the help of a TBP volunteer we moved 10 or so bikes over to the Urbana space. A good small step, but still more bikes to clear. That’ll continue this week as well.

    We’ve been selling bikes at a marginal clip but can’t have enough bikes ready come August so we’ll wrench on a few more this week during the down times.

    The numbers:

    Visitors: 22
    Sales: $834.25
    Bikes (refurb): 4 for $672
    Memberships: 3 for $90
    Tires/tubes: 1 for $8

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Campus Bike Center Coordinator

  9. Cosmo-e pilot on campus this summer

    Associated Project(s): 
    Bike Share with Veo

    Beginning Monday, May 22, the university and bike sharing partner Veo will launch a pilot program to explore the use of Cosmo-e bikes on the Urbana campus. During the trial, the motorized class two e-bikes will be allowed to operate on university streets and dedicated bicycle lanes. Rental bikes were previously restricted to pedaling only in these areas.

    The program will run through Monday, August 7, at which point the ridership data and community feedback will be used to review the status of the service and determine future usage guidelines for the bikes before the start of the fall semester. Requirements for the pilot will also consist of strict geofencing restrictions for the class two e-bikes to protect pedestrian safety by properly balancing active transportation modes, including the following:

    • Enforcing no-ride zones for the Main Quad, South Quad, Bardeen Quad, North Quad, Ikenberry Quad, and the trails of the Arboretum
    • Maintaining existing prohibitions for sidewalks and multi-use shared paths
    • Allowing parking only in designated university bicycle racks
    • Regulating slower device speeds while on campus property (8 MPH maximum in primary areas)

    Riders will receive more information, such as route maps and general reminders, from Veo before the pilot program begins. For questions about the upcoming pilot, contact hello@veoride.com. Additional resources are available on the Bike at Illinois website. 

    Improving mobility options for students, faculty, and staff continues to be one of the university’s top transportation priorities. The pilot is the latest example of collaborative efforts to offer greater bike sharing availability and flexibility while maintaining the highest safety standards throughout the U of I’s jurisdictional locations.

    Read more at Campus Pilot Project for Veo Motorized Bikes

     

     

  10. 5-17-23 F&S and YMCA meeting

    Associated Project(s): 
    Dump and Run

    On May 17, 2023 Morgan White, Daphne Hulse, and Marc Alexander met to discuss the future of Dump and Run.

    • F&S will need to provide public functions stuff for YMCA dump and run sale in the fall (use SSC funding - what is left)

    • We will need to create a MOU including what all this means for YMCA and long-term funding for their sale and our spring move out

      • Be sure to include that F&S will support the August sale in a public functions capacity, and supports the continued use of Stock Pavilion

    • Honor the partnership with the YMCA

      • MOU get marc’s perspective, morgan’s perspective, pete’s perspective, housing’s perspective

    • Be clear that there is a spring collection and august sale. They are separate events but all under the Dump and Run name.

      • Phrase example: “The Campus Bike Center is a collaboration between UIUC and the Bike Project of Champaign.”

        • Dump and Run: “Dump and Run is a collaboration between University YMCA and UIUC.”

      • Collaboration means that we sometimes work in different capacities as the university can be so much larger than a small organization

      • Daphne to draft a MOU for F&S-Housing and F&S-YMCA

        • “…Based on x y z background this is how we intend to move forward in our partnership over the years. One year time intervals automatically renewed each year unless a party decides something should change or cease…”

    • Recurring expenses could be argument among us internally to determine who should contribute (Morgan thinks this is a Pete question)

      • Student fees can go to anything

      • State funds to Housing is slightly limited

      • State funds to off campus entities is very limited

    • Timeline

      • Get the MOU signed and approved before move in weekend, so we can proclaim it the way we planned to

      • August for YMCA to rubber stamp it

    • As a general reference, it is good to get things written down and signed on a MOU with existing leadership who support these initiatives, so they continue even when leadership changes

  13. Native Planting at Burrill Hall

    Associated Project(s): 
    Bee Campus USA
    Burrill/ Morrill Walkway

    The following is an email sent by John Marlin on May 16, 2023:

     

    As most of you know I am retired from campus and involved in other off campus conservation activities. I will no longer be overseeing the Burrill Hall native planting.

     

    During the pandemic, maintenance at campus native plantings by volunteers was not allowed.  This coupled with very dry conditions caused deterioration of several sites including the one at Burrill Hall. F&S bought the woodland wildflowers for the planting and the Entomology Department installed them and provided some maintenance in conjunction with some students.

     

    Department head May Berenbaum has put together an effort to revitalize the planting and has some limited funding for some maintenance of the native plants.  F&S plans to make some changes in part of the area and the path is to be restored.  Daniel Bush will initially work with the native plants and supervise any students. 

     

    In the past weeds removed from the site were placed by the two square concrete benches and I notified Ryan Welch who had the maintenance crew remove them.  I assume a similar arrangement can be made possibly with Mr. Dalby as the contact.

     

    This site was quite popular with people walking past and provided a good instructional resource, especially the area near the sidewalk.  I hope that this will continue.

     

    John C. Marlin

     

    Dennis Dalby replied:

     

    Thank you John,

     

    It was nice meeting you today to gain some of your tips and input regarding the planting and upkeep of this area.  I’ve been working with Ryan Welch and SIB to get this area brought back up to its current level and look forward to its improved upkeep with the discussions that we had today.  We’ll be working with Ryan to have a wood chip path added once again and will add a few small plants of our own within the areas that we (MCB) will maintain.  SIB will maintain the areas of the native plants.  It will look and function much better once all is in place.

     

    Thanks again for stopping by to share your experience,

     

    Dennis

  15. Weekly Update: Bike donations, Updated working hours

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center
    Collection and Donation of Abandoned Bicycles

    All, We received 8 bike donations directly from graduating students last week—easily a record during my tenure so far. Not sure how the word got out, but it was effective! Of course, I forgot to ask for a few photos for future marketing use, but one person did request a photo with her bike before she donated it.

    I also worked with TBP volunteers to move a chunk of bikes out of storage, so we’re making headway on that. But still a good number of bikes left, too, which I’ll continue to work on going forward.

    This week we start our summer hours of M/W/F 2 – 6p.

    The numbers:

    Visitors: 49
    Sales: $868.25
    Bikes: 3 for $570
    Memberships: 4 for $120
    Tires/tubes: 5 for $36

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Campus Bike Center Coordinator

  16. Bike Safety Quiz Form for University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

    Associated Project(s): 
    Bicycle Education
    Enforcement for Safe Cycling
    Bicycle Safety Materials

    Here are some links that direct you to UIUC's bike safety quizzes!

     

    Links to Share – share these links with anyone who’s interested in taking the quiz. Feel free to post on social media, websites, etc.

    Adult BikeSafetyQuiz

    Adult BikeSafetyQuiz - Spanish

    Child BikeSafetyQuiz

    Child BikeSafetyQuiz – Spanish

  17. Dump and Run 2023 held from Monday, May 8 through Saturday, May 13

    Associated Project(s): 
    Dump and Run

    Collections began at 10am on Monday morning and continued through 3pm on Saturday afternoon. More than 16,000 pounds of household items were donated to Goodwill through the program. Salt & Light collected 3,500 pounds of soft items (clothes, bedding, linens

    Attached Files: 

  18. Bike at Illinois: May Newsletter

    Associated Project(s): 
    Bike at Illinois Website and Campaign
    Collection and Donation of Abandoned Bicycles

    May Newsletter sent out on May 10, 2023.

     
    Bike at Illinois Newsletter: May 2023

     

     

     

     

    Happy National Bike Month!

    Thank you for registering your bicycle! We wanted to remind you to collect your bike registration sticker (shield) and attach it to your bicycle, if you have not done so already. There are, currently, eight campus and community shield pick-up locations - found on the Register Your Bike webpage. You will be required to show the Bike Registration Fee payment confirmation email and identification to collect a shield.

    Winners of Bike Registration Raffle were contacted recently and we will follow up with them again today!

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Notices

     

     

     

     

    Do not leave your bicycle on campus over the summer! 

    Do not leave your bike on campus property over the summer. If you do so, the bike will be considered abandoned and it will be impounded via university staff. If you no longer need your bicycle, consider donating it (go.fs.illinois.edu/DonateBikes) to the Campus Bike Center (51 E. Gregory Drive, Champaign) or the Bike Project of Urbana (202 S. Broadway Avenue, Room 24). 

    No appointment is required. Donations are tax-deductible. Bicycles will be refurbished or recycled, reusing as much of the bike as possible.

    More information, including bike storage options, is available by contacting bike@illinois.edu.

    Removal of Abandoned Bike 

    All unattended bicycles on campus will be impounded after the on-bike sticker notification process concludes this summer. Retrieving an impounded bicycle will require an active bike registration and associated fees in accordance with the University Bicycle Ordinance. F&S removed almost 500 abandoned bicycles on campus last summer. 

    Use the Shared Use Path between Huff Hall and Siebel Center for Design

    Due to the construction of a new facility, Steven S. Wymer Hall, between Huff Hall and Business Instructional Facility (BIF), the bike path will be closed. Bicyclists should use the shared-use path (8' wide sidewalk) immediately south of this bike path by Siebel Center for Design from Fourth Street to Sixth Street. 

    This bike path is considered abandoned and will be removed once the construction is complete. For any questions, please reach out to fandscampustdm@illinois.edu.

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Upcoming events

     

     

     

     
    1. Mother's Day Bike Ride - Sunday, May 14
      Starting point: Anita Purves Nature Center (1505 N. Broadway Ave, Urbana, IL 61801)
      Starting time: 2:00 p.m.
    2. Ride of Silence - Wednesday, May 17
      Starting Point: I Hotel and Illinois Conference Center (1900 S 1st St, Champaign, IL 61820)
      Starting time: 7:00 p.m.
    3. Smart Cycling Class - Traffic Skills 101 - Saturday, May 27
      Location: MTD Training Facility (1207 E. University Avenue, Urbana, IL 61802)
      Time:1:00 - 5:00 p.m.
      Cost: $20
      Register to attend here: https://tinyurl.com/yuaxmakr

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Bike Safety: Always lock your bicycle

     

     

     

     

    For nearly 60 percent of the bike thefts reported in the past year, the stolen bicycle was not locked. Always lock your bicycle to a bike rack to keep it safe. Watch this video on how to properly lock your bicycle. Watch other educational videos created by Bike at Illinois.

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Thank you so much for all your support! Have a great finals week and congratulations to all graduates! Contact us at bike@illinois.edu for any questions.

     

  19. F&S announcement - Donate Your Bike

    Associated Project(s): 
    Collection and Donation of Abandoned Bicycles
      Donate Your Bike!  
     

     
      A bike shelter with vertical racks on the Urbana campus
     

    Don't abandon your bike on campus at the end of the semester. If you no longer need your bicycle, consider donating it (https://go.fs.illinois.edu/DonateBikes) to the Campus Bike Center (51 E. Gregory Drive, Champaign) or the Bike Project of Urbana (202 S. Broadway Avenue, Room 24). 

    No appointment is required. Donations are tax-deductible. Bicycles will be refurbished or recycled, reusing as much of the bike as possible.

    Removal of Abandoned Bicycles 
     All unattended bicycles on campus will be impounded after the on-bike sticker notification process concludes this summer. Retrieving an impounded bicycle will require an active bike registration and associated fees in accordance with the University Bicycle Ordinance.

    More information, including bike storage options, is available by contacting bike@illinois.edu. 

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