Summer 2017 Newsletter

Orange Bikes Are Back!

The Orange Bike Program, which originally began as a community bike share program, is transitioning into a student bike rental program starting this Fall. Fifty bikes are available for students to rent to use as their primary form of transportation throughout the academic school year. Students will go through an application process and have the option to rent the bikes for either a semester or full year. One of the perks of this program is the readily available bike maintenance which is included with the rental fee. Maintenance will be provided by student mechanic Maxwell McCray during various weekly open garage hours. Maxwell is a student in his junior year here at BGSU, studying Environmental Science. He has worked for the Office of Campus Sustainability for 6 months now, but has been fixing bikes with his father since he was a kid.

This program is an important catalyst in pushing students to think about sustainability and giving them the power to make an immediate difference. Bowling Green State University and the city of Bowling Green have both shown interest and support in becoming more bike-friendly, a step which will aid in the university's goal to reach carbon neutrality by the year 2040. If one student alone rode their bike 2 miles round trip 5 days a week for a year instead of driving a vehicle, they could save anywhere between 280 to 760 lbs of CO2 every year depending on the size of the vehicle. Bicycling not only reduces transportation emissions, it also reduces traffic congestion, and the waste and polluted air created during the manufacturing of a vehicle.

If you’re interested in making an immediate positive and personal impact on your campus and community, then check out our website for more information and start filling out an application today!

Big News In Reuse

It has been and continues to be a busy time for reuse initiatives at Bowling Green State University. With the end of the Spring 2017 semester we saw another successful When You Move Out Don’t Throw It Out collection, which diverted in excess of 9 tons of waste from the landfill this year. The items from this collection drive were made available for purchase during the annual two day sale. Not only this did sale event attract students, faculty, staff, and community members with its affordable prices on new and gently used items, it also benefited local charities and food pantries. This year WYMO contributed to the efforts of 7 charities, non-profits, and food pantries including BGSU Food Recovery Network, St. Vincent DePaul Food Pantry, St. Aloysius, The Cocoon Shelter, St. Mark’s Furniture Bank, Go-Green Ohio, and Easter Seals. The remaining items sold to the campus and local community raised nearly $5,000 which will be used to fund other sustainable programs and initiatives on campus.

Another exciting reuse initiative we have to look forward to is the Fall Welcome ReStore Event which will be held Tuesday, August 22^nd from 11am to 2pm. The ReStore, located in Kreischer Sundial, is a program that holds monthly events during the academic school year to provide new or gently used office supplies, books, and various household goods to students, faculty, and staff. The Fall Welcome ReStore Event will be held specifically for students; however events held in the following months will be expanded to include faculty and staff. This program is a great way to divert still usable items from the landfill, effectively reducing waste, while also providing the campus community with supplies that would otherwise have to be purchased. For more information about the ReStore and future events please visit our webpage here, or for more information on Fall Welcome Week visit the universities webpage here.