Waste not, want not

Cassandra Chin
Staff Writer
A York sustainability group focusing on how the university is handling its waste is taking student-friendly options to jump-start their initiatives.
The Institute for Research and Innovation in Sustainability (IRIS) released an annual survey of campus sustainability and a report on campus waste Jan. 10.
As a university-wide interdisciplinary research centre, IRIS was established by York University in 2004 to focus on sustainable development and activities campus-wide.
Last year’s report surveyed students, staff and faculty and focused on how well York handles waste.
“The surveys are also used by student groups […] as quantitative information to support their cases,” said fourth-year environmental studies student Caitlin Gascon,who is also the social marketing and communications co-ordinator of IRIS.
To accompany the release of the survey, a screening of Garbage: The Revolution Starts at Home was shown, in which an average urban family collects all their garbage for three months.
Filmmaker and York alumni Andrew Nisker followed the garbage to see where it went once collected. The journey took him through the process of where organic waste, toiletries, plastic bags, water bottles and other unassuming items are sent and what kind of impact they have on the environment.
“The film covers how much garbage we produce on a daily, weekly, monthly basis,” said Gascon. “Many of us just aren’t aware of how much we waste or its impact.”
For more information about the film visit
www.garbagerevolution.com/