At the University of Louisville we are dedicated to continually improving our Sustainability efforts. Here are some of the things we are already doing to be more sustainable:

Trayless Dining: We offer trayless dining at WestSide Dining, our new all-you-care-to-eat resident dining hall. This helps to reduce the amount of food waste on our campus, as well as the amount of water that would be used to wash the trays.

Vegan Dining: Wild Mushroom, a venue within the all-you-care-to-eat resident dining hall, will feature a menu dedicated to serving protein and nutrient rich vegan and vegetarian meals at every meal.

Pre-Consumer Food Waste Composting: This year we have introduced a pre-consumer food waste composting program into our main kitchen in the SAC and will be expanding to McAlister’s Select and West Side Dining for the Fall 2010 Semester. This waste is sent to the University’s composting site that will later be used for various purposes, including fertilizing the community vegetable garden on campus. http://louisville.edu/culturalcenter/garden

Food Donation: When available, we donate left-over food to The Lord’s Kitchen and Wayside Christian Mission. We also have a donation box at our convenience store, The Nest, that allows students to purchase non-perishable foods to donate to our local food bank, Dare to Care. Once a year, Sodexo sponsors an event called Helping Hands that raises awareness about hunger and accepts student donations for our local food bank. Last year students and faculty at the university teamed-up to donate nearly 7,000 pounds of food to Dare to Care.

Recycled Napkins: We use recycled content napkins at all of our dining locations on campus.

Reusable Mug Program: We sell reusable bottles and mugs at many of our dining locations and offer discounted refills when customers use these, or their own, reusable mugs.

Local Purchasing: We are proud to support many local farms and businesses. Below is a copy of our local purchasing map:

You can help in a number of ways:

• Take only the number of napkins you need per meal.
• Take only one cup for each beverage purchase.
• Use paper bags for carryout, where provided.
• Join our Recycle Mug Program or bring your own mug from home for beverage purchases.
• Recycle aluminum cans throughout campus at the designated recycling stations as well as at home.
• Dine in rather than carrying out.
• Get involved with your University and the Food Service Recycling Program.