Addy Pittenger & David Luffman, Arts and Life Editor Emeritus & Special to The Denisonian–
On Feb. 5, Jamie Margolin delivered her lecture, “‘The Child Stars at the End of theWorld’—The Youth Climate Movement Phenomenon, and What Comes Next?” Margolin, a 22-year-old activist, shared her experience founding “Zero Hour,” an international youth-driven climate justice organization, and
educating people about the roots of the climate crisis.
The lecture got us thinking about one of the biggest issues regarding climate change activism, that being the need for a mindset change. Starting to incorporate sustainability into your daily life can be difficult. But it isn’t impossible. One of the best ways to do this at Denison is by taking advantage of the Greenie Program.
A greenie is nothing more than a reusable and washable container. Using a greenie is simple: when ordering your meal at Slayter, ask for a greenie, and the workers will put your meal in it. After you’re done with your meal, put the greenie in one of the many bins placed in Slayter to be eventually washed and reused in the following days by other students.
A previous Denisonian article in 2021 acknowledged the return of “The Greenie Program” during the heights of COVID-19, where students would sign up for the program using their student ID numbers. One of the main concerns with the program at the time was cleanliness, but the article reassured that each container was thoroughly washed and sanitized.
Even at the height of the pandemic, cleanliness was not an issue in using a Greenie. Three years later, the process of obtaining a greenie does not even require signing up for the program anymore. They are now provided at the simple request of the students. The purpose of the Greenie Program is to reduce the amount of waste being thrown out.
By default, students receive their meals in either plastic containers or paper boxes. However, it doesn’t take much additional effort to ask for a greenie, and using them is a major way to reduce both plastic and paper waste. Students don’t even have to wash the containers themselves—that part is done for them.
Both of us have been avid supporters of the Greenie Program, but think that Denison should take things a step further by completely eliminating non-greenie containers from Slayter , as well as utilizing metal silverware rather than plastic at Slayter. We both agree that the convenience and effectiveness of the Greenie Program is a privilege for students. The biggest issue with the Greenie Program is the apparent shortage of Greenies available. After speaking to the Denison Green Team, they shared some insight into why the campus is losing greenies. Some students have been throwing them out instead of properly returning them, and each Greenie is expensive to replace. But if Denison invested in fully getting rid of plastic containers there should be no reason why, if greenies were no longer a novelty, this waste couldn’t be avoided. It’s all about developing the habit of reducing waste material, reusing the utilities we have at our disposal and incorporating sustainability into peoples’ everyday lives.
Climate change and pollution are increasingly impacting our lives. The global impacts are well documented, but what can we do about it here at Denison?
Greater usage of greenies would be a great first leap towards sustainability. Increasing greenie usage in Slayter and even using them as to-go boxes in other dining halls would force a change in mindset for students by developing their climate consciousness. It wouldn’t end just at Denison; each student would bring this awareness to their communities, bringing change to how we treat our environment far outside of Granville.