Sustaining Success
The University of Delaware's newest bus, a 22-foot, 22-seat vehicle that runs on hydrogen, tooled around downtown Wilmington on Monday, Nov. 16, carrying some very important riders. U.S. Sen. Thomas R. Carper (D-Del.), U.S. Rep. Michael N. Castle (R-Del.) and Wilmington Mayor James Baker sat inside chatting about various options for transport in the region.
"Does it smell like French fries?" Colin Sweeney is used to hearing that question when he tells people about his 1986 Mercedes SDL, which he has converted to run on cooking oil. His answer? "No, it actually smells kind of sweet."
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Graphic Communications Center and Office of Publications
The Graphic Communications Center (GCC) and the Office of Publications are two distinct units within the Supporting Services Division www.udel.edu/SuppSrvc. Both units have incorporated sustainable ACTION @ UDs into their operations.
Graphic Communications Center
GCC provides the campus community with graphic communication services. This includes offering printing and copying services. GCC has incorporated the following practices into its everyday business practices to minimize negative environmental impacts:
- Utilizes recycled papers whenever possible
- Uses soy-based inks and environmentally safe chemicals
- Receives electronic work orders to cut down on paper use
- Recycles all Xerox toner cartridges
- Recycled over 30 tons of “off-cuts” and “trims” in 2006 and continues to do so every year
Publications Office
http://www.publications.udel.edu/
The Publications Office produces publications and other design services for the campus community. Like GCC, Publication has implemented environmentally-friendly practices to minimize the environmental impact of their work. These include the following:
- Working with vendors to take advantage of available press sizes as well as number of ink colors available in a single press run, designs for stock sheet sizes to reduce waste and utilize economical “house” sheets.
- Frequently utilizes paper with high post-recycled content.
- For low quantity publications, uses color quick copy to reduce waste and save resources.
- Reduces print quantities by supplementing with electronic versions. Works with University clients to reduce waste by emphasizing quality not quantity and present designs that cut down on waste.
The University of Delaware has joined other colleges and universities in supporting these two sustainabiity initiatives:
Association of University Leaders for a Sustainable Future/Talloires Declaration: View a .pdf (20kb)
American University and Presidents Climate Commitment:
Visit the web site