It’s probably not a stretch to say that several hundred meetings, workshops, colloquia, events, conferences, and other formal and informal gatherings take place every day at UC Davis. Those gatherings often involve food and drink, print materials, decorations, and transportation. What an amazing number of opportunities to practice the sustainability that we teach here at UC Davis! From waste reduction to thoughtful food and product purchasing to sustainable transportation, there are many ways to hold a pleasant and sustainable event that furthers our campus goals.

Next Wednesday, Feb. 16, a special event will be held on campus: Plan Green. The brainchild of Conference and Event Services, Plan Green is now in its third year of teaching people responsible for organizing meetings or events how to bring sustainable practices into their gatherings.  Lina Layiktez, Director of Conference and Event Services, told me, “Since we are one of the central event organizing departments on the campus, we took it upon ourselves to help led the charge towards greener events on our campus. We hope to continue to grow Plan Green in the years to come.”

Plan Green has incorporated the popular (and tasty!) lunchtime catering vendor showcase, where approved caterers present samples of some of their menu choices to campus event planners. All approved caterers provide zero waste options for their services, such as reusable or compostable dishware and utensils.

A special bonus at this year’s Plan Green is that the Federal EPA is presenting two awards to UC Davis for efforts in waste reduction: the first, which will be accepted by Athletics, is for our national Game Day Challenge win at our (almost) zero waste stadium; the second, which will be accepted by Fleet Services, is for our program to remove and replace lead weights from vehicle tires.

You can still register for Plan Green, which will be held from 8:00 AM to 12:00 PM in the Memorial Union Room II. The showcase will be held from 11:30 AM to 1:00 PM in Freeborn Hall. We hope to see you there!