Photo 1 of 1

Photo by Alex Wong

Alvar Ortiz (COL '11) recycles empty plastic bottles, one of the categories recylced goods measured in RecycleMania.

RecycleMania, the annual intercollegiate competition to reduce waste and boost recycling, is back.

Georgetown, which first entered the contest last year, has expanded its participation to three of the four categories — the Stephen K. Gaski Per Capita Classic, Gorilla Prize and Targeted Materials.

The Per Capita Classic measures the amount of recyclables per person universities recover, while the Gorilla Prize measures the total tonnage recycled by a school. Categories in the Targeted Materials competition include amount of bottles, cans, corrugated cardboard, food service organics and paper recycled.

Jon Cohn (COL ’10), EcoAction publicity director, said that Georgetown needs to increase awareness around campus regarding recycling and the competition.

“For the long term, it would help to get standardized signs on the recycling bins regarding what can and can not be recycled,” he said.

He added that it is easy for students to contribute to the effort.
“[Do] something small, keep track of your waste. There are things we use every day that can be recycled.”

Founded in 2001 by Ed Newman of Ohio University and Stacy Edmonds Wheeler of Miami University, RecycleMania aims to increase the amount of recycled materials and reducing the amount of waste in dining halls and dormitories at North American colleges and universities.

“Georgetown competed last year. It was their first,” Newman said. “I’m not so sure they did as well in RecycleMania as they did in basketball, but we say everyone who competes wins if they can get more recycling diverted from their trash and maybe beat the school they like to compete with, a rival, another school in your athletic conference.”

“Trash the competition, but you can recycle a lot of things,” Cohn challenged.