Sun Power with Solar Panels at HCC Brandon Campus

Originally published by Amber C. Lee in Sodexo at HCC's monthly report May 2013:

This month's sustainability focus is all about sun and sun power! Florida, as you probably already know by it's nickname the Sunshine State, has a great resource that is renewable and abundant: solar power. We've discussed how important reducing, reusing, and recycling is to bettering our collective sustainable future and providing better service to our client. Exploring alternative energy sources is important too. HCC has recognized the opportunity of solar power and is already leading Tampa Bay by their example.

Most recently, Plant City campus students installed two solar charging stations as a legacy project so that students, faculty and staff could better enjoy the outdoor spaces on campus and charge their laptops, phones or other electronics using only solar energy.

Last month in May, Sodexo participated in an international event promoting clean energy awareness called “Hands Across the Sand.” As we are all Tampa Bay residents, our bay and ocean are an important resource that continues to be mistreated, misused and polluted. Thousands of concerned citizens joined hands across the beaches of Tampa and the world to represent the need for cleaner energy and visualize our local environment's future, a legacy we all share.

Last year, HCC worked together with TRANE to have a solar panel installed at BR campus that provides less than 1% of the energy used on campus. The solar panel serves as learning tool and visual reminder to all campus visitors of our commitment to cleaner energy. Just last week at the HCC Sustainability Council meeting, TRANE also introduced a online digital energy use monitor to help HCC monitor energy use by campus and by building, making the data more visible and trackable.

HCC also worked previously with Chargepoint to have one of the first 100 electric car charging stations of Tampa Bay installed at Dale Mabry campus (by the Science cluster) and currently does not charge for the energy “fill-up” to electric vehicles. While the energy comes from the regular power grid and not solar, electric cars typically use significantly less energy and give off less pollution from use.

Solar power is an abundant resource that we can be proud HCC has taken a lead in implementing in the Tampa Bay community. What ways can you support alternative energy and how can you reduce your personal consumption? Sometimes it's as easy as turning off the light and opening the blinds.

No Action Too Small When It Comes To Sustainability

Originally published by Amber C. Lee in Sodexo at HCC's monthly report April 2013:

Looking back after the conclusion of Earth Month (April), what kind of impact did you have on your campus? Did you make an extra effort to affect your campus and community, even in a small way? Small actions can add up in a big way over time. Sometimes we are waiting for someone else to step up and take lead when we need to be leaders, especially when it comes to sustainability, our work, and the well-being of our community.

For your reference, sustainability at its simplest means making choices with regards to people, the planet, and our economy. Sodexo is already a leader of our industry in sustainable practices and was recognized again last month by DiversityInc with a #1 ranking on the 2013 Top 50 Companies for Diversity List. Diversity and social justice are important principles of sustainable decision making.

Locally Sodexo made a difference last month by volunteering with Feeding America Tampa Bay (formerly Second Harves) for our StopHunger campaign. Sodexo supervisors volunteered a combined 12 hours and helped to bag a huge amount of cooking potatoes for Tampa Bay families in need. Sodexo is committed to ending hunger and famine world-wide through our StopHunger campaign.

Supervisor John Pacheco of the District Offices Campus saw an opportunity to help the environment and improve our image with the client: when he noticed that the mangroves lining the seawall at the walking path were ridden with plastic shopping bags, fishing line and other garbage, John took the initiative to clear a large amount of the waste out. He ended the clean up with a large bin full of waste and a more appealing waterline for the campus.

Keep up the great work, team! Remember that no action is too small to keep us moving in the right direction. To find out more information or comment, please email Amber C. Lee.

The "Better Tomorrow Plan"

Originally published by Amber C. Lee in Sodexo at HCC's monthly report March 2013:

Sodexo is a recognized leader in global sustainability. The Better Tomorrow Plan is Sodexo's strategic, progressive journey to address the sustainability issues identified as being important to our business and our stakeholders. The Better Tomorrow Plan outlines 14 key commitments for action and stresses the key importance of dialogue and joint actions with our stakeholders.

So why should the Better Tomorrow Plan be important to you? The nature of our business, which is greater than just janitorial work or dining services, makes us an integral and embedded part of the community in which we serve. Our clients that our business is centered around are also our neighbors, colleagues and friends. The Better Tomorrow Plan impacts our individual job, our clients at HCC, and the Greater Tampa Bay Community.

Who is involved in the Better Tomorrow Plan? Everyone is the short answer. The Better Tomorrow Plan is being implemented in the executive levels of Sodexo, at educational sites like ours, and at all of our over 33,900 locations around the world. Sodexo gives us the unique ability to make an impact globally and locally just by doing our jobs well.

When is this happening? It already has. Implementation of the Better Tomorrow Plan has already began company-wide. Major progress is being made at HCC, with the hiring last semester of Sodexo's Resource Coordinator and the development of several projects, such as the Waste Elimination Station (WES) campus digital inventory & mapping of sustainability features.

Where do I start? As a Sodexo employee, you have a lot to be proud of already, but we need your help. Just this month Sodexo was recognized at the World Economic Forum for its corporate sustainability practices with three awards: Sector Leader, Gold Class, and Sector Mover. Go team.

To find out how you can be an ambassador for Sodexo, contact Amber C. Lee or ask your campus supervisor today.

Every Piece Of Waste Has A Story

Originally published by Amber C. Lee in Sodexo at HCC's monthly report January 2013:

"Every Piece Of Waste Has A Story"

As you prepare for your holiday break and to come back to campus in January, think about the waste you generate in your everyday activities or when selecting your college supplies. Every piece of paper, pencil, tool, food product, or otherwise that enters your personal waste stream has a story. It is our personal responsibility to reduce our personal waste stream as much as possible, lessening the impact on our blue planet and the green in our wallet.

When choosing a new product or tool, are you thinking about how much packaging is used or if it was made with recycled materials? Can you reduce your shipping cost and the amount of packaging by combining orders? Reducing and making conscious choices with sustainability in mind is the first step in reducing your personal waste stream.

Take a look at the bottles of water the next time you’re at the store: many companies are now offering up to 50% recycled plastics or reduced bottle sizes that can then be re-used and recycled after it enters your waste stream. When you make conscious purchases, every dollar you spend is a vote to which companies continue to produce or serve our market. You have a direct impact with every purchase to encourage positive for the planet products.

How are you going to use that product or item once it’s in your personal waste stream? Will you use it once and throw it away, or can you re-use that can to plant flowers in, or fix and item when it brakes instead of purchasing the latest model. When you refuse to fix or re-use an item, you are effectively choosing to significantly shorten that item’s life span. Choose to re-use as much as possible and simply fix your broken things instead of replacing them. Just because it isn’t the newest edition or release, doesn’t mean what you have isn’t usable or donatable to someone that will use the item.

Once you have thoroughly used a product past its life span, how is that product leaving your personal waste stream? Think about the things you use and how to get the most use not only for the planet, but for your own wallet too. You create the story for every piece of waste or product that enters your life.

Let’s look at buying a cup of coffee. Did you bring your own thermos? Did you purchase from our dining areas that offer certified fair-trade coffee? Did you recycle your paper cup or use it for a second cup? Do you know if the grounds and filters are being recycled for compost? Did you get a discount on campus for using your own cup?

These are great questions to ask, however it starts with a personal commitment to sustainability. A commitment to sustainability means making conscious decisions that are good for people, the planet and the economy. When you choose sustainability, everyone wins. Discover more about the waste in your life and learn how you can make an impact by contacting Amber C. Lee.

Represent: Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee for Tampa Bay Regional Metropolitan Planning Organization

Downtown yesterday, I was asked if I would represent Eastern Hillsborough County's interests on the Bicycle & Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC) for the Tampa Bay Regional Metropolitan Planning Organization. Katharine and I were there to represent the college and our need for adequate bike lanes to our campuses as a way to reduce our carbon footprint.

 The committee's website is here.

Mmmm.. So Good.. An Alternative to Soy Milk

Making the switch to vegetarianism? I recently watched the free Youtube documentary entitle "Home". I highly recommend seeing this film.

Watch it here when you have the time.

What struck me the most in the film is that it takes 10x more energy to produce an animal meat product that a vegetable or fruit product- meaning more water, feed, space, etc - and creating 10x the carbon footprint. Yes, animal protein was extremely important initially in our species' brain development, and I know I'll probably want a thick, juicy steak grilled to perfection at some point down the road (my mouth is watering at the thought). Thanks to greater availability of non-meat imitations, soy products and increased grocery availability in general for most Americans, its not hard to shift your eating choices away from that of meat products.

If you are adapting to a vegetarian lifestyle (no matter what type), try this product as a non-soy milk replacement: Silk Pure Almond. I've tried the vanilla flavor so far, and it tastes DELICIOUS! Its low in calories and high in calcium, vitamins D & E, and protein. I feel like I'm having a milkshake when I'm drinking a glass... Yum!!

Check out all the great reasons to switch to Silk Pure Almond here.

Invitation to Love (poem)

I wrote this short poem after my KINS Founders weekend: an enlightening and connecting weekend with some very special people I now call my KINS. We shared an afternoon walk of silence and meditated on our individual vision of a green, vibrant Tampa Bay. Sitting at my computer desk at home, I recall that inspiring afternoon:

Invitation to Love

 

the earth seemed inviting

as the grass crunched under my feet

the sun fell warmly on our bodies

as we stood in communion

with the earth, as one organism

the metal and glass are a contrast

to our natural place of belonging

the love extends from the earth

in a way that man-made never could

Helen, Georgia    taken by: Amber C. Lee