Hello, my name is Chloee Howard. I am a fifth-year student here at The Ohio State University studying Ecological Engineering. Growing up on a farm in rural Ohio I spent most of my time outside. Whether it was working with animals, tending to the garden, or just playing in the dirt, I loved the outdoors. As I got older my simple enjoyment of the outdoors turned into a passion for agriculture and environmental issues. I wanted to be somebody to protect the ecosystems I had come to love.

As you can imagine, moving from a one-stoplight town to Columbus was a major change. After my first few weeks living on campus, I noticed how much waste was produced in a city. From huge piles of trash during move in, to uneaten plates in the dining hall, people seemed to toss things to the side so carelessly. These observations concerned me of the impacts that Ohio State could be making on the environment. Luckily, at the time I was a member of the Kellogg-Moser Food Security and Sustainability Living-Learning Community where we had a weekly class that we learned about sustainability policies in place around Ohio State’s campus. This was my first introduction to “The Sustainable Campus” and the initiatives it supports.  

One of the most prominent and well-known efforts is the zero-waste program in the Ohio Stadium. As the largest collegiate venue in the country to continuously achieve zero-waste status, "The Shoe" diverts over 90% of game-day waste away from landfills through fan education, extensive recycling, and game-day composting. Beyond football Saturdays, this initiative extends into everyday campus life through expanded dining hall composting, university-wide single-stream recycling, and specialized waste reduction programs for offices and residence halls. Additionally, energy conservation, green construction standards, and sustainable transportation options further reinforce Ohio State's broader commitment to reducing its environmental footprint. Seeing these large-scale operations in action transformed how I viewed waste management, proving that with proper infrastructure, education, and collective community action, even a city-sized campus can create meaningful environmental change.

I believe that it is essential for Ohio State to continue transforming into a fully zero-waste university, and The Sustainable Campus fund is crucial to aiding these efforts. My time studying Ecological Engineering has given me the technical skills and passion to design sustainable systems, and as I prepare to graduate and launch a career dedicated to positive environmental change, I am reminded that these grand goals start right here in our own community. By investing in scalable campus sustainability, we are not just managing waste, we are building a resilient blueprint for the future. Please join me in supporting The Sustainable Campus fund to protect our environment now and safeguard our campus for future generations of Buckeyes.