Caltech Green Labs
Green Labs News
We are happy to announce the official launch of the Green Labs program at Caltech. We are fully funded by the Division of Biology and Biological Engineering. Be sure to check out our growing catalogue of Green Labs resources, including our Action Plan, Green Labs Guide, Events (and Past Events!), and Green Labs Pilot Programs, as well as Caltech's Sustainability website for more information on Caltech's sustainability initiatives.
Please subscribe to our email listserv greenlabs@caltech.edu.
Caltech has taken notice of all of our hard work, and recently featured Green Labs for Caltech Weekly for Earth Month! Amazing work Green Labs!
Green Labs Certification
To get certified, finish the easy, 30-minute Green Labs Certification and submit it to sustainability@caltech.edu.
Upon submission your lab will become Green Labs Certified! Your lab will be awarded a brag-worthy Green Labs Certified plaque to post outside your lab spaces. Labs that complete the Green Labs Certification can also expect to receive support from Green Labs, the division, as well as select vendors. Certified labs also have access to items such as free recycling bins, signage, and exclusive Green Labs events.
Green Labs is challenging labs to finish their Green Labs Certification by November 30th. If your lab is certified by that day, your lab will be invited to come enjoy a Halloween treat on us to celebrate your sustainability excellence!
Green Labs Events
Monthly meetings are held on the second Friday of the month from 12 - 1:30 pm in Chen 240A. Lunch is provided. Please don't forget to RSVP here.
Green Labs Pilot Programs
Did you notice our Lomi tabletop composters in the Chen kitchen areas?
Green Labs has deployed it's first Pilot Program! We have installed Lomi tabletop composters in the three Chen kitchen areas in an effort to tackle food waste at Caltech. We will collect data from April to December on the usage of these devices to encourage adoption of sustainable lunchtime practices for labs in BBE. In just a few hours per run, these Lomi composters transform our food waste into usable compost dirt that our gardeners are able to use to fertilize the lovely gardens here at Caltech! Signs indicating what can and cannot go into our composters are posted near the garbage cans and near each Lomi.
Click here if you are interested in learning more about this or other Green Labs Pilot Projects.
Have you noticed new tip box recycling points near the mail boxes (or auditoriums *) in Alles, BI, Braun, Broad (*), and Chen?
Green Labs has partnered with USA Scientific to implement a pilot recycling program for pipette tip boxes and wafers from TipOne! NO PIPETTE TIPS PLEASE
Please deposit ONLY your TipOne tip boxes and wafers here, and USA Scientific will either redistribute these plastics to other labs in need, or will recycle these wafers and boxes within their company. In this way, USA Scientific is making the end-of-life waste challenges of their own products a priority, thus closing the loop, and making our labs more sustainable!
Contact Trinity Dorger from USA Scientific when the bins are full, so she can pick up our recycling bins and redistribute or recycle the pipette tip containers.
Click here if you are interested in learning more about this or other Green Labs Pilot Projects.
Green Practices in Action at Caltech
Since 2019, water consumption has increased by 17%.
Campus hazardous waste costs are down 12% since 2018.
100% of campus is powered by energy generated on site.