Adventure Rewards Program

Collect stickers for any of the suggested actions and win prizes!

• 5 points and get free Green Labs stickers for your lab
• 10 points and your lab gets plants
• 15 points and your lab gets donuts
• 20 points and your lab will be invited to a movie night!
• 23 points and your lab gets to choose the movie (and come to the movie night)
• 25 points and your lab gets to choose the movie night snacks (and come to the movie night)

• Cold Storage
  • Add signage to your freezer doors to keep samples organized and easy to find
  • divest unneeded samples from your cold storage and tell us about it (or send us photos!)
  • Conduct at least one freezer defrost (and send us pictures!)
  • Complete the International Freezer Challenge forms
  • Chill up your -80C to -70C
  • upgrade your freezer to a more sustainable model
  • consolidate samples to get rid of a freezer your lab no longer needs or share with another lab
• Education
  • Get Green Labs Certified!
  • encourage another lab to get green labs certified and share your referral
  • Introduce a 5 minute sustainable update in your lab meeting (and send us slides or information)
  • Give a sustainability-inclusive presentation at a conference
  • Come to at least one Green Labs meeting
  • come to a Sustainability event on campus
  • share your labs sustainability best practices with green labs or during lightning talks
• Sustainable Purchasing
  • Pick up items at the restore in alles 181
  • donate items to the ReStore in Alles 181
  • use the sustainable purchasing item list guide to purchase items through amazon business
  • consolidate ordering to reduce the carbon emissions and packaging waste of your orders
  • adjust printer habits: reduce paper waste by printing less, reduce the use of staples, print double-sided, print only in b&w, or use 100% recycled printer paper and tell us what you did
  • purchase an item with an act label or energy star certification and tell us about it
  • Promote compliance with your lab's existing sustainable practices (post posters etc)
  • send a vendor our list of sustainable purchasing questions and share the information with us
  • book your travel through concur or travel a sustainable way (eg. via train rather than flying)
  • attend a conference virtually
  • Host a sustainable event on campus and send us what you did! (It could be as simple as ordering from the Restaurant Guide, choosing vegetarian or vegan options, or going full zero-waste!)
  • Switch to a more sustainable product and send us an explanation or slides explaining your choice
  • complete and Share your chemical inventory with us
• Energy and water Conservation
  • change settings to eco-mode or more efficient modes (eg turn off screensavers, ensure your computer goes into sleep mode after 5 mins etc) and share with us
  • conduct a survey of your lab to ensure no taps are leaking or your autoclave is not dripping when in use (if you find any leaks, report them through aim!) and tell us what you did
  • run autoclaves or dishwashers only when full and send us strategies of how you do that
  • Install energy efficiency stickers on equipment and ask labs to follow the guidance on those stickers
  • do you autoclave pipette tips? try your protocols without this step to see if autoclaving is necessary
  • Have Green Labs Interns conduct an Energy Audit of your lab
  • have green labs interns install fume hood sensors on your fume hoods
  • Agree to shut off one piece of equipment overnight (such as a water bath) for at least 1 year using a timer plug
  • make your equipment available to share with other labs
• Recycling and waste management
  • Participate in recycling program at Caltech (styrofoam, pipette tip box, lab plastics)
  • update signage in your lab with best waste management practices or the 12 green chemistry principles poster etc.
  • send back items through a return program
  • appoint a waste/recycling coordinator for your lab who can help spot-check waste, conduct small waste audits, sort, and educate other lab members
  • Participate in the Spring Clean Lab Cleanup and submit before/after pictures
  • Conduct a Protocol Audit and share the results
  • Conduct a Waste Audit and share the results
  • utilize green chemistry practices to switch out reagents for more eco-friendly versions, or use computer simulations or micro-scale techniques to reduce waste
• BONUS ACTIONS
  • If you show your lab has gone above and beyond you can earn a bonus point if you share it with us!