SCHOOL DINING
STUDENTS MAY BE CAMPUS DINING'S BEST AMBASSADORS IN SUSTAINABILITY As college and university dining programs grapple with the question of how to be more sustainable, their own diners may help them get the message across. W hat’s driving sustain - ability at college dining programs? For some operations, it’s the din - ers themselves. Well, REYNA ESTRADA, ASSOCIATE EDITOR, FOODSERVICE DIRECTOR
various groups together. Since then, the student government has taken over the committee, but BC Dining remains active and still attends the meetings. In addition to student sustainability groups, the dining team also works with six student sustainability interns and a student manager. “[Working with student interns] really just charges me up, gives me good ideas," Emery says, noting that working with the student interns is her favorite part of the job. "It gives me the opportunity to hear what the pulse is on campus, what students are saying. And they're just kind of like our ambassadors. They are always trying to help us make the program better." And, Emery says, while these student groups obviously don’t represent the opinions of every
student at BC, they work as a small vocal group that is passionate about driving environmental change. “So, there are some students that are really interested in it and involved and active and then there are some that aren't," she says. "And so, we see it as part of our job to try to educate them, give them options." Sustainability continues to be a hot topic throughout the foodservice industry as more and more players consider the environmental impact that comes along with serving food. In FoodService Director’s annual State of C&U survey, we asked our readers to consider trends in sustainability in college foodservice to get an understanding of the environmental issues impacting the industry today. We also explore the way in which operators and other
at least, diners are one of the major drivers of sustainable dining, accord- ing to Beth Emery, director of dining services at Boston College (BC). As is the case in most college communities, many students at BC are very involved in advocating and making their voices heard on topics like social justice and the environment. There are about eight different student sustainability groups on campus, and each focus on different areas of sustainability, such as purchasing, waste and other avenues. About six years ago, BC Dining started a Sustainability Action Committee in an effort to bring the
SUSTAINABILITY OUTLOOK 2025 20
ILLUSTRATION: MIDJOURNEY/NICO HEINS
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