Conservation Council

SLU REUSES - STASH IT- DON'T TRASH IT!

Did you upgrade to a suite and now you need some extra furniture? Don't like those overhead lights in your room and want something with a softer glow? Need to pick up some hangers, binders, mugs or other odds and ends for your new room?

Before you head to the store...check out the ReCellar, in the basement of Reiff.
Everyone knows you find the best treasures in the basement...

In 2005 several students teamed up with the Conservation Council and Facilities Operations to create a Reuse Program. A group of hard working, environmentally aware students were responsible for the creation of the original "SLU Reuse Initiative" a program developed to prevent usable items from ending up in the dumpsters when students move out of their dorms at the end of the year.

While the Reuse Initiative started as a spring collection and single large fall sale, with storage of items in a trailer during the summer, interest has grown and the program has expanded.  The Initiative has become so popular that it has moved from its ephemeral home in first one and then two tractor trailers to the basement of one of the dorms.
Now all those great gently used items collected when students move out can be found in the basement of Reiff.

In previous years remaining items were donated to local charities however starting in 2008 the Reuse Initiative transitioned into a year round student run campus thrift store, the ReCellar.  Three students find jobs each semester collecting, cleaning, sorting and selling gently used and working items of furniture, small appliances, electronics, clothing, school supplies, amazing costumes for all your party needs and many other miscellaneous items that would otherwise have been sent to the landfill.

Most items are sold for less than a dollar and even the highly coveted furniture and large electronics sell for less than twenty dollars. All funds from the sale go toward helping the program continue by paying employee salaries, advertising costs and other operating expenses.  Hopes for the future include the move to a more accessible location and expansion of the store size.

What can you do to help the ReCellar thrive and promote sustainability initiatives at St. Lawrence?  Donate your gently used but unwanted items all year long (faculty and staff we'll take your items too as long as a college student is likely to use them).  Remember to look for donation boxes in dorms during move out each spring and to contact volunteers to move larger items from your room to the ReCellar.

E-mail for more information on donation details, employment, fall sale and spring collection.  Check SLUWire for hours.

The green bikes program was first initiated by students to provide the campus body with alternative transportation. We are at a point where demand is outpacing supply and we see the need to both continue and expand the current program and investigate the creation of a new program.

The current library rental program is working well. We just bought eight new bikes (bringing our total to eleven-money from the student government) and baskets for both the new and old bikes and we have purchased an impressive collection of tools and associated bike maintenance equipment (a gift of $2,500 was given to the program for tools/equipment). The largest issue with the current green bikes program is regular maintenance, we are working with the OP to determine if the gear room staff can do regular work on our entire bike fleet; this seems promising. The greatest issue with gear room staff would be finding someone who already has the knowledge to fix bikes or finding a way to train this employee. Another issue is respect to the bikes and return to the library on time/enforcement of late fines, while the new bikes seem to be being treated better, only time will tell if lack of respect and misuse will continue to be as great of an issue.

To get a semester long rental program off the ground we are in the process of finding a space on campus to store/maintain bikes that have been reclaimed by security. In the past we have run into issues finding a space that has enough room to fix bikes and is on the ground floor. There is a small possibility NOT to be missed that if the ReCellar moves to a new location (Old Java Barn on University Ave is being discussed) such a space could be shared with the bikes and maintenance done on store off hours.

Sign up to help wdnort07@stlawu.edu

Short term goals: mechanic for the spring and future and finding a good space
Long term goals: create a stronger bike culture on campus such that the combination of biking and other alternative transportation options can reduce the number of cars students bring to campus