Get to know two of the many student heroes that sort your recycling at the Recycling Operations Center (ROC) on the Main CU Boulder campus. We interviewed Alyssa Landi and Jack Wertheimer, two enthusiastic student workers at the ROC. We asked them about a typical day of diverting waste to help make CU’s campus a better place. When speaking with Jack and Alyssa we quickly heard about their favorite part of working at the ROC. They had one simple message for us, “The people--the people here understand the importance of diverting waste. With lots of like-minded people who truly enjoy what they do, this place is a great environment”.
With the ROC being such a positive work environment, it was no surprise to also hear that a typical work day was enjoyable. Jack and Alyssa said that safety is priority number one. Ensuring that everyone is safe in the workspace enables the workers to effectively recycle.Â
Alyssa and Jack also had some amusing comments about items they have found while sifting through recyclable material. They talked with us about how there are “lost treasures” that can be found; relics of CU’s past buried away that the ROC workers come across every so often.Â
Along with the interesting relics, the students at the ROC also encounter some quite amusing, as well as unspeakably nasty, pieces of waste during their time recycling. This has included diapers and even a student’s wallet, just to name two. A true testament to the fact that all items from the Academic and Administrative buildings at CU that are put in recycling bins are hand-sorted and diverted by students.Â
Many new workers are often told in jest that when working at the ROC they probably won’t have to buy anything--if they are patient, it’s just a matter of time before they will find what they are looking for, because sooner or later practically everything comes through the recycling line.Â
Looking at the ROC, and all the positive energy this center produces for CU, we are incredibly lucky to have such committed staff helping toward our goal of Zero Waste 2025. As these workers do their part, let’s do ours and ensure that we are helping to reach our Zero Waste goal and bring others along with us! Make sure to stay up to date with Facilities Management for all the latest news on our Zero Waste campaign and to see all the exciting progress and events happening this year.