Green Thumbs-Up to the "SPOTTED" program, also known as the "spot-a-mug" campaign. Co-sponsored by Ithaca Dining Services and the Resource and Environmental Management Program (REMP), this marks the second year the "SPOTTED" program has been in place.
The September 10 Intercom article by Julie Whitten, marketing manager for Ithaca Dining Services, does a good job of laying out the environmental benefits of reusing beverage mugs instead of disposable containers. https://www.ithaca.edu/intercom/article.php/20070907112924237
At the Community Picnic following Convocation, new reusable beverage mugs were distributed to all first-year students (and more than a few other members of the campus community who attended that great picnic!), and inexpensive recyclable mugs are available for sale in the food retail areas or at the Bookstore. Both the Bookstore and Dining Services also sell refillable NalgeneŠ-style bottles which are great for holding cold beverages without fear of plasticizers and other chemicals leaching into your drink (uck!).
Reusable beverage containers are readily available, inexpensive, and using them regularly presents real economic value, too! Filling your reusable mug or NalgeneŠ bottle gets you a 15-cent purchase discount every time you purchase a refill of fountain soda or coffee. Request a free Green Mountain/IC Coffee Club card and get it stamped each time you purchase Green Mountain coffee at College retailers -- buy 10 refills and your 11th cup is free. And of course, get "SPOTTED" using your reusable mug and you can receive a free refill!
You do the math: reusing your mug helps "green" the planet and saves you some "green," too!
https://www.ithaca.edu/intercom/article.php/20070910112506799