Ithaca College

Submitted on behalf of the Office of Energy Management & Sustainability

In 2018, the Office of Energy Management & Sustainability and Dining Services partnered on a program called Fill It Forward – a nationwide program that rewards reusers, while also donating clean water to people in need. Students, faculty, and staff were given Fill It Forward stickers to affix to their resusable water bottles and asked to scan a barcode each time they refilled. Each scan is then tallied to track the College’s total footprint.

In March 2020, the College received the “Groundbreaker Award” for diverting 10,000+ single-use bottles, the equivalent of which is:

• 60 lbs of pollution prevented
• 1,719 lbs of carbon emissions saved
• 5,660 kWh of energy saved
• 300 lbs of waste diverted

Not only did IC save over 10,000 plastic bottles from recycling or landfill, Fill It Forward also made a donation to people in need with each reuse. Fill It Forward partners with charitable organizations that specialize in creating infrastructure that supports entire communities and, to date, has donated the equivalent of over 4 million cups of clean water.

The Office of Energy Management & Sustainability and Dining Services are thankful for the continued support for this important program and excited to share this important milestone with our campus community.