Annual Grant Competitions
The Sustainability Committee sponsors an annual grant competition to promote sustainability. The 2022-23 winners were:
Chad Overturf
Development of new composite wood from Styrofoam and organic waste materials
Dr. Chrystal Rose
Installation of a water bottle filling station in the UA Little Rock Pat Walker Center for Nursing Education Building
Shawn Bayouth and Julia Napolitano
Aerosol Can Recycling Program
Vasti Hernandez
Installing a Trash Boom on Coleman Creek
Building Renovations and Recycling
For the last thirteen years, all major building renovations and new construction received LEED accreditation from the U.S. Green Building Council. Additionally, all mechanical and electrical systems are upgraded to reduce the use of electricity and natural gas.
The university continues to operate a recycling program. This year, the campus recycled tons of paper, cardboard, aluminum, and plastic. Additional stations were added for battery recycling. To decrease trash contamination, receptacles were placed adjacent to recycling containers. Several large waste dumpsters were replaced to include units for cardboard collection.
Sustainability Day and Earth Day
In Fall 2023, our campus organized Sustainability Day. This event featured local vendors showcasing eco-friendly products and services as well as a station for electronic recycling. Entergy, the local electric provider, distributed 750 LED lamps, 750 power strips, and 2,500 LED light bulbs, promoting energy conservation among our campus community.
In Spring 2023, our campus celebrated Earth Day with local vendors sharing their products and services. Entergy provided free energy-efficient products. During this event, the Coleman Creek clean-up gathered 300 pounds of discarded waste.
Campus Garden
The UA Little Rock Campus Garden is a place for education, research, and outreach about food production, sustainability, economic botany, ecology, and more. The garden contains a variety of spaces, including in-ground vegetable gardens, Arkansas native plant gardens, an aerobic composting system, 16 raised beds, an apiary, an orchard, and two keyhole beds! We use only sustainable growing methods and techniques and are committed to reusing, recycling, upcycling, and sustainability including strategic water use and conservation.
