Sun Devil Dining makes sustainability delicious - we’re providing Fair Trade certified coffee in all our dining hall locations, we’ve conveniently packaged and clearly labeled local and organic foods with our Green N’ Go offerings in all convenience stores, and we are constantly strengthening relationships with local growers like Maya Dailey at Maya’s Farm at South Mountain.

But our actions certainly aren’t all focused on providing seasonable, local, organic and sustainable foods to customers in the dining halls and convenience stores - we’ve also taken sustainability into our kitchens with our Green Captain program.  Who else besides the people who work every day in the kitchens are best positioned to identify and implement sustainability practices?

Our Green Captains are dining service employees from each dining location who dedicate their time and energy throughout each school year to champion sustainability in every location. Green Captains help develop sustainability programs and practices in Sun Devil Dining kitchens, promote a culture of sustainability among employees and engage customers in our sustainability initiatives.

The Green Captain program is guided by our:

• Semester-long competitions between kitchens with new challenges each month on recycling, energy conservation, sustainable food, water conservation and personal sustainability.
• Monthly meetings where we share best practices, discuss obstacles and solutions, and share sustainability information.
• Sustainability Spotlight Boards focus on a specific sustainability issue and competition each month in both our kitchens and the dining halls. Next time you’re in a Sun Devil Dining hall check out the latest Sustainability Spotlight Board! Most are located near cash registers or dish return stations. (image below)

By Maren Mahoney

Sustainability Coordinator

Sun Devil Dining