When I started at MeritCare in 2008, there were no public recycling containers of any kind. And the only bin staff had was for office paper. For the largest employer in North Dakota I was disappointed and shocked.
I began a blog on our intranet called Our Green Heart. Within a y ear, we had recycling containers for plastic, aluminum, newsprint, magazines, paper and cardboard. Plus a process in place for batteries. We had mug clubs, classifieds for re-using materials, power-saving program and equipment recycling. And compostable products in the cafe.
I didn't do it alone! I formed a Green Team with staff, managers, physicians and leaders from across our health system.
Scratch & Win
We organized two major initiatives. One during Earth Week was "Scratch and Win." Here was the post launching it:
Scratch & Win Objective
Before you start filling your new paper recycle bins (at a cost of $20 per bin for shredding), let’s re-use our paper by creating scratch pads. How Green! How Lean!
Scratch & Win Rules
One email: Let the Go Green! Committee know you are entering the competition
One-sided: Collect non-confidential paper that has been printed on one side
One stack: Stack the paper in one central location in your area
One week: Add to the stack for one week—April 25 until May 1
Scratch & Win Process
Visit: On May 2, Go Green! Committee members will visit your locations, meet you, and check out your Green Zones
Measure: We will break out our rulers and measure you paper stack in inches… or dare we say feet
Collect: We will take your paper with us
Announce: We will announce each location’s total inches
Bind: We will send all the stacks to Print Services who will cut and drill or bind the paper
Supply: We will return your stacks as useful scratch paper (which you can reuse & then recycle)
The “Win” in Scratch & Win
As you go for the green in the Scratch & Win, we will honor the winner, not with medals nor cash, but green prizes, like reusable water bottles or ceramic mugs or green power strips… something that the winning area will select because it knows best what it needs to transform our culture, manage our resources, and demonstrate Our Green Heart.
The Big Question
Do you have the scratch it takes to go for the green?
By the end of the week, we trash-talked and stacked up lots of paper. By the week's end we had nearly 30 feet of paper from 24 participating departments.
Styro vs Bio
Our second initiative was seeing if we could successfully shift diners away from styrofoam. At the time we used 20,000 styrofoam plates a week! Along with 8,000 Styrofoam cups. 4,500 Styrofoam bowls. 12,000 forks, 8,000 knives, 8,000 teaspoons and 4,000 soup spoons.
We did a two round approach. The first round had use survey preference: What would diners prefer, styrofoam or biodegradable plates? After a week of surveying staff and guests, Styro has 186 votes and Bio has 1687 votes.
Round two had use compare useage. We made both plates available and labeled at food stations. We simply counted which plates were used. We wanted to see if useage matched preferences and if it changed over the course of the week. As important, we wanted to run the Bio plate through the wringer—hot foods, heavy portions, messy servings… you name it.
By the end of the week, useage didn't align with the strong preference numbers. But diners selected the plates in end.
Here are some of the materials used to promote the initiative.
I began a blog on our intranet called Our Green Heart. Within a y ear, we had recycling containers for plastic, aluminum, newsprint, magazines, paper and cardboard. Plus a process in place for batteries. We had mug clubs, classifieds for re-using materials, power-saving program and equipment recycling. And compostable products in the cafe.
I didn't do it alone! I formed a Green Team with staff, managers, physicians and leaders from across our health system.
Scratch & Win
We organized two major initiatives. One during Earth Week was "Scratch and Win." Here was the post launching it:
Scratch & Win Objective
Before you start filling your new paper recycle bins (at a cost of $20 per bin for shredding), let’s re-use our paper by creating scratch pads. How Green! How Lean!
Scratch & Win Rules
One email: Let the Go Green! Committee know you are entering the competition
One-sided: Collect non-confidential paper that has been printed on one side
One stack: Stack the paper in one central location in your area
One week: Add to the stack for one week—April 25 until May 1
Scratch & Win Process
Visit: On May 2, Go Green! Committee members will visit your locations, meet you, and check out your Green Zones
Measure: We will break out our rulers and measure you paper stack in inches… or dare we say feet
Collect: We will take your paper with us
Announce: We will announce each location’s total inches
Bind: We will send all the stacks to Print Services who will cut and drill or bind the paper
Supply: We will return your stacks as useful scratch paper (which you can reuse & then recycle)
The “Win” in Scratch & Win
As you go for the green in the Scratch & Win, we will honor the winner, not with medals nor cash, but green prizes, like reusable water bottles or ceramic mugs or green power strips… something that the winning area will select because it knows best what it needs to transform our culture, manage our resources, and demonstrate Our Green Heart.
The Big Question
Do you have the scratch it takes to go for the green?
By the end of the week, we trash-talked and stacked up lots of paper. By the week's end we had nearly 30 feet of paper from 24 participating departments.
Styro vs Bio
Our second initiative was seeing if we could successfully shift diners away from styrofoam. At the time we used 20,000 styrofoam plates a week! Along with 8,000 Styrofoam cups. 4,500 Styrofoam bowls. 12,000 forks, 8,000 knives, 8,000 teaspoons and 4,000 soup spoons.
We did a two round approach. The first round had use survey preference: What would diners prefer, styrofoam or biodegradable plates? After a week of surveying staff and guests, Styro has 186 votes and Bio has 1687 votes.
Round two had use compare useage. We made both plates available and labeled at food stations. We simply counted which plates were used. We wanted to see if useage matched preferences and if it changed over the course of the week. As important, we wanted to run the Bio plate through the wringer—hot foods, heavy portions, messy servings… you name it.
By the end of the week, useage didn't align with the strong preference numbers. But diners selected the plates in end.
Here are some of the materials used to promote the initiative.
