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Recycling & Waste

Two students wearing T-Shirts that read "Penn Sustainability" and masks are standing over a cardboard box next to a pair of recycling bins. Behind them is a full recycling dumpster with broken-down cardboard.

At Penn, we like to recycle, reuse, and repeat. Single-stream recycling is the Penn standard, with specialty recycling programs positioned across campus. Our recycling and waste initiatives focus on holistic minimization and diversion.

Recycling & Waste

At Penn, we like to recycle, reuse, and repeat. Single-stream recycling is the Penn standard, with specialty recycling programs positioned across campus. Our recycling and waste initiatives focus on holistic minimization and diversion.

Two students wearing T-Shirts that read "Penn Sustainability" and masks are standing over a cardboard box next to a pair of recycling bins. Behind them is a full recycling dumpster with broken-down cardboard.

Penn’s 2009 Climate Action Plan paved the way for significant waste diversion progress. Today, innovative and effective solutions continue to come from Penn’s Environmental Sustainability Advisory Committee’s (ESAC) Waste and Recycling Subcommittee.

Penn also implements recycling programs like Green2Go and PennMoves, helping limit disposable items headed to the landfill. Regular waste and recycling audits continue to identify trends and find new ways to ensure a clean future. 
 

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Our Progress

31,500

Masks and 17,200 gloves recycled in FY22 made Penn the number one U.S. university for mask and glove recycling.

22.8%

Waste reduction in FY22, compared to FY09.

171,000

Disposable clamshells eliminated annually through Green2Go program.
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Move In Green at Penn

As part of the Move In Green program, Penn students help to instill a culture of environmental advocacy from the very first day on campus.

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