UVA's first Green Labs Resource Fair was held April 21, 2017 as part Earth Week celebrations and coordinated by UVA's Green Labs Working Group and Office for Sustainability.
The fair Fair was held in the Pinn Hall research center. This year's Earth Week theme "Awareness to Action" inspired the purpose of the Resource Fair: to connect lab personnel directly with science supply vendors and their products or services that reduce energy, water, and waste. The vendors showcased their take-back programs (gloves, packaging, medical gowns, etc.), the green manufacturing practices employed by their companies, Energy Star appliances, space saving storage techniques, and a variety of other goods and services.
The Fair showcased products and services from the following vendors:
- Fisher Scientific
- WR and Stirling
- MilliporeSigma
- Kimberly-Clark
- New England Biolabs
- Genesee Scientific
- Medline
- Corning
- USA Scientific
Participating University-based groups included:
- Green Labs Working Group
- UVA Procurement
- Health Systems Sustainability
- MERCI
After the fair, vendor participants shared their feedback with the Green Labs Working Group. Jens Erichsen with New England Biolabs said, "I am now focusing a little more on sustainability at other vendor shows that I participate in, and also heard some good questions about our polystyrene box recycling program, that led me to learn more about what happens when a box no longer can be used, and that information about the program is not clear on our website."
The Fair attracted attendees from a wide swath of the UVA research community, such as Biomedical Engineering, Cardiovascular research, Microbiology, Environmental Sciences, Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, and a host of other departments. Everyone enjoyed sweets from BreadWorks Bakery that fueled conversations on how to improve sustainability in energy-intensive labs.
The Green Labs Working Group is looking forward to hosting similar events in the future. In the meantime, the Green Labs program is committed to prioritizing sustainable procurement and encourages UVA lab faculty and staff to utilize the growing program as a resource. More information can be found on the UVA Green Labs webpage.