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Langley Smith headshot.Langley Smith is a Program Specialist with Sustainable Carolina. Prior to joining the Sustainable Carolina team, Langley served as a sustainability ambassador for the Sustainability Division of the University of Georgia Housing Department. 

While campus was slowly awakening on an early September morning, the Student Union’s Great Hall was abuzz. That morning, Sustainable Carolina hosted 28 (caffeinated) partners for its annual Sustainability Social. This signature event helps students get acquainted with sustainability on campus.

It wasn’t all that long ago that I was in these students’ shoes. My introduction to sustainability at my alma mater, the University of Georgia, came through their Sustainable Housing program. During move-in, I noticed that my dorm didn’t have a dumpster-sized recycling container. Cardboard boxes were piling up, a tower next to the trash dumpster. From that moment, I made it my mission to make recycling more accessible. During my freshman year, I successfully advocated for a dumpster-sized recycling outside of my dorm.

I knew my work couldn’t stop there. I served as an EcoRep on my building’s leadership board. This gave me the opportunity to lead a pilot program for in-room recycling in spring 2019. We received a grant from Coca-Cola for about 1,000 recycling bins. Following the pilot, the executive director expanded the initiative, providing in-room recycling bins to 100% of our residential rooms, suites and apartments in fall 2023. That means approximately 9,000 residents were exposed to this program!

Finding Your Place

Sustainable Carolina’s Sustainability Social brings together university offices, community partners and sustainability-minded student organizations. University units like the UNC Institute for the Environment, Carolina Dining Services, the North Carolina Botanical Gardens, and Orange County Water and Sewer Authority set up hands-on activities and handed out environmentally friendly swag. Student organizations that made an appearance included Solar Equity, the Carolina Beekeeping Club, Epsilon Eta and the Renewable Energy Special Projects Committee.

Sustainable Carolina staff the day of the social.
Sustainable Carolina staff the day of the social.

Among all the student organizations and other sustainability opportunities, it’s sometimes overwhelming to find your place. Like many students at UGA, I was a part of Greek Life. Having already made sustainability strides with UGA Housing, I found myself serving as the Sustainability Coordinator for my sorority, Delta Phi Epsilon. I found it rewarding to be responsible for in-house and event waste management, along with all types of fun sustainability programming.

At the same time, I found my work with UGA Housing expanding. I became one of the first Sustainability Ambassadors, facilitating peer-to-peer sustainability education via events and tabling. I also had the chance to talk to students about campus sustainability initiatives. This position helped me grow as a professional and solidified my desire to work in sustainability.

Given my background, it’s no surprise that at events like the Sustainability Social, I’m in my element. This year, I talked to students about Sustainable Carolina’s new internship program, which launched this summer with almost 60 applicants. It’s hard to believe that I was talking to students about the application process for our spring internships, when our fall interns just started a couple weeks ago! We can’t wait to see how the program grows and are excited to see what’s in store for semesters to come.

Students are the lifeforce of Carolina. We love working with them and providing opportunities for sustainability education.

The Sustainability Social is a student-focused event, but faculty and staff are always invited to attend as well. In addition to learning about sustainability initiatives on campus and taking the first steps to get involved, students could also grab a breakfast pastry and iced coffee. For the third year, Meantime Coffee provided carafes for attendees. Because our sustainability goals align with this campus coffee shop, this has always been a great partnership. For example, Meantime has composting services, and since the beginning of their collaboration with CompostMates, they have been able to divert over 6,000 pounds of organic material from entering the landfill.

Just a couple days after this event, students had the opportunity to attend the 2024 Champion Sustainability Football Game. We advertised this event at the Social, and many students seemed excited to take to the stands for sustainability (and get a free t-shirt in the process). Because these two events get students excited to join the University in its sustainability efforts, we hope to continue hosting them every year.

Sustainable, Together

Sustainable Carolina first hosted this event in 2022, before I joined the team. Last year, when I attended and worked at my first Social, it was out in the Gift Plaza. This year, when we realized we had 28 partners interested in joining us, we made the decision to upgrade the event to the Great Hall.

While the Sustainability Social is one of our big fall semester events, it is just one of the many outreach events that we attend. We recognize the importance of familiarizing students with the Sustainable Carolina brand and want to encourage university collaboration. I think students feel more comfortable approaching their peers at student organizations, and we want to encourage these connections. But we also hope to bridge the gap between students and University offices. University departments often offer opportunities to students – whether that be work study, internships or research experiences.

Students are the lifeforce of Carolina. We love working with them and providing opportunities for sustainability education. We hope that next year, the Sustainability Social will be even bigger and better than it was this year.

Sustainable Carolina is a unit within the UNC Institute for the Environment. To learn more about Sustainable Carolina programs visit: https://sustainable.unc.edu/

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