Katherine JohnsonHello all! I’m Caitlyn Weaver, UK Student Government Association’s Director of Sustainability for the 2024-2025 academic year. I am a dual degree Environmental and Sustainability Studies and Business Management junior who is devoted to creating change. My goal this year is to make the student body aware of UKSGA’s existence, both within sustainability and beyond. I am committed to not only creating a sustainable campus, but a campus in which everyone feels their voice has been heard. This, above all, is the most important first step towards reaching sustainability in my eyes, and directly aligns with what UKSGA aims to achieve. In creating a more sustainable campus, we can then inspire larger changes on the local level and lead by example for other universities.
For years, UKSGA has been attempting to make The Arboretum, Kentucky’s State Botanical Garden, more accessible. I am happy to announce that those changes are finally being made thanks to collaboration with UK Sustainability and UK Transportation. Construction has begun on the Greg Page parking lot to not only improve safety but to pave a path to the Arboretum’s Walk Across Kentucky route. This, along with changes near the Green Route bus stop, creates an ADA accessible and pedestrian-friendly way to reach the botanical garden. The Arboretum has been home to many environmental-based events as well as jobs and volunteering opportunities for students, but without a personal vehicle it’s difficult to find a safe way to walk or bike to the main entrance. Hopefully, these changes will lead to more students being able to experience one of UK’s landmarks and connect with local flora. A step-by-step guide on how to reach the Arboretum via walking and public transport will be presented once construction is complete.
As a student who lived in residence halls for the first two years of my academic career, I got to witness first-hand the waste management situation on both central and north campus. Specifically, I took note that there were no landfill bins provided in the dorm rooms, only recycling. Due to this, many students were using the recycling bins for landfill, thus prompting them to not recycle. Once made aware, UK Recycling and UK Housing collaborated and will be purchasing landfill bins for trial in Lewis Hall. Along with this, we are brainstorming ways to educate residents on proper recycling procedure and in the early days of planning plastic grocery bag collection points within residence halls to then bring to grocery stores for proper recycling. If successful, these initiatives combined could bring change to the amount of waste produced by residence halls, and bring us closer to a sustainable campus.
While just a snapshot of what I have done and plan to do throughout this next year, I hope those of you reading this are just as excited as I am. Even though it’s ambitious, I hope to influence not only the way my fellow executives in UKSGA approach sustainability, but the student body as a whole. Through representing students on various committees, encouraging organizations to collaborate, and continuing the work of those who held this position before me, I will lay groundworks to ensure the UK Student Government Association always considers sustainability for years to come. I view the work we do as an organization to be crucial for students to get the most out of their experience here, and am motivated to make them feel proud of their campus.
