
Achieving Zero Waste
Game days and campus events are some of the largest producers of waste for many universities. But at The Ohio State University, we are working towards our events being zero waste and diverting trash from the landfill. Learn how we accomplish this feat with our zero waste efforts.
Contact recycle@osu.edu for more information.
Host a Zero Waste Event
What do you need to know?
Which facilities can host a zero waste event?
These facilities can host zero waste events at little to no additional costs to the planner.
- Blackwell Inn and Conference Center
- Faculty Club
- Fawcett Event Center
- Jerome Schottenstein Center
- Kennedy Commons
- Nationwide and Ohio Farm Bureau 4H Center
- Ohio Union
- Pizzuti House
- Wexner Center for the Arts
What are the pricing options?
Pricing is based on the size and day of the event. A price breakdown for materials and services can be seen on the application.
How many containers will I need?
We encourage you to think about the space the event will be held in. Visualize the space and determine traffic patterns. Use this information to come up with centralized locations for the zero waste units. Remember, the more centralized your collection is the fewer volunteers you will need to have a successful event.

Zero Waste at Ohio Stadium
Ohio Stadium is one of the largest stadiums in the country to continuously achieve zero waste status.
News

The Ohio State University Columbus campus joined more than 3.4 million college students and staff across the country in the 2023 Campus Race to Zero Waste competition. During the competition, Buckeyes saved more than 1.9 million pounds of materials from being buried in a landfill.

The Lantern recently highlighted a collaboration between Facilities Operations and Development (FOD), the Sustainability Institute (SI) and Susan Melsop, professor of design, to prompt conversations about sustainability and campus composting.

From handmade seed paper to a student-designed fold-out magazine, Facilities Operations and Development (FOD) is partnering with a Design Activism course to get the word out about composting around campus.