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About Green Labs

The University of Georgia Green Labs program is committed to making UGA research labs more sustainable and efficient by reducing resource use, decreasing waste, and implementing best practices and technologies. Research laboratories have a substantial environmental footprint, using up to 10 times the resources of a classroom or office, and generating an estimated 25 times the waste. Researchers can reduce their environmental and social impact by embracing Green Labs initiatives. In addition to improving research processes, participants also benefit from prolonging the life of research equipment, better protecting research samples, and experiencing advantages in funding their research. This program was created by scientists for scientists and hopes to improve upon our research standards here at UGA.

UGA Green Labs Task Force

The UGA Green Labs program was recommended in 2015 by the UGA Green Labs Task Force, a group of 14 UGA stakeholders composed of UGA faculty, staff and a student. It included members from the Office of the Vice President for Research, Facilities Management Division, Franklin College of Arts and Sciences, the College of Veterinary Medicine, and the Environmental Safety Division. In 2016, Facilities Management Division created a position to coordinate the program, housed within FMD’s Safety team, and conveniently located in the same division with UGA’s Utility and Energy Management, Engineering, Waste Reduction Services, and the Office of Sustainability.  

Read more about the creation of this program in the Advisory Report of the UGA Green Labs Task Force  published on May 8, 2015.

 

     Image of Star Scott.                                                             

Star Scott, Program Manager

With a background in wildlife biology and ecology, Star Scott spent nearly a decade as a Research Professional in conservation-driven research at the University of Georgia prior to joining the Office of Research Safety.  During this time, she developed and advocated for a Green Labs program at UGA.  In 2016, the program was created with Star as the Green Labs Program Coordinator. She is a deep believer in the interconnectivity of all living things and is dedicated to making the research enterprise more sustainable & more equitable. Her current focuses include: resource conservation, landfill diversion, creating and promoting equitable systems, environmental and social justice, sustainable procurement, & building stronger teams through meaningful communication and psychological safety.  

Star serves on the national Board of Directors for the International Institute for Sustainable Laboratories (I2SL) , is a founding vice president of the Georgia chapter of I2SL, and is a Higher Education Association's Sustainability Consortium (HEASC) fellow and liasion on behalf of the Campus Safety, Health and Environmental Management Association (CSHEMA). She is also an active participant in the  I2SL Laboratory Waste Landfill Diversion Working Group, the I2SL  University Alliance Group, the Campus Safety, Health, and Environmental Management Association (CSHEMA) Environmental and Sustainability Community of Practice, and the Bringing Efficiency to Research (BETR) Grants Working Group.  

LinkedIn

 

melissa_drake

Melissa Drake, 2022 Green Labs Communication Intern, 2023 Communications Consultant

During the fall semester of 2022, I worked through the Office of Sustainability for the UGA Green Labs Program. With the goal of building program awareness, I conducted target research, studied website analytics, and created our communication plan. Through the guidance of Star Scott, I developed and executed the necessary strategies for website updates and management, social media activation, and digital and print graphic design. 

Upon graduation, I continued working directly for the Green Labs program as a Communications Consultant, providing further guidance with website restructuring and design. With a degree in Advertising, I plan to use everything I’ve learned through my coursework, the Office of Sustainability, and the Green Labs program to intersect the importance of sustainability within my career in digital marketing and advertising. 

LinkedIn

She is a member of the International Institute for Sustainable Laboratories (I2SL)Laboratory Waste Landfill Diversion Working Group, the I2SL  University Alliance Group, the Campus Safety, Health, and Environmental Management Association (CSHEMA) Environmental and Sustainability Community of Practice, and the Bringing Efficiency to Research (BETR) Grants Working Group.  Star is the CSHEMA  representative for The Higher Education Associations Sustainability Consortium (HEASC), as well as the co-vice president and a founding member of the Georgia Chapter of the International Institute for Sustainable Laboratories.

Anna_lentz

Anna Lentz, 2022 Green Labs Energy Efficiency Intern, 2023 Green Labs Student Staff

In the spring of 2022, I worked under an Office of Sustainability grant recipient in conjunction with the UGA Green Labs program to study the minimization and diversion of waste in UGA research labs. I performed waste audits for four research laboratories in UGA’s Complex Carbohydrate Research Center to survey sustainability and efficiency methods to decrease waste and implement a circular economy approach.

I am currently an OoS intern for UGA Green Labs studying energy efficiency within UGA’s Center for Molecular Medicine. I’m working to implement the energy-saving initiatives of shutting the sash, benchtop timers, and educating researchers on the safety of increasing the temperatures of their ultra-low freezers.

I am extremely passionate about ensuring all products are recycled or repurposed and I love educating and helping others to do the same. After graduation, I hope to work within the energy sector, as renewable energy and landfill gas are passions of mine.

LinkedIn

 jocelyne_robelro

Jocelyne Roblero, 2020 Green Labs Communication Intern

I developed and built the UGA Green Labs website as the Green Labs Communications Intern. Through user research, web design, and content creation we were able to create this informative website that houses resources to keep labs on campus green and make information accessible to lab researchers and coordinators. 

I currently provide Administrative Support on the Business Services Team at Boston Consulting Group and am a proud UGA Alumni. Go Dawgs! 

When I'm not outdoors, I love working on freelance web development projects such as website portfolios or ecommerce sites.

LinkedIn

John_DeRosa

John DeRosa, 2016 Green Labs Intern

I served as the first OoS Green Labs intern and was the only undergraduate who contributed to the Green Labs Task Force Report, along with a dozen UGA professionals. This report explored the feasibility and impact of lab sustainability efforts at UGA. 

I also obtained a campus sustainability grant to pilot the Green Labs program’s first initiatives as Principal Student Investigator. I was so fortunate to work with (the amazing) Star Scott as well as many of the initial researchers who supported and drove interest in lab sustainability as the program was beginning to hatch.

Since graduation I've been working in the water industry doing consulting primarily for municipal utilities and am now in the process of creating my own small consulting business, Cyano Consulting, LLC, which is geared mainly towards utilities and the water industry.

 www.cyanoconsulting.com

 LinkedIn

 

 

Partners & Resources 

The UGA Green Labs program has been fortunate to collaborate with remarkable National and International partners in our efforts to make our campus research spaces more sustainable.

ISL CSHEMA Logo Betr Grant Logo SPLC

The International Institute for Sustainable Laboratories is the global leader in advancing the safety and sustainability of laboratories and other high-tech facilities.

The mission of the Campus, Safety, Health and Environmental Management Association is to support and to educate campus-based EHS professionals to empower and to improve the EHS profession in campus environments.

The goal of Bringing Efficiency To Research (BETR) Grants is to connect efficiency expectations and sustainability to the funding of research.

Sustainable purchasing is purchasing that builds healthy communities, economies, and environments all along local and global supply chains.