The University of Kentucky earned nearly $300,000 through a Kentucky Utilities (KU) Energy Rebate Program — an achievement that highlights the university’s ongoing commitment to efficient operations. The effort, led by Henry Walke, an environmental and sustainability studies and economics senior and lab sustainability intern in Utilities and Energy Management (UEM), focused on documentation and verification of maintenance on critical cooling infrastructure across campus.
A new, mobile art installation spotlighting the University of Kentucky’s local and sustainable food systems will be on display on campus starting this fall. The student art competition, sponsored by UK Recycling, The Food Connection and UK Dining, aims to highlight student art and educate the campus community on UK’s efforts to source food locally, support agricultural industries and turn food waste into compost.
BBN Tackles Plastic, an initiative aimed at reducing campus plastic waste through the collection of plastic bags, is expanding into select campus residence halls. The project, created by Shayna Bassi, a UK Recycling intern and communication science and disorders senior in the College of Health Sciences, has been integral at removing plastic bags from campus landfill waste.
Join us for a screening of the short film "River Cowboys", a film documenting the cleanup of a local stream by an eastern Kentucky community member. Followed by a discussion and Q&A with Laura Gregory of the Kentucky Waterways Alliance.
Refreshments provided
Contact Kenton Sena for additional questions: kenton.sena@uky.edu.
Chase Lobaldo, 3rd year product design student, was working in the Fabrication Lab at the University of Kentucky’s College of Design, when the Office of Sustainability approached him with a clear goal in mind: create a multi-person workspace where students, employees, and visitors can work and conversate in front of the large glass windows overlooking the intersection of S Limestone and S Upper.
LEXINGTON, Ky. (Feb. 12, 2026) — The University of Kentucky has earned a STARS Silver rating in recognition of its sustainability achievements from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE). STARS, the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System, measures and encourages sustainability in all aspects of higher education.
LEXINGTON, Ky. (Oct. 13, 2025) —The Thrifty Cat, UK’s new ‘campus free store’, started as the independent project of Olivia Smith, a UK Recycling intern through the Sustainability Internship Program.
LEXINGTON, Ky. (Sept. 11, 2025) — The sustainability internship program has been around since 2016, giving undergraduates the opportunity to engage with others through campus projects, research, and outreach within sustainability. Each intern works within a unit within the sustainability department, strengthening their professional and technical skills while enhancing their leadership skills. This year, 17 interns represent the sustainability department.
