The BCBP Environmental Task Force (ETF) was started a few months back with the goal of maximizing environmental sustainability in BCBP lab settings. The ETF is launching a new Green Lab initiative for the Biochemistry and Biophysics department to provide guidance to labs on actionable items for labs to move towards greater sustainability.
Participating labs will receive a BCBP ETF lab assessment spreadsheet with items and tasks to rate their current eco-friendly supplies and practices. Labs can track their progress over time and complete tasks to improve their overall Green Lab score. Labs that reach a certain level will receive a BCBP Green Lab badge to display in the lab and on websites. Sustainability resources, including but not limited to glove recycling, freezer maintenance, shutting the sash, and chemical disposal are available for participating labs and the department. Visit the ETF website here. If you are interested in participating in the BCBP Green Lab program, contact Holly Shepherd (holly_shepherd@med.unc.edu) to get started.
We encourage you all to start implementing improvements in your lab over the Fall semester. The only way to improve our environmental impact is to work together as a department– every little bit helps!
ETF members: Wolfgang Bergmeier, Dalia Fleifel, Abigail Ballard, and Holly Shepherd.
Check out our ETF website here. Get involved: If you are interested in being a part of our new Environmental Task Force (ETF), please fill out this super short survey with your name and e-mail by September 10th, more information will follow.
Related news: Students lead new sustainability initiatives in BCBP or Introducing BCBP’s new Environmental Task Force