On July 8, CSU’s Surplus Property Department reallocated the proceeds from the fourth annual “Leave It Behind” tent sale to the Eco-Leaders Peer Education Program. The proceeds totaled $7,009.89 and will go toward funding eight Eco Leaders for the upcoming semester.
The Eco Leaders are students in the residence halls who help raise awareness about sustainability issues and encourage environmentally-responsible behaviors for an academic year. There is one Eco Leader per residence hall who helps educate students in their hall about sustainability issues such as waste reduction and energy conservation, and helps plan activities and campaigns.
How did this all start?
In 2012, CSU Surplus Property joined Housing & Dining Services in assisting with the “Leave it Behind” program to give students a way to donate unwanted items when moving out of the dorms. Now, still-usable items are diverted from the landfills and given a second home through the annual tent sales.
This year “Leave It Behind” kept over 36,000 pounds of still-usable items out of the landfill, while simultaneously supporting sustainability programs at Colorado State University. The annual tent sale gives the surrounding community an opportunity to purchase used items at a garage-sale-style event while supporting sustainable programs at CSU. Attendance at the tent sales has increased each year since 2012, and hit a record high of just over 5,300 people in 2015.
As the annual tent sale gains popularity, the growth in attendance has increased the amount of money able to be reallocated to the Eco-Leaders program each year. Many items not sold at the tent sales are sold at greatly reduced prices to institutions in the surrounding community or transferred to other CSU departments that are in need of the items. For example, this year the bedding and towels that were not sold at the sale were transferred to the CSU Veterinary Teaching Hospital.
CSU Surplus Property and Housing & Dining Services take great pride in hosting the event annually, and providing the surrounding community a chance to engage and support sustainable programs and practices with Colorado State University.
To learn more about CSU Surplus Property and their retail storefront open year round, visit the website. To learn more about and the Eco Leaders Peer Education Program, you can visit the CSU Housing and Dining Services website.
