As the spring semester ended and move-out season commenced during the first week of May, Emerson students had the option to donate unwanted items to Griff Gives, an initiative created by Emerson Sustainability to reduce waste during the busy period.
The initiative ran from May 1 to May 12. Last year, almost 20,000 pounds of donations were collected.
Griff Gives began in Spring 2022, and has expanded its donation capacity greatly since then.
“The first year, we had a bit of trouble marketing, so a lot of people didn’t really know it was happening. Things were piling up in the trash rooms that could have been sent somewhere else,” said Elizabeth Pereira, a graduating senior climate justice fellow and Griff Gives shift leader.
Pereira works with Emerson Sustainability year-round to get students excited about climate justice and civic engagement as it relates to environmentalism. It is the end of the year that is the busiest, according to Pereira.
“Once [move out] starts, it’s really just all hands on deck,” she said.
This year’s donations will be going to several charitable causes. Books and school supplies are being distributed to More Than Words, a local nonprofit bookstore that supports at-risk youth ages 16-24. Grad Bag, a nonprofit group that partners with schools to help underserved students in Boston and New York City, will be taking donated dorm supplies to be used for fall move-in. Used and unused backpacks will be donated to the SUS Reborn Initiative, which will repurpose them. Professional clothes will fill up the Career Development Center’s career closet, and unopened food and personal care items will stock the Student Success pantry for the summer. The majority of clothes and other items will be donated to Goodwill, and a large number of items will be diverted from landfills via textile recycling.
Juliana Piccirillo, a freshman Griff Gives assistant, said she appreciated the opportunity to help the Emerson community through this initiative.
“I was honestly really surprised to see this many donations, but it feels good to help out the community,” she said. “It’s actually kind of fun to sort through everything, and it’s not just work. [We are] also helping the environment.”
Emma Carr, a junior Griff Gives assistant, said that the number of donations was surprising and raised concerns about student overconsumption for her.
“It’s nice to know that [these things] were donated instead of being thrown away, but it’s also a lot of things … a lot of things are not being used,” Carr said. “Thank you for your donations, but stop buying so many things,” she added.
Both Piccirillo and Carr said they were pleased that they were able to personally divert some items from donation by taking them home.
“I found a book nook [kit] that was only built a little bit, so I’m going to finish building it at home, which I’m very excited about,” Piccirillo said. She was also happy to take other art supplies, like paint.
“I found [some] crazy candlestick holders,” Carr added.
In her three years working with Griff Gives, Pereira said that she has seen a number of unique items pass through Emerson’s residence halls.
“My freshman year,” she said, “I found a costume of the fox from Zootopia. This year the best thing I’ve found is a full brand new podcast equipment set.”
Pereira encouraged students to get involved with the sustainability office.
“I know right now it seems like a difficult time, where there’s a lot happening on the national level and it seems like environmentalism has been put to the sideline, but there’s still so much happening on the local level,” Pereira said.
“There is always a chance to either make your voice heard or have a strong individual impact, so don’t get discouraged,” she added. “You can make an impact.”
Editor’s Note: Rina Laby is an employee of Emerson Sustainability. She did not interview any of her immediate superiors for this article.
