HOORAY FOR SOUTHERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY

Oh, Yummy, What's For Dinner ?

Southern Illinois University-Carbondale is leading the way among colleges and universities nationwide in its recycling program. Thanks to its recycling coordinator, 1,000 pounds of leftover food will be fed to 2 million red wigglers during the school term and when students are off for the summer, they will dine on shredded paper from university offices.

SIU is the only university in Illinois to compost on such a huge scale Since university campuses are in many instances small cities, this will impact the environment in a good way and sets a good example as well. It is astonishing that only 10 percent of our country's colleges and universities recycle.

The green movement has been spreading to other campuses in Illinois -students at the University of Chicago planted a native-species garden, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign built a rain garden on campus and Northwestern University will buy 20 percent of its electricity from wind power generators.

Thanks to all the passionate environmentalists in our colleges and universities who are setting a good example. I hope it will make others stop and think before they throw stuff in the trash.