Friday Video: Rain provides a new way to do laundry

With a new water conservation system put into place, Mercer Court is revolutionizing the way students do laundry.

HFS uses a cistern, a tank used to catch and store rainwater for the purpose of delivering laundry services to more than 1,300 students living in the apartment complex. JR Fulton, HFS's capital planning and sustainability manager, says that about 90 to 95 percent of water used in the washing machine is coming from the cistern.

Assessing the impacts of UW’s Green Wall

On the southeast side of Gould Hall, the UW Green Wall project perches, providing a home for plants, birds and insects while helping to conserve water and reduce energy needs.

A team funded by a Green Seed Fund grant is studying the Green Wall to quantify the effects of the green wall. The research is documenting plant growth, bird and insect sightings, water use, the impact on the urban heat island effect and building energy performance.

Looking for student groups who love football and the environment

Do good for the environment, earn money for your RSO, and get into football games for free!

UW Recycling and Intercollegiate Athletics are looking for a reliable and environmentally aware student organization to provide recycling outreach to tailgaters prior to each home football game. The shift is 3-5 hours, depending on game start time, and a minimum of 6 volunteers per game is required. You will be walking throughout the parking lots to distribute recycling bags to tailgaters, promote recycling, and answer questions.

UW students work to restore one of Seattle's remaining swamps

What was once a bustling sawmill in the late 1800s is now home to more than 100 species of birds, turtles, ducks, and even a beaver family.

I’m talking about Yesler Swamp, one of the few true swamps remaining in Seattle and a unique part of Washington’s vanishing urban forest. It’s hidden in a grove of trees just east of the UW Center for Urban Horticulture, remaining a fairly unknown public area to this day.

UW group encourages restoration projects on campus

You may not have noticed, but as you walk around the UW campus more of those plants and flowers at your feet are species native to Puget Sound.

That’s because UW’s Society for Ecology Restoration student guild (SER-UW) native plant nursery has been working to restore areas on campus by increasing native species biodiversity and creating open spaces for students to engage with the natural world just steps from their residence halls. 

UW Farm Stand opens today

Today and every Friday this summer the UW Farm will have a stand with fresh campus-raised produce for sale from 4 to 7 p.m.

The stand is off the Burke-Gilman Trail across from Gasworks Park, in the parking lot of the Fisheries Supply at 1900 Northlake Way. Each Friday you'll have the opportunity to pick up produce harvested that morning - perfect for stopping by on your way home for the weekend, or to enjoy in a nice picnic at Gasworks Park.