A food waste tracking system at Bryn Mawr College's Erdman Dining Hall cut waste 31% compared with baseline levels. That result is among the projects seed grant recipients will present at a campus lunch on Wednesday, Oct. 28.

The event, called the Sustainability Strategic Innovation Lunch, will feature updates from the college's first two rounds of Sustainability Seed Grants, according to Bryn Mawr. The grants fund student and faculty projects tied to the college's goal of reaching carbon neutrality by 2035.

The food waste system, called Leanpath, prevented roughly 1.5 tons of waste and saved approximately $6,700 over two months at Erdman, the college said. Dining Services is now expanding the system to New Dorm Dining Hall. An earlier college article published in April put the initial reduction at 24% while citing the same tonnage and dollar figures. The college has not explained the difference.

Associate Professor of Computer Science Aline Normoyle is using grant funding to work with Library and Information Technology Services on a program to repair, repurpose and donate the college's outdated computers and electronic equipment. The team is in conversation with a local nonprofit about what it could use, and a student has been hired to repair equipment and wipe it clean for reuse.

Other projects include rehabilitating an underused electric golf cart for Campus Safety patrols, replacing about 30 miles per week of gas-powered driving. Grant funding also purchased binoculars for the student-run birding club. The club has identified 87 species on campus.

Students who recently returned from a grant-funded trip to Boston will also present at the Oct. 28 lunch. The group visited the City of Boston's Environment Department, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Stone Living Lab, meeting alumni working in sustainability careers. The trip was organized by Katie Turek, associate director of experiential education in the Career & Civic Engagement Center, in collaboration with the Office of Sustainability.

"It really opened my eyes to how many career paths there are in the field of sustainability," student Yumna Fatima Dar, Class of 2029, said of the trip, according to the college.

A specific time and location for the Oct. 28 lunch have not been announced. The college has not indicated whether the event is open to the public.