January 29, 2013

Going Trayless Study Shows Student Impact




If you need any evidence of the impact of student research on life at American University’s campus, look no further than something that’s missing.

Trays.

Following a 2009 study at AU’s main dining hall showed a significant reduction in food waste and dishes used when trays were removed, trays have mostly gone the way of beanies and sock hops.

Now, for the first time, a new paper coauthored by AU professor Kiho Kim and Stevia Morawski, BS environmental science ’12, provides hard evidence of big energy savings as well as a 32 percent reduction in food waste.