Meet the “Greench” - Who is him?

Every VU-damer down in VU-ville throw waste away a lot... But the Greench, who lived just in the Hoofdgebouw of VU-ville, Did NOT! The Greench hated Waste! The whole Waste stream! Now, please don't ask why. No one quite knows the reason. It could be his head wasn't screwed on just right. It could be, perhaps, that his academic credits were too tight. But I think that the most likely reason of all, May have been that his worms were two sizes too small. Whatever the reason, his worms or his credits, He stood there on Campus Square, staring the VU-damers, Staring down from the Green Office with a sour, Grinchy frown, At the wrong sorted waste across the campus.

For he knew every VU-damer down in VU-ville beneath, Was busy now, watching to their lecturers teach "I MUST find some way to stop GFT from becoming waste!” For Tomorrow, he knew, all the VU-damers, Would wake bright and early. They'd rush to their meetings! And then! Oh, the waste! Oh, the Waste! That's one thing he hated! The WASTE! And the more the Greench thought about the Waste, the more the Greench thought , “I must stop this whole thing!” “I MUST stop this GFT from becoming Waste!… But HOW?”

Purpose/Mission (why?):

Promote the worm hotel, Educate people about organic waste separation, Encourage vermi-compost culture.

Worm Hotel Composting at VU Amsterdam

Initial Proposal

• Initial proposal:

Problems

• The action was requested too far in advance, so we cannot discuss other possible options.
• We find this action inconveniently planned, so close to exam weeks.
• Face coverings are prohibited on the VU campus.
• The Green Office can first discuss the existing waste policy with Margot Icking. They can inquire about the current policy and which actions would be appropriate. This way, we can collaborate more on these kinds of actions!

Opportunities

• A pilot has been implemented in Transitorium to collect the GFE waste
• Starting with a small-scale project before going all campus
• There are multiple channels of communication and engagement channels
• There are multiple student common areas and spaces, such as Student D0k, student associations, and FSRs offices.
• People has approached to the Green Office.

The new look of the Greench:

How? Grab attention! (aligned with VU’s policies)

So far:

• there are just two fixed collection points: IVM and GO.
• The organic waste is collected once per week by the Campus Officer
• Every week, the waste is disposed in either the Roof Garden or the Start Hub Worm Hotel.

Addition

• The Campus Officer (Alejandro) dresses as the Greench without his faced covered when collecting and going to the Worm Hotels.
• No interaction, no face covered, once per week, no need to reserve any spot.
• Implement two new collection bins at Student D0k and AUREUS room (8)

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When? March onwards

Who? Alejandro, Campus Operations Officer

Where? The route is almost the same: Green Office, IVM, and then Worm Hotels.

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Bigger initiatives

Two days during Period 5 and 6, set a fix spot in Campus Square to do a “food to compost swap” where people can exchange their organic waste for a 500gr glass jar of compost.

For what? - Vision

Our worm‑composting initiative has the potential to grow into a vibrant vermiculture community on campus, bringing together students, departments, and enthusiastic volunteers. Their involvement is already helping us expand organic‑waste collection points and spread the word about the magic happening inside our Worm Hotels. As we increase the amount of organic waste the worms receive, we aim to produce enough vermicompost to help enrich the campus greenery before 2030.