Partner: Sustainable Campus 

Project: Greek Goes Green Coordinator 

Student: Sarah Gibson 

Sarah, a third-year undergraduate majoring in Political Science and Interdisciplinary Social Sciences, served as a Sustainability Fellow in Spring 2023. She was interested in exploring the overlap between sustainability and policy making, specifically the effects of climate change on low-income public service recipients. Her project aimed to establish a functioning Greek Goes Green program and create an inclusive Sustainability Guide for Greek chapters. 

Sarah worked with FSU Sustainable Campus to solve the problem of a lack of sustainability initiatives in FSU's Greek life system. The Greek Goes Green program existed but was not thriving. 

Sarah's sustainable practices have evolved over time, from beach cleanups to educational coursework. She has continuously sought out opportunities to develop her skills and knowledge in regard to sustainability. Sarah was uniquely qualified for this project as a former Greek Goes Green Delegate and with other relevant programming experience at FSU and in the community. 

Sarah completed research on existing Greek Life sustainability initiatives at other universities and assessed which recruitment tactics and project implementations were successful. She then edited the GGG Sustainability Guide to include non-OFSL Greek-lettered organizations and updated

assessment standards. She used various methods of communication to reach all council/chapter presidents as well as past delegates to recruit chapters into the 2023 cohort. Sarah planned and executed monthly meetings and events for opted-in Greek organizations. She also conducted a Feedback Survey to assess barriers to entry and reasons for lack of broader participation in Greek Goes Green. 

Some obstacles identified were in reference to participation/opting-in to the GGG program. Survey results revealed several common themes. Sarah used feedback recorded in the survey to revise and improve the Sustainability Guide, recruitment tactics, and overall inclusivity of the GGG program for all councils. 

The Greek Goes Green partnership between Sustainable Campus and the OFSL was an important step taken to ensure all areas of Florida State's campus are working toward a more sustainable future. Sarah's project achieved increased council representation and successful GGG events that exposed members to other students in Greek Life who value sustainability. 

Sarah was overall successful in her GGG programming as there are now 12 active chapters, 2 of which have already reached “Green Chapter” status. She achieved increased council representation, with opted-in chapters from Panhellenic, MGC, IFC, and service fraternities.  

To learn more about the Sustainability Fellows program, visit sustainablecampus.fsu.edu/sustainability-fellows.