Green Vending Machines Are Coming?

I think we all know that the clock is ticking.
Tick, tick, tick... eleven more years before bad climate stuff happens. So.... vending machines to the rescue?

The pressure to start  taking concrete action on climate change is ratcheting up. There is even a new form of disquiet that seems to be surfacing known as climate anxiety. From the point of you of an academic institution, there is rising pressure to find solutions to solve the problem.

Concrete actions, like reducing the amount of natural gas burned through building retrofits or switching to electric vehicles, are great but expensive.
Indirect actions, such as divesting from fossil fuels or purchasing local, seem to be growing in popularity as people realize that you have to "think beyond the campus". Indeed, even if all the cars in Canada became electric vehicles by 2030, we still wouldn't reach our climate change goals... We have to start thinking broad, across all our activities because there is no magic bullet for climate change.

So if it is all hands on deck time at uOttawa, we are happy to have strong partnerships with groups like Food Services. For years now, Food Services has prioritized environmental sustainability in its decision making models. A Zero Waste Dining Hall, Fair Trade Campus certification, locally purchased milk, vegan dining station, Green Restaurant certification, donation of unwanted food... are you starting to get the point?

So it is no surprise that when Food Services went looking for a new vending machine contract, environmental sustainability was on the menu. Recently, CafeGo was announced as the new service provider for the campus.

Yeah, they have a fairly basic website but don't let that fool you. They have certainly put their effort into being a more sustainable company. They boast:

• 5 electric cars - for small deliveries and to get around
• An electric delivery truck
• Brand new energy efficient vending machines, 
• Telemetry sensors (basically a fancy way of saying that they use sensors to know when an item is running low, so they can come when needed and with the needed products). Without telemetry, the delivery team would have to bring everything every time they showed up on campus. This means they reduce transportation for unnecessary deliveries.
• Telemetry part 2. Because of the telemetry, they are able to reduce the number of machines needed on campus, thereby saving electricity. CafeGo can have a lot of variety in each machine and fill as needed, rather than overstocking.

Of course the new machines will accept new and old forms of payment, including apple pay, google wallet, flex and dining dollars, etc. And from what I have heard from Food Services, they are going to work to get the unwanted product donated to charity as well.

I am not under any illusion that vending machines will save us from climate disaster. But that's not the whole story here. The idea is that we all have a part to play, no matter how small, no matter how seemingly detached, we need to start being more sustainable in all our choices.

Food Services is doing its part and putting its money where its mouth is. So it's time to roll up our sleeves and get to work. After all, there is no Planet B.

jonathan rausseo ~ campus sustainability manager