I Heart Tap Water Campaign
Project Leads: Cathy Kodoma, Trish Ratto, Kim LaPean, Mariah Gonzalez
Sponsor: University Health Services
TGIF Grant: $4,500
Additional Funds: $2,000 (2011-2012)
Project Theme: Education & Behavior Change
Project Description: The I Heart Tap Water Campaign promotes the drinking of tap water by building awareness with a public information campaign, supporting and increasing the accessibility to tap water on campus, and distributing reusable water bottles.
Goals: Build on a successful on-going program to reduce the purchase and disposal of plastic drinking water bottles by establishing a campus community social norm for drinking tap water. Increase daily utilization of tap water on campus, through promotion of campus locations with quality tap water via educational outreach and the development and marketing of a campus tap water mobile device locator and map. Encourage individual commitment to drinking tap water through the campaign website, online Tap Water pledge and raffle drawings for IHTW bottles. Identify opportunities for institutional changes, such as encouraging campus events to use pitchers of tap water rather than serving bottled water and working with campus departments to eliminate water coolers. Measure and record annual campus sales of bottled water and reduce sales of bottled water and other bottles beverages by 25%, a total of 132,000 bottles. Support and promote campus installations of bottle refill stations.
*Note: Project evolved from Healthy You for a Healthy Universe project