Biology major works to ensure school's commencement ends with zero waste

Abby Lewis.
(Image credit: Ian Poveda/Pomona College)

It's one of the college's biggest events of the year, but if all goes according to plan, there won't be much evidence that it ever took place.

Abby Lewis is a junior biology major at Pomona College in Southern California, and works in the university's Office of Sustainability. The Wisconsin native saw that waste goes up on campus significantly every May, due to graduation celebrations, and she came up with an idea: What if the 2018 commencement ceremony was a zero-waste event? Lewis received the support of her supervisor and other departments on campus, and moved forward with her plan, earning a grant along the way.

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.