In light of GreenFest, UNC-Asheville’s Free Store pop-up is shining a spotlight on the university’s sustainability efforts. Offering a space for students and faculty to exchange goods while promoting eco-friendly practices and reducing waste.
“Yeah, so the Student Environmental Center is a student-run center on campus, and we kind of do projects that relate in any way to sustainability, just like our current GreenFest. Not only do we have tailored events, but we also kind of specialize in just making things more green around campus,” said Cameron Turner, garden manager for the Student Environmental Center.
Turner said the free store pop up is just one of many events students could have attended in conjunction with GreenFest.
She said the event was one of the more popular events because it reminded students of the Free Store that used to reside on campus.
Turner said the Free Store, originally located in Highsmith Student Union, closed down due to exposed pipes that made the room less accessible to students and more damaging to the goods that were in the room.
“Well, I wish we had a more permanent thing, so it would happen more often, but we try to do pop ups every month, we had one last month. It was in Highsmith in the lobby, but it’s nicer out now, so we were quad. Plus this kind of aligns with the schedule of GreenFest, which is really cool,” said Isabella Bascom, project coordinator for the Student Environmental Center.
Bascom said the transition from a permanent location to the flexible pop-up model has been met with great success. She said every time a free store pop-up is mentioned, the student body tends to be incredibly receptive.
“I will say that I think the pop ups are more personalized too, because it almost feels like a way of shopping. We also talked about this with the Vice Chancellor, Meghan Heart Weyant and she was incredibly receptive as well,” said Turner.
Turner said the way the Free Store has been created makes a more personalized way of shopping.
She said all kinds of people are able to pick up what they want, since it is set up like a thrift vintage market for all people to just come and see what has been donated.
“We’re still trying to work to get permanent things, so, you know, we don’t have to worry about making events every time people can just donate things. I mean, they can donate things any time now, too, but, you know, just have some place where people can go and get stuff if they want,” said Turner.
Turner said the reason why they chose this event in relation to GreenFest is because it is also a chance for students to participate in a low-waste, mindful shopping experience. She said it helps overall with the university’s sustainability initiatives from the Office of Sustainability.
“Dr. King facilitates everything related to sustainability on campus. She does lots of outreach with student orgs as well, sustainability related student works. There’s also Greenfest, which is a collaboration between all the sustainability and environmental related organizations on campus, to promote the campus initiatives about sustainability,” said Meghan Kent, previous intern of the Office of Sustainability.
Kent said organizations like the Student Environmental Center help provide opportunities to students on campus to also get involved with both sustainability efforts while also giving access to a plethora of on-campus resources.
She said that in her time working for the Office of Sustainability, the Student Environmental Center helped with creating a space where everyone can contribute to a greener, more sustainable future, while also getting as many students involved as possible.
“UNCA wants to try to build more of a community, I think that, the SEC is kind of just a way for people to connect even if they don’t know necessarily all the ins and outs of sustainability, we’re here to inform and and educate and build friendships and connections and people are always welcome to volunteer with us,” said Turner.
