As a University of Illinois student just trying to get through her freshman year with good grades (lol), good friends (some of my favorite idiots), and maintain a good relationship with my parents, I got into a little trouble with my mother. Unfortunately for me, I racked up quite the tab with my parents, and when they came to collect, I was flat broke. After an incredibly awkward weekend at home (with no way out, mind you), I returned to school determined to make my parents love me again. In all of my infinite wisdom, I decided that working in the dining hall would be the way back into my parents good graces. In case any of you were wondering, it worked like a charm but that's not the point.
In my (short) time at the dining hall, I saw it and did it all. The thing that stuck out to me most was that most of the food left over at the end of every meal was not being utilized. It was incredible to me that not only did they not use the mass amounts of food they had left, but no one else was pitching a fit about it. With the amount of homeless people that live on our campus, that kind of blatant wastefulness was appalling. We’ve all heard the old adage “There are starving children in Africa,” but in my experience, that doesn’t seem to resonate with us. Those starving children in Africa are oceans away, but what we should have been saying all this time is “There are starving men, women, and children on the street outside your window.”
Now, after I’m sure many people have complained and explained their concerns, I am so incredibly proud to announce that the UIUC Dining Halls have initiated a program called 0%. This program was introduced as a way to save food already prepared and cannot be saved for the next day, and help keep homeless shelters in the area stocked. 0% will be used to feed those that need a little help getting by in Champaign-Urbana, which I for one, think is the s**t.
