September 2024

Each month, the Office of Sustainability will feature members of the University of Florida community who are making a sustainable impact on a daily basis. Keep reading to meet our featured staff for September to kick off the 2024-2025 academic year!

Meet Lauren Keiser

This month’s Green Gator is Lauren Keiser! Lauren is an Event Manager with the UF Conference Department. 

Lauren has a Bachelor’s degree in Interior Design, plus a Certified Meeting Professional (CMP) 2023 and Sustainable Event Professional Certificate (SEPC). 

In her position as Event Manager, no day is the same! Lauren assists clients from event inception to execution and everything in between. She helps finalize venues, catering, transportation, lodging, travel, materials, swag, and more. In doing so, she is well-positioned to make suggestions and adjustments that can better the planet. 

Big Events, Low Impact

Lauren has worked in many diverse event venues such as a century-old community theater, university opera house, a nationally-acclaimed zoo, and within university art museums – including the Harn Museum of Art at UF!  

This variety keeps things interesting for an event manager such as Lauren. Her favorite part is the challenge of each unique event. She shares, “Every event feels like a new puzzle. I really enjoy pulling all of the pieces together.”

There are so many different scenarios for events, which means a sense of creativity can go a long way towards reducing event impact. Lauren explains, “Events are inevitable, but the waste they produce doesn’t have to be.”

Lauren tries to make mindful decisions to reduce waste at events through catering, printing, transportation, and more. She fine-tuned these skills in early 2024 by completing the ​​Sustainable Event Professional Certificate (SEPC) through the Events Industry Council’s Center for Sustainability and Social Impact which focuses on the knowledge and tools for event strategists to design and implement their own sustainable events.

She’s incorporated this knowledge successfully in her career, and has had four events green-certified by the Office of Sustainability at UF. 

She recently submitted a green-certified event for consideration as a training case study for the newly launched MICE Criteria from the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC). Take a look at the thoughtful considerations that were made to review purchasing decisions, event venue details, and emissions for an event!

Repairing, Reusing, and Woodworking 

Lauren’s commitment to sustainability extends beyond business hours. She is a frequent shopper at local re-use store Life Unplastic for household and pantry staples. She’s also made small changes like keeping a set of dinnerware and cutlery at work, and always has a reusable straw and camp cup in her bag. 

Lauren drives a plug-in hybrid, so her local transportation only relies on the electric battery. She finds it rewarding to try to repair broken items before finding a replacement – most recently, she was able to fix her own front door deadbolt and humidifier! 

In her free time, Lauren enjoys spending time with her family, including her toddler and dog. She also likes reading and working with her hands. She often completes wood-working projects, and has recently experimented with furniture reupholstery, rug tufting, and metal forging/welding.

Sustainable Event Case Study Excerpt

This event was certified green through the UF Office of Sustainability – the highest of a 3-tiered evaluation and certification process – by focusing on the following:

Venue – The chosen location for the event has existing sustainability initiatives.

• Supporting local farms by purchasing eggs and produce whenever possible.
• Use of reusable china and glassware for most lodging and event food service. 
• No plastic water bottles – refill stations available throughout the property.
• On demand water heating to reduce energy use.
• Low Impact toilets and faucets to reduce water usage. 
• No fertilizers or pesticides to protect the Florida aquifer.

Sustainable Purchasing

• SWAG – We initially worked with a Certified B Corp company to source sustainable swag options. When they were unable to fulfill our order, we switched to Rad Wear, a local company able to find the product we wanted that gave back through the 1% for the planet imitative.
• Name badges – Our name badges were printed on seed paper and attendees were encouraged to plant their badges after the event! Biodegradable plastic sleeves and lanyard were collected to be used again for future events. 

Reducing greenhouse gas emissions – In an effort to promote public transportation or carpooling, the following information was shared on the registration and event website: 

• Please note that you will be responsible for your own transportation to and from the conference venue. We encourage participants to walk, bike, take the bus or carpool with colleagues. Below are options for ‘going green’!
  • Buses 5, 10, and 46 can take folks from campus to close to Sweetwater. These buses should be free for anyone with a UF ID! Visit the RTS website for public transportation from an alternate location.
  • Bike – Sweetwater Inn provides bicycle racks for those who wish to commute by bicycle (hotel guests can rent bikes as well).
  • RideAmigos Carpool Service – Sign up to carpool!

UF has partnered with RideAmigos to provide a free, interactive service that helps members of the UF community plan better commutes, find carpool partners, and discover all the transit options available along the way.

Submit your recommendation for a student, faculty, or staff member to be featured in a future Green Gator of the Month article!