Green Greek interns, recently created positions within the Office of Sustainability, have worked with Greek leaders to establish a sustainability chair position in each Greek organization, according to Whittaker.
"As Green Greek interns, it's our job to act as a liaison between the Office of Sustainability and the Greek system," Whittaker said. "One way we were trying to do that was to find ways to get Greek houses involved in Earth Week events."
During the course of the competition, fraternities and sororities received points when members attended the four public Earth Week events, including the "I'd Tap That" campaign pledge. They were also encouraged to submit long-term sustainability plans to be reviewed and graded by a committee of students and administrators.
Other individuals, campus groups and businesses received awards for sustainable practices at the event.
"The reason why we're weighing the sustainability plan so much is that we're trying to get some follow-through and have an impact beyond this week," Green Greek intern Ginny Miller '13 said.
AKA, which had the highest total percentage of active members who attended events, won the Ecolympian Award and the accompanying $1,000 prize.
KD won the Biggest Impact Green House, or "Greenest House" award, for the highest raw number of participants and a "good" sustainability plan, according to Whittaker. The house received $500 in cash and will also receive a gift via the Office of Residential Life to be valued at $500.
"I'm really excited about the dialogue that started," Rachel Carter '14, the sorority's sustainability chair, said.
KD's sustainability plan included suggestions to make fellow members more sustainable since the sorority does not have a physical plant.
Sigma Delt received the Green Spiritedness award which includes $100 toward a barbecue sponsored by Greek Letter Organizations and Societies for members' spirit of participation and a strong sustainability plan.
"For the house, winning the award was a big step in the right direction because a lot of people said sustainability was not something they had thought about before," Morgan Curtis '14, Sigma Delt's sustainability co-chair, said.
Each house's varying characteristics, such as AKA's three-person membership, made designing balanced competition standards difficult, according to Miller.
"It's really taken on a case-by-case basis," she said.
The Ecolympics competition was the Sustainability Office's first campus-wide initiative aimed at raising participation among Greek organizations, according to Miller.
"The Greek system is a huge part of our campus, and I think that it can be utilized in a lot of ways to get people involved or aware of things they otherwise may not be," Miller said.
In total, 13 organizations submitted sustainability plans. The Tabard and Phi Tau coed fraternities, Delta Delta Delta sorority, Alpha Xi Delta sorority and Alpha Delta fraternity all demonstrated high member participation rates, according to Whittaker.
Whittaker said more sororities submitted sustainability plans than fraternities, though the difference was negligible.
Sigma Delt is currently exploring visits to local farms to increase community involvement, as well as incorporating more kegs, rather than cans, for events, according to Curtis.
"We had Earth Week-themed meetings on Wednesday where you brought a reusable cup," Curtis said.
AZD conducted a two-song challenge during the week, in which members were encouraged to take showers that lasted less than two songs' length, according to Whittaker.
"It totally depends on the house, but a lot of it was finding creative ways to get your house involved in sustainability," Whittaker said.
The "I'd Tap That" campaign, which encourages students to drink only tap water for the entirety of Spring term, received 302 signatures from affiliated students, according to Whittaker.
In the coming months, the Office of Sustainability hopes to hold more educational events, including presentations on ways to make Greek organizations more sustainable, according to Whittaker.
"The plan is our way of getting houses to think about sustainability or make their members engage in a more green lifestyle," Miller said.
