The med center aims to achieve net zero waste by diverting 90% of waste from landfills — and need help to get there.
Printing significantly impacts the med center’s environmental footprint. From September 2024 to September 2025, more than 23.6 million pages were printed, equivalent to cutting down 2,200 trees. Since 2018, printing has increased 2%, and paper costs have risen 22%.
One bright spot? Double-sided printing increased 18%, showing positive behavioral change.
“As we work toward our 2030 goal of achieving net zero waste, we’re asking everyone to pause and consider: Does this really need to be printed?” said Julie Juddi, director of support services at the med center and chair of the Waste Focus Team. “Every page we save reduces waste, conserves resources and moves us closer to a more sustainable future — one thoughtful decision at a time.”
Information technology uses SecurePrint to reduce waste from abandoned print jobs. Jobs enter a holding queue and only print when users tap their badges. Unclaimed jobs are automatically removed after seven days. This approach also enhances security by eliminating concerns about others seeing your documents.
The results are impressive: SecurePrint saved 375,000 pages this year — equivalent to 30 trees saved. IT continues centralizing and consolidating printers campuswide.
Users can reduce printing by:
- Taking digital notes instead of printing agendas.
- Sharing documents via shared drives.
- Displaying presentations on screens.
When printing is necessary:
- Use double-sided printing.
- Preview before printing to avoid errors.
- Keep scrap paper for reuse.
- Print in grayscale.
Every page saved contributes to the med center’s net zero waste goal and reduces its impact on people and the planet, Juddi said.