Challenges
and Initiatives on Single-Use Plastics in Universities: A Meta Synthesis
K.
Seblos1, C. Sangcap2, D. Taba�ag3, F.D. Tapdasan4,
C. N. Ocampo5, Jennifer D. Pa�o6*
1,2,3,4,5,6*
Cebu
Normal University-College of Teacher Education, Philippines
Email: [email protected]
|
Keywords: |
ABSTRACT |
|
Single-Use Plastics Challenges Initiatives Universities Solid Waste Management |
Single- Use Plastic manufacturing and use
have risen steadily since its invention, spurred by the rising urbanization
of the world. Ever since its introduction, and driven by rapid urbanization,
there has been an increase of plastic production and consumption. The
government, organizations, and other institutions should perform various
investigations to explore the many limits, in any aspects, in order to
address plastic waste and its underlying problems. It involves implementing
many strategies and efforts throughout the entire community, including in
institutions. A meta-synthesis of the challenges and initiatives faced by
schools with relation to single-use plastics is essential to providing a
complete awareness of the existing situation and development of sustainable
practices in educational institutions. After extensive investigation of the
synthesized articles the challenges were categorized into seven themes:
manpower, equipment/facility and space, administrative support, financial,
lack of information dissemination, attitude/behavior, and curriculum
integration. Meanwhile, the initiatives were classified into six themes:
environmental goals, rewards and motivation, disciplinary measures, knowledge
and awareness, educational approach, and the equipment and facilities. This
meta-synthesis concluded that the various difficulties faced by universities
in managing single-use plastic hinder the implementation of those solutions
as well as the various initiatives employed by universities to promote the
spread of environmentally conscious and responsible people. School
administration and teachers collaborate in integrating the reduction of plastic
waste to the teaching instruction. In addition, incentives and disciplinary
actions are among the finest ways to instill routines, practices, and habits
in the reduction and generation of plastic trash. To lay a solid basis for
environmental education and awareness, policies that set expectations for
behavior and offer direction to faculty, staff, and students are established. |
INTRODUCTION
Single-use plastics are disposable
plastics which are discarded once used. Ever since its introduction, and driven
by rapid urbanization, there has been an increase of plastic production and
consumption. Plastic being lightweight, inexpensive, and durable undeniably
provides a wide range of applications (United Nations Environment Programme, 2018).
However, plastic as a material is
not a problem; rather, the overuse and improper disposal of plastic accounts
for the plastic waste that ends up in landfills and the environment, which
eventually causes environmental issues (Geyer, et al., cited in UNEP, 2018).
Hence, plastic pollution became one of the global problems. One of the key
sources of plastic pollution are the single-use plastics (United Nations
Environment Programme, 2018). To address this
problem, a global transformative action is required (Borrelle
et al., 2020).
In fact, the Organisation
for Economic Co-operation and Development asserts that action and international
cooperation are required to reduce plastic pollution mainly through innovation,
better product design and developing environmentally friendly alternatives, as
well as efforts to improve waste management and increase recycling. The step
towards plastic regulation and reduction is commonly implemented through the
plastic waste management policy and legislation among local communities. This
introduces the realization of implementing the same policy in schools or
universities as they are one of the consumers of resources hence produce waste
given with their daily activities which produces an impact towards the
environment (Nolasco et al., 2021) This meta-synthesis
intends to emerge a synopsis through a framework which conveys the underlying
challenges and initiatives of the universities towards the use of single-use
plastics.
METHODS
Research Design
This study employs meta-synthesis
for qualitative study. A systematic review and integrations of findings from
qualitative studies of a particular phenomenon of interest (Chrastina,
2018). The protocol coheres to the Combined Model with the seven meta-synthetic
stages by Chrastina (2018) as follows:Step 1. Deciding the phenomenon of interest - This
meta-synthesis is contributed to the present state of knowledge by synthesizing
results and findings from the related articles and designing a conceptual model
for the challenges and initiatives of the universities towards single-use
plastics. Step 2. Deciding what is relevant - This method combines focused and
comprehensive search methods. To gather relevant studies, a variety of
databases including ScienceDirect, Google Scholar,
Science.gov, ERIC, Gale Academy, and Research Gate will be utilized. Step 3.
Careful reading and re-reading - This will determine if the studies gathered
meet the inclusion and exclusion criteria. This will further extract the more
relevant studies before proceeding to the next step. The themes and details of
the study will be critically observed.Step 4.
Determining the relatedness of the study (Thematic Analysis Approach) -
Following the classification and identification of the major themes, a thorough
process involving the search for connections between all topics must be carried
out. Before creating the final categories, this procedure will now employ a
thematic analysis approach to merged recognized topics.
Figure 1: Thematic Analysis Approach
(Braun and Clarke, 2017)
Step 5. Translating studies into one
another - Recommended approaches at this level include conceptual translation, refutational translation, and line of argument. The
specifics of each study as a whole would be protected while being translated
into terminology. Step 6. Synthesizing the translation - This step, which
follows the thematically coded data, will combine the translated themes and
mapping together to generate a synthesis and reflect the entire category, which
is crucial for creating conceptual models. Reflections, interpretations, and
conclusions from the previous phase will be included here. Step 7.
Communicating the results through publication - It is the metasynthesis's
last phase. In order to ensure efficient transmission of information, the findings
(conclusions, interpretations, and conceptual model) are published in
scientific journals and/or science publications.
Inclusion Criteria: (1)
the research design is qualitative; (2) the journal is academic and
peer-reviewed; (3) the article is about the single-use plastics in the
university as well its challenges and initiatives or practices addressing
single-use plastics; (4) the study used primary data; (5) qualitative data was
collected using qualitative methods; (6) the paper was written in English and
published from year 2015-2023. Exclusion
Criteria: (1) studies with no research design or theoretical background;
(2) studies that use quantitative methods (quantitative-based research
analysis); (3) studies that uses close-ended survey questions as data
collection tool; (4) qualitative data that does not organized into themes or
findings that does not reflect challenges and initiatives or practices of the
university towards single-use plastics; (5) using mixed method research in
which the quantitative-qualitative data cannot be separated; (6) qualitative
studies that focus outside the school or university as a setting.
3.0
Search Results
Seven
search engines were utilized in the study all through database
search. The total number
of searched studies was 20, 210. The studies were screened by title considering
the key terms for
inclusion and it resulted in 86 studies. The remaining studies were examined
continuously to identify
duplicates. There were 10 duplicates excluded yielding 76 studies. The studies were reviewed and screened
by abstract based on the inclusion criteria of this study resulting in 32 studies. All
qualified abstracts were then examined through full-text screening including the accuracy of
methodology which decreased the study to 12. Finally, for the studies to be qualified, a three point
scale on the JBI Critical Appraisal Checklist for Qualitative Research (Joanna Briggs Institute,
2017) was utilized to evaluate the studies, resulting in 10 qualified studies included for metasynthesis
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Figure 2: PRISMA flow for selecting
studies
4.0 Results and Discussion
The
10 studies included in the study originated from Asia (7), North
America (1), and South
America (2). Table 1 outlines the characterization of final themes based on the
first-order codes and
quotation count. In this study, 7 key themes were generated describing the
challenges of
Universities in dealing with single-use plastics; while 6 themes were
categorized pertaining to the initiatives or practices of the University addressing single-use
plastics. There are a total of 135 quotes classified with 31 sub-themes in the challenges and 18
sub-themes in the initiatives of the Universities, respectively. Table 2 presents the
organized themes and sub-themes in challenges. Table 3 shows the organized themes and
sub-themes in initiatives.
Table 1
Summary Table of First-order codes and quotation count
|
Paper Code |
Author of the Paper |
First-Order Codes (Subcategories) |
Quotation Count |
|
1 |
(Moqbel
et al., 2020) |
C- Low Number of
Manpower C- No/Low of
Commitment Students/Staff C- Insufficient Waste
Collection Vehicle C- Lack of Space C- Irregular Waste of
Collection C- Lack of
Communication C - Expensive
equipment or material |
8 |
|
2 |
(Baba-Nalikant et al., 2023) |
I - Practices C - Availability of
Facilities C - Poor
Implementation C - Student's Lack of
Awareness C - Financial-
Expensive equipment or material C - Student's Lack of
Awareness I - Campaign I - Penalty I -� Incentives I - Alternatives I - Encouragement I - Information
Dissemination I - Encouragements I - Social Influence |
23 |
|
3 |
(Nolasco
et al., 2020) |
I - Practices I- Educational
Approach- Research and Extension C -
Attitude/Behavior- Lack of Motivation among students C - Administrative
Support- Institutionalization of SWM in Extension C - Lack of Knowledge C - Not Segregating
the Waste I -� Engagement I - Information
Dissemination |
11 |
|
4 |
(Yeung et al., 2017) |
I - Practices C - Availability of
Facilities I - Educational
Approach- Teaching Strategy C - Curriculum
Integration- Inclusion in Instruction |
6 |
|
5 |
(Das, D et al., 2022) |
I - Campaign C - Poor
Implementation I -� Incentives I - Information
Dissemination I - Encouragement I - Penalty |
7 |
|
6 |
(Ebrahimi
et al., 2016) |
I - Practices I - Engagement I - Campaign I - Installation of
Bins I - Information
Dissemination I - Research and
Extension I -� Incentives I - Alternatives I - Policy I - Labeling of Bins C - Thoughtful purchasing strategies C - Lack of Space C - Need for tools
and equipment C - Lack of Knowledge C - Lack of Communication C -
Inadequate/insufficient waste separation facilities C - Lack of Baseline
Data C - Poor
Implementation C - More Reuse Opportunities C - Lack of Full Time
SWM Worker C - Lack of
Faculty/Staff Engagement C - Lack of Garbage
Bins |
30 |
|
7 |
(Siwaporn
et al., 2017) |
C - Poor
Implementation C - Lack of
Incentives C - Lack of Knowledge I - Practices C -
Inadequate/insufficient waste separation facilities C - Gap Between
Knowledge and Practice C - No/Low of
Commitment Students/Staff I - Campaign I -� Incentives I - Policy |
12 |
|
8 |
(Suksant,
2019) |
I -� Incentives I - Alternatives I - Engagement |
5 |
|
9 |
(Moura et al., 2019) |
I - Information
Dissemination I - Campaign I - Curriculum
Integration I - Research and
Extension I - Centers or
Laboratories I - Engagement I - Practices I - Teaching Strategy I - Training of
Staff/Students |
11 |
|
10 |
(Ali et al., 2021) |
I - Installation of
Bins C - Laziness C - Student's Lack of
Awareness C - Lack of Policy C - Lack of Space C - Poor
Implementation C -
Inadequate/insufficient waste separation facilities C - Effort to promote
waste reduction to community C - Informative
Facilities to Introduce SWM C - Lack of Unit and
Department I - Campaign I - Policy I- Enhancement of
Waste Facilities I - Incentives |
22 |
|
Total Quotes: 135 |
|||
Table 2
List of Themes, Sub-Themes, and Number of Codes in
Challenges
|
Categories/Sub-Themes |
Grounded Code |
|
Theme 1: Manpower 1.
Low Number of Manpower 2.
Irregular Waste Collection 3.
Lack of Full Time SWM Worker 4.
Lack of Facility/Staff Engagement |
1 1 1 1 |
|
Theme 2: Equipment/ Facility and Space 5.
Availability of Facilities 6.
Need for tools and equipment 7.
Thoughtful purchasing strategies 8.
Insufficient waste collection vehicles 9.
Lack of space 10.
Lack of garbage bins 11.
Inadequate/insufficient waste separation
facilities |
2 1 1 1 3 1 3 |
|
Theme 3: Administrative Support 12.
Poor implementation 13.
Institutionalization of SWM in Extension 14.
Lack of policy 15.
Lack of incentives 16.
Lack of unit/department 17.
Lack of Communication |
8 1 1 1 1 2 |
|
Theme 4: Financial 18.
Expensive Materials/Equipment |
2 |
|
Theme 5: Lack of Information Dissemination 19.
�Students Lack of awareness 20.
�Lack of
knowledge 21.
Not segregating the waste 22.
Lack of baseline data/research 23.
Informative facilities to introduce SWM |
3 4 1 1 1 |
|
Theme 6: Attitude/Behavior 24.
Staff environmental attitude/Laziness of staff 25.
Lack of motivation among students 26.
More Reuse opportunities 27.
Gap between knowledge and practice 28.
No/low commitment students/staff |
2 1 1 1 3 |
|
Theme 7: Curriculum Integration 29.
Inclusion in instruction 30.
Teacher�s knowledge 31.
Effort to promote waste reduction to community |
2 1 1 |
Table 3
List of Themes, Sub-Themes, and Number of Codes in
Initiatives
|
Categories/Sub-Themes |
Grounded Code |
|
Theme 1: Environmental Goals 1.
Programs and Campaigns 2.
Practices 3.
Policies 4.
Alternatives |
10 9 3 5 |
|
Theme 2: Rewards and Motivation 5.
Incentives 6.
Encouragements |
7 4 |
|
Theme 3:Disciplinary Measures 7.
Fine/Penalty |
4 |
|
Theme 4: Knowledge and Awareness 8.
Information Dissemination 9.
Social Influence 10.
Training of Staffs/Students |
9 1 1 |
|
Theme 5: Educational Approach 11.
Research and Community Extension 12.
Sustainability Engagement 13.
Teaching Strategy 14.
Curriculum Integration 15.
Sustainability Centers |
5 5 3 2 1 |
|
Theme 6: Equipment and Facilities 16.
Installation of Bins 17.
Labeling of Bins 18.
Enhancement of Waste Facilities |
5 2 2 |
A. Challenges of the
university addressing single-use plastics
A total of seven themes were
generated from the 10 synthesized studies to categorize the challenges evident
in the university addressing the use and management of single-use plastics in
the University.
Theme 1: Manpower
Manpower
is the number of human resources inside the university that has the responsibility
of the enforcements of the practices and policies. The data reflects the low
number of services
staff dispatched to the disposal of waste in the premises including the
irregularity of waste
collection and showing no interest of the staff towards the program of waste
segregation were also
the factor of the behavior of students towards proper segregation.
Low
Number of Manpower
During the operation phase, the
program faced several obstacles that required special attention. Under logistic support,
a low number of services staff were dispatched for collecting wastes. In such
conditions, the waste bin became full. In that case, the students would either put the trash next
to the bin or move to
the mixed bins. (Article 1, Logistic Support)
Irregular
Waste Collection
Ambiguity in duties and
responsibilities was noticed at two levels: staff worker and supporting services administration.
The presence of
original waste bins beside the segregation units caused irregularity of waste
collection, where the
services staff were unable to maintain their collection schedule. (Article 1, Role
Clarity)
Lack of
Full Time SWM Worker
A wide range of issues from
contractors/agencies/vendors who are unfamiliar with the universities recycling programs and do not want
to take part in them due to a lack of a full-time recycling coordinator and more staff dedicated to
sustainable waste management
were reported. (Article
6, Barrier against Efficiency)
Lack of
Facility/Staff Engagement
A participant from a top-level
university indicated that the largest barrier to increasing efficiency in their Institution�s
recycling program is convincing students, staff, and athletic fans that recycling is
essential and worth the extra time, while another participant from a benchmark
university highlighted a similar issue by suggesting that after 6 years of pursuing a
recycling program, occupants of their campus have �no idea what should be in each bin and do
not want to learn�. Survey respondents also described a lack of faculty/staff engagement
in the recycling process. (Article 7, Top-level vs. Benchmark
University Waste Management Survey)
The
vignettes are the supporting evidence as to how low numbers of manpower serve
as a factor to the implementation of programs for
sustainability in the university. A shortage of staff and janitors to facilitate the
management of single-use plastic along with their low commitment towards sustainability programs
indicates a decrease of efficiency in handling single-use plastics as no one is responsible for the
operation. This supports the study of Moqbel et al.
(2020), the acquisition
of any designed waste separation system mainly depends on the operative
participation of the waste
generators.
Theme 2: Equipment/ Facility and Space
The
equipment, facility, and space refers to the availability of the facilities and
equipment used with regards to the waste management in the
university. The data shows the availability of facilities, the need for tools and materials, the
insufficiency of waste collection vehicles, insufficiency of waste collection facilities and the
lack of space as the identified challenges in the University concerning the
equipment, facility and space availability.
Availability
of facilities
Insufficient facility is one of the
challenges that caused the failure of waste segregation by the campus community. (Article 14, Facility
improvement)
Need for
tools and equipment
There has been a need to supply more facilities and tools in order to
handle waste. Handling waste would need equipment and tools for easy and efficient waste
services. The lack of supplies and tools may result in staff's disengaged services to the
targeted goals of the program, policy or plan. (Article
6, Western Kentucky
University (WKU))
Thoughtful purchasing
strategies
Data collected suggest a university
should implement an Environmentally Preferable Purchasing Program (EPP) to commit a university to
purchase products that have a reduced impact on human health and the environment when compared to
competing products. (Article 6,
Environmentally Preferable Purchasing Program)
Insufficient
waste collection vehicles
Another obstacle was the insufficient and
unsuitable waste collection vehicles that were provided by the administration to collect the
segregated wastes. The mixed waste is usually collected by a waste collection truck provided by
the Municipality of Amman city. (Article 1, Operation and Administrative
support)
Lack of
space
Another obstacle was the space
limitations for segregated waste disposal. Recyclable wastes needed to be stored in a
single appropriate and safe place to enable the recycling companies to collect the
segregated waste.(Article 1, Operation
and administrative support)
Inadequate/
insufficient waste separation facilities
People opined that �inadequate waste separation
facilities� and �inconvenience� were the main hindrances to their practice of waste
separation. Most respondents who answered open-ended questions raised technical issues
and requested for an increase in the number and location of easily accessible waste separation bins.
(Article
9, Effect of 3R solid waste campus initiatives on people�s behavior)
Equipment, facility, and material are one of the factors that
controls waste separation and promotes waste reduction, specifically single-use plastics. The shortage
of the equipment and waste
facilities, such as bins, waste vehicles, waste equipment and tools, and waste
separation facilities
hinders the students and staff to perform proper waste collection and
management, and consequently
affects the behavior and attitude of the staff towards the purpose of the
policy and programs.
Moreover, the failure of providing enough tools and materials affects the duty
of the workers to carry
out and follow the proper procedures of segregating waste. Based on the study
of Ebrahimi
et al. (2016), it is indicated that the primary and unavoidable investment to
any effective waste
implementation is the supplying of the facilities and equipment inside the
University. Therefore, the
University must address the common technical issues that hinders the success of the implementation,
such as the insufficiency of the bins for the students to use, and the facilities for the workers and
staff to work on. Upon the implementation, the installation of the bins and other facilities
should be the number one concern.
Theme 3: Administrative support
The
improvement of school relies on continuous reform through policy and programs
in the school system by which the administration controls and
manages. The school administration is perceived as the backbone of the university. The
administrations� support for sustainability goals in the university is required for effective
implementation of practices. Based on the synthesized studies, the following vignettes affirmed that
lack of administrative support is an obstacle in incorporating sustainability in the
university.
Poor
implementation
�For example, at the Desa
Siswa in here, they said there is no straw, but there is still an option for the straws. So, it is
hard to change the attitude. When we said no straws, it was supposed to be no straw at
all. There is no option there. Rules, if there is no implementation-the way to
implement it must be right.� (Article 2, Participant 27)
Institutionalization
of Solid Waste Management (SWM) in extension
This action will help reinforce the educational
activities with the academic community (students arriving already educated on the issue) and
expand knowledge on sustainable waste collection beyond the campus. (Article 3)
Lack of
policy
In addition, the campus�s authority
does not have a well-planned framework for SWM, including the responsibilities of stakeholders,
waste minimization and a systematic waste collection system. (Article 11)
Lack of
incentives
The MSW market has no economic incentive
for waste reduction. This is true for HEIs as well. AIT pays a fixed waste collection fee to the
municipality of only 8,000 Baht a month (approximately US$250/month). This is an example of the
lack of incentives to reduce waste according to the weight and volume. (Article 7, Existing
situation of waste quantity and characteristics)
Lack of
unit/department
Considered to be one of the existing
limitations in achieving sustainable school, lacking of facilities and specified
departments focusing to address the known global pandemic in all functioning schools
Environmental policies and programs in the university should be
firmly stressed and implemented.
Part of the administration�s responsibility is to involve environmental
education and plan
environmental goals to practice in the university. The lack of administrative
support contributes
to the challenges of plastic waste and management within the academic community
as administrators play a
critical role in enforcing well-planned policies for school improvement,
particularly in the aspect
of single-use plastic waste management. This is similar to the study of Nalikant et al. (2023) which states that
to encourage pro-environmental behavior, the university management should impose policies
and practices that are widely and consistently applied in the campus to attain the goal of a
zero-waste campus.
Theme 4: Financial
Higher
educational institutions consider the finances as one major problem in the operation
stage. The finances include the budget for waste facilities and the processes
of the implementation.
The solid waste management policies and programs require high-costs of supplies for the modification
required for the facilities and equipment in managing solid waste including single-use plastics.
Expensive
equipment/material
However, policy and cost were cited as obstacles for
university management to provide the facilities as making policy itself is not easy as it
involved many things such as legislation. Thus, it is costly to provide the facilities and maintain
the waste management itself. �There is no policy yet. Because making a policy is not
easy, and it involves many things, such as legislation.� (Article 2, Participant
14)
Financial
support is one of the obstacles reported in achieving a green campus.
The provision of
facilities and materials requires finances to conduct and to maintain the
practices inside the
university. Wright and Horst, Coy et al. (2013) stated, the cost of making a
policy was a
challenge for it demands larger and enhancement of facilities. There is a
decrease of effectiveness
of policy and programs employed in the university such as the inadequate number
of equipment and facilities
as it requires financial allocation to proceed in the installation since
the equipment are costly.
Hence, the budget should be the primary concern in implementing programs, campaigns, and policy.
Theme 5: Lack of information
The
lack of information refers to the community�s awareness and knowledge towards
the proper segregation of waste and the recycling method. The
students� lack of awareness and knowledge, the low informative facilities to improve SWM,
and the lack of baseline data for waste
generation were found as challenges in the University with regards to the
information dissemination.
Student�s
lack of awareness
In other words, they do not have a clear idea of the methods
as well as the reasons to separate waste. (Article 9, Challenges faced in carrying
out SWM on campus)
Lack of
knowledge
The WKU Office of Sustainability and WKU
Recycling and Surplus Department were indicated as recycling information sources by 41% of
respondents, while 112 participants (15%) proclaimed that they had no information about
recycling. (Article
6, Barriers against Efficiency)
Lack of
baseline data/research
Yet, several gaps in waste management are
currently not closely considered on a holistic, campus-wide scale while working towards the two
aforementioned goals�waste generation stream analysis, and the need for supplying more facilities
and tools to handle waste
are lacking. (Article
6, Western Kentucky University Recycling and Surplus Department,
2015)
Informative
facilities to improve SWM
Besides, no notice or information such as
�what can be recycled?� or �how toseparate waste at source?�
was observed in the campus compound. From the interviews with the contractors, it was
reported that informative facilities should be introduced around the campus to educate and
encourage waste reduction and recycling habits. (Article 9, 4.2.
Challenges faced in carrying out SWM on campus)
The
dissemination of information is the first-step towards the realization of the
target goals of the waste reduction programs, projects, policy, and practices in the
university. The university
is the best setting to educate and promote awareness to students, staff, and
teachers in the
current status of environmental problems. The lack of information and awareness
influence the
negligence and ignorance towards such problems. As a consequence, there is a
continuous disregardment from the students which becomes a reason to deny environmental
responsibility. This
is supported by the study of Ali et al. (2021), it states that educational
institutions should educate
students and impart information to mold them to become more environmentally
conscious. On that account,
the University must go hand in hand with regards to environmental awareness and teaching
instruction.
Theme 6: Attitude/ behavior
Attitude
and behavior refers to how the staff and students act and think towards the segregation
of waste and the use of single-use plastics. The staff and students attitude
and behavior conveys
as one the challenges in the segregation of waste or in the usage of single-use
plastics. The low commitment
of the staff to collect and segregate the waste and the students� non-environmental behavior
highlights the challenges on and during the implementation of the policy. Including the lack of
motivation and the gap between the knowledge and practice of the students were also translated as
need to be addressed.
Staff
environmental attitude/ Laziness of Staff
It was also found that the janitorial
staff did not store recyclable
waste separately. Instead, they mixed recyclable waste with general waste and
disposed them at the final
collection point. This situation shows that the awareness of the community on separating waste at
the source is still very low. (Article 10, Figure 1)
Lack of
motivation among students
This is why educational awareness actions
must be continuous and permanent,
directed at the personal motivation of individuals on campus. (Article 3, 3.4 Actions
for solid waste management at Faculdade UnB Planaltina)
More
reuse opportunities
Waste reduction through the development
of thoughtful purchasing strategies, increasing reuse opportunities, and conducting comprehensive outreach
and education services has been defined in the mission statement of the Recycling and Surplus
Department (Western Kentucky
University Recycling and Surplus Department, 2015b). (Article 7, Western
Kentucky University
(WKU)
Gap between knowledge
and practice
3R related knowledge and environmental
attitudes does not
necessarily translate into practice, unless identified barriers are addressed.
Also, appropriate policy
instruments and correct mechanisms are required. (Article 7, 3.5 Effect of 3R solid waste campus initiatives on people�s
behavior)
No/low
commitment of students/staff/community
The service staff showed low commitment
toward the program. On several occasions, the service staff ignored collecting waste from recycling
units, where waste could stay in the bin for the next day. In such conditions, the waste bin
became full.(Article 1, Operation
and administrative support)
The
attitude and behavior of staff and students towards plastic waste reduction is
a significant contributor to the success of the
implementation process. Their individual perspectives of the importance of the programs or policy
influence their willingness to act and cooperate as part of the academic community. Weak
environmental attitudes and behavior hinders the attainment of environmental goals within the
university. This is similar to the study of Siwaporn et al. (2017) that
the human�s choice, awareness, attitude, and behavior constituted the achievement of sustainability.
Therefore, environmental goals of the University shall be able to influence the students,
including the staff, to change their actions and their way of thinking towards the environment.
Theme 7: Curriculum integration
The
curriculum integration characterizes the inclusion of sustainability in the
curriculum or in the teaching process. The challenges identified
reflect the inclusion of sustainability development in the instruction and the proficiency of the
teacher regarding the integration of sustainability, including the effort to promote waste
reduction to the community.
Inclusion
in instruction
There exist some challenges to teachers
who adopt these
two approaches. First, a great deal of effort is required to design the
instructional content.
Although GS does not require any computer programming techniques, the development of the plot with
meaningful and engaging tasks underlying the GS could prove challenging and
time-consuming. (Article 4, Implications for ESD teachers in higher
education)
Teacher�s knowledge
Another challenge is the change in
teachers� roles. They are no longer the authoritative person in the classroom who may
only focus on presenting the course materials clearly, but acting as facilitators with
multiple sets of skill instead. These can present a major challenge for
long-in-service teachers who are accustomed to the traditional lecturing style. (Article 4:
Implications for ESD teachers in higher education)
Effort to
promote waste reduction to community
The campus community finds this a nuisance as they are not ready to
change their lifestyle to help conserve the environment. This finding is supported by Desa, A (2017),who stated that
even though the public
professed the �correct� attitude towards the environment,many
are still not ready to
change their lifestyle in ways that might require sacrificing certain forms of leisure and comfort for
the sake of the environment. (Article 9, 4.2 Challenges faced in
carrying out SWM on campus)
Currently,
some schools are slowly transitioning into a more sustainable learning environment.
Time is one of the important factors to consider in the inclusion of
sustainability in the
curriculum as it is an additional responsibility to teachers. One of the
challenges that contribute
as to why teachers cannot take the role is the inability of teachers in
integrating sustainability
in the teaching instruction since it is time-consuming and requires the
enhancement of
teaching strategy. Similarly, these serve as challenges for teachers who are
used to the traditional
method of teaching (Moura et. al, 2019).
B. Initiatives and practices of
the University in dealing with single-use plastics
A total of six themes were prompted
upon the synthesis of 10 articles to break down the initiatives employed in the
University towards the use and management of single-use plastics.
Theme 1:
Environmental goals
Environmental goals are recognized
as one of the characterized catalysts of change for waste management. It
identifies the effectiveness in changing people�s behavior and practices
towards single-use plastics usage, through establishing lawful acts and
policies, and recreating or changing people�s ways through seeking effective
alternatives aside from normally using single-use plastics, and consequently
prevent loitering and pollution specifically in school premises.
Practices
�Zero-waste
is the goal we are trying to achieve, so 3R is the mechanism we use. The Ways
that we want to use. The main goal is zero waste. We try to achieve the goal,
but how to do it? The way is 3R.� Participant 14.
Campaigns/programs
Respondents�
current zero-waste practices implied that they have been doing waste recycling,
waste separation, waste reduction (3R), and supporting the no single-use
plastic movement.They demonstrate their support by
using alternative items such as their own food/drink containers and shopping
bags. (Article 2, FGD Results and
Findings)
Policy
In
order to minimize the solid waste generated on campus, a set of written
policies should be developed and enforced by the campus authority. In addition,
it can serve as a term of reference for each stakeholder. (Article 10, Policy design and implementation)
Alternatives
They
additionally mentioned that there are alternative measures that can be used to
reduce the use of single-use plastic cups instead of providing the discount,
such as changing to biodegradable cups. (Article
8, Short interview after the intervention)
Environmental goals in the
university sets the foundation of adopting sustainable practices, programs,
alternatives, and policy particularly in combating the increasing amount of
single-use plastic usage and its accumulating impact to the environment. The
environmental policy of a university could encourage responsible environmental
management and practices towards zero-waste campus goals (Baba-Nalikant et.al, 2023). These goals may serve as an
inspiration for students to practice the same goals outside school premises.
Theme
2: Rewards and Motivation
The rewards and motivation signifies
the adequate way in igniting the people to work and act together wherein the
beneficiaries are both the people and the environment as they appropriately
take part in preventing the usage of single-use plastics through education with
correlation to the environment and encouragement from different associations of
environmentalists and/or receiving incentives as a reward for participation.
Incentives
Recycling
activity through the cash-for-trash program had a positive effect on reducing
the proportion of recyclable packaging remaining in the MSW stream, whereas the
recyclable packaging-waste separation project did not. Financial incentives and
consistent participation in the cash-for-trash program are possible explanations
for this positive result. Those who participated earned money by selling
recyclables. (Article 7)
Encouragement
Personal
encouragements are valued as motivators for people to participate actively and
effectively in waste management. It is found that personal awareness, supports,
trends, and reinforcement motivate the respondents to be proactively involved
in pro-environmental activities.�As
a student, I do not want to do this alone. So, I think what I should do and
what other students should do is invite friends to do it together. Yes, both
support and trends.�Participant 29. (Article 2, FGD Results and Findings)
Incentives have a great impact on
encouraging the students and staff to act collaboratively with the goal of the
University to develop a sustainable learning environment. To integrate the
habits and practices of waste segregation, declining the use of single-use
plastics and supporting the programs, campaigns or policy implemented in the
University is the main purpose of giving incentives to students and staff, not
to to develop adaptive behavior on being reliant on
the presence of the incentives. According to Das et al (2022), Incentivisation
does not only encourage students� use for the incentivisation or promotional
period, but more importantly, creates a habit, which pushes for the sustained
use of the product. Besides inculcating the habits of use through
incentivisation, it is also important that the initiative must also be seen as
beneficial to the end-users.
Theme
3: Disciplinary measures
Disciplinary measures are the
reprimand or apply corrective action in response to negligence of necessary and
appropriate environmental practice including non-compliance to the school�s
plastic waste policy and will be conducted reasonable disciplinary measures
such as penalty or monetary fine.
Fine/penalty
Corresponding
to incentivisation, a de-incentivisation strategy was utilised
targeting the use of single-use plastic bags�SGD 0.20 is charged per single-use
plastic bag purchased on campus. (Article
5, Incentivising Initiatives)
The disciplinary measures towards
the student and staff's uncooperative behavior creates a foundation to the
establishment of programs and policy since it not only encourages them to work
jointly with their objectives but also obligates them to foster environmental
stewardship. Aside from providing incentives, schools employ the opposite
strategy by giving penalties for non-compliance. This serves to motivate the
academic community to be disciplined and for policies targeting plastic usage
and management within the university to be strong and consistent. This is
similar to the findings of Hao & Xu (2022) that
the likelihood to follow mandatory waste separation policies is the high
penalty for non-compliance. Hence, one of the initiatives that schools consider
is providing penalties for policy violators.
Theme 4:
Knowledge and Awareness
Knowledge and awareness refer to the
importance of the acquisition of relevant information by any means and how it
significantly reflects positive behavior towards the students. The following
vignettes support that students� and staff�s knowledge and awareness of waste
segregation, plastic waste management, and recycling are one of the initiatives
of schools that influence sustainable practices and behaviors within the
university. It includes dissemination through any mediums, the social influence
of the students; and the training of staff/students.
Information dissemination
�Information
on the zero-waste issue needs to be disseminated from time to time through the
mass media such as television, radio, or social media platforms such as
Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram. Nowadays, most people
are using them. Maybe the continuance of dissemination may touch their minds.�
Participant 12. (Article 2)
Social influence
�To educate by
observation. For example, the students will follow the first act of their
superiors.� Participant D.�As a student, I do not want
to do this alone. So, I think what I should do and what other students should
do is invite friends to do it together. Yes, both support and trends.� (Article 2)
Training of staff/students
Thus,
the main results show the possibility of aligning sustainable practices with
educational objectives and values, as individuals committed to a more sustainable
world play a vital role in the success of integrating sustainable practices
with the university. This commitment comes through awareness of the whole
university group. (Article 9)
The attainment of the devised plan
for the implementation of policy, campaign, program and practices towards
sustainable development is reliant on its major contributors which are the
people in the University premises that continuously work and operate in
preparing the learners to the real world. To better equip them with sufficient
knowledge and skills, the university shall build in environmental education
together with the instruction which will serve as both awareness and training.
Theme 5:
Educational Approach
The educational approach involves
integrating environmental education in the teaching process to increase
environmental knowledge and awareness of single-use plastics and make informed
decisions towards single-use plastic management and reduction in the
university. The synthesized data revealed that research and community
extension, engagement, teaching strategy, curriculum integration, and
sustainability centers are the schools� initiatives and practices towards
management of single-use plastics which are supported by the following
vignettes.
Research and Community Extension
A
group that develops university extension and research actions related to the
theme of solid waste management and environmental awareness with the academic
community of FUP. (Article 3, 3.4 Actions for solid
waste management at Faculdade UnB
Planaltina)
Engagement
The
separation of waste correctly at the source is the most effective action to
facilitate the entire waste management process. Therefore, engagement of the
academic community and behavioral change towards a focus on socio-environmental
responsibility is fundamental for the effectiveness of selective collection. (Article 3, 3.4 Actions for solid waste management at Faculdade UnB Planaltina)
Teaching strategy
This
teaching will bring the necessary awareness to implement sustainable practices
because with theoretical knowledge, there is a better chance to get to
practice. (Article 9)
Curriculum integration
Thus,
the main results show the possibility of aligning sustainable practices with
educational objectives and values, as individuals committed to a more
sustainable world play a vital role in the success of integrating sustainable
practices with the university and this commitment comes through awareness of
the whole university group. (Article
9)
Sustainability Centers
For the remaining
8 HEI, the main practices were identified, one of which is centers or labs to
study and promote sustainability. (Article
9, Results and analysis)
There are several movements that the
university enforces mainly focusing on incorporating environmental education in
the teaching process and in the university�s curriculum. As an educational
institution, schools should educate and shape the academic community to
increase the environmental knowledge, consciousness, and awareness (Ali et. al,
2020).This supports the study of Moura (2019) that strong environmental policy,
obtaining strategic resources, supporting leaders and individuals who work
toward the idea of sustainability and environmental preservation are also
identified as the factors necessary to enable universities to undertake and
include a sustainable change in all areas of the institution. Further,
considering also the university�s education and awareness of the importance of
environmental sustainability for future generations as this is a fundamental
key for a successful sustainable strategy.
Theme 6:
Equipment and Facilities
Equipment and facilities refer to
the physical resources that are needed to manage single-use plastics in the
university. The synthesized data reflects that the installation of bins,
labeling of bins, and enhancement of waste facilities are found to be essential
ways of managing and mitigating the use of single-use plastic waste.
Installation of bins
In
the same year, a mini-bin system was deployed in academic and administrative
offices, which increased recycling by 30 percent (Appalachian State University
Office of University Sustainability, 2015). (Article
4)
Labeling of bins
Increased
recycling is attributed to multiple efforts such as increasing the number of
recycling bins on campus, relabeling all existing bins, providing composting
bins at dining halls, replacing dining take-away packaging with compostable
packaging, and improving and widely distributing recycling guidelines across
the campus (Participant B, personal communication, 2015).(Article 4)
Enhancement of Waste Facilities
Furthermore,
user-friendly waste separation facilities should be placed appropriately
throughout the campus to encourage the recycling habit among the campus
community. (Article 10)
Adequate and sufficient facilities
fosters a sense of environmental responsibility to the students and staff as it
abolishes the reasons for their inability to work and cooperate with the goal
of the programs and policy. The complete emplacement of these equipment and
facilities along with providing informative labels help administer the
dissemination of information and encourage university individuals to practice
appropriate management of single-use plastic waste, recyclables, and waste that
can be recovered. This is supported by the study of Ali et.
al (2021) that the use of facilities should be convenient and reachable and
that in order to educate and encourage waste reduction and recycling behaviors,
informative facilities should be installed around the campus.
5.0
Proposed Framework
The proposed framework emphasizes
challenges and initiatives towards single-use plastics in the Universities, and
the practices that can be applied in Cebu Normal University. The challenges
were categorized into seven themes, labeled the manpower, equipment/facility
and space, administrative support, financial, lack of information
dissemination, attitude/behavior, and curriculum integration. These are the
identified factors that the university faced with regards to the usage of
single-use plastic and the solid waste management. These factors demand to be
highly addressed to minimize the problem. Other than the challenges, the
framework imposed several initiatives for the Universities to take advantage of
in dealing with the plastic and management issues and these actions are subject
to expansion and implementation. The initiatives were classified into six
themes, these are the environmental goals, rewards and motivation, disciplinary
measures, knowledge and awareness, educational approach, and the equipment and
facilities. On the basis of the mentioned initiatives, there are
practices that can be applied in the Cebu Normal University concerning the use
of single-use plastics.
Figure 3: Thematic framework of challenges and initiatives of
single-use plastics in the universities
CONCLUSIONS
This
meta-synthesis interpreted that the different challenges of the universities in managing
single-use plastic hinders
the effectiveness of implementing them along with the various initiatives that the
universities employed in order to foster proliferation of environmentally aware and responsible individuals.
Learning and practices starts within a close community such as the University or school where it
is the most ideal and appropriate place for learners to understand, be informed and practice the
different ways in order to combat the rising environmental challenges especially the harmful
effects of the use of single-use plastics. These initiatives are grown from the challenges that
occurred in the different schools and universities all over Asia and some schools and
universities in the United States of America which took part in the goal to reduce the
generation of single-use plastic waste. The thematic framework depicts the cyclical process of promoting
Sustainable waste management of Single-use plastics that gives rise to challenges that is
identified where it is then countered by the initiatives that are formulated to promote
environmental stewardship and resolve the problems regarding the usage and the generating plastic waste.
The school or university administration and teachers must work together in order to train the
learners to adopt good practices towards the single-use plastic waste segregation, reduction and usage.
This can be achieved by establishing significant environmental programs, campaigns and policy
where its success relies on the proper information dissemination of their environmental goals.
Therefore, this study recommends that the school administration and teachers must work together in
integrating the reduction of plastic waste to the teaching instruction and foster
environmental practices through undergoing environmental training and seminars for teachers and students
to know and realize their environmental responsibilities. Moreover, it must be taken into
consideration that ,aside from the training and
integration to the instruction, incentives and disciplinary measures are one of
the best strategies to inculcate habits, practices and routines in the plastic waste reduction and
generation. And lastly, to create a strong foundation for environmental education and awareness,
establishing policies that provide accountability and guidance to the students, staff and
teachers that promotes the capacity to transition into a more environmentally responsible
learning community.
REFERENCES
