Clare Putnam

Credit: Gosia Sklodowska/Jon Chapman

Clare Putnam is the Student Programs Coordinator at the Weatherhead Center at the Center for Government and International Studies (CGIS). As an active Eco Citizen, she has implemented many sustainability projects at CGIS. Although Clare enjoyed taking Environmental Management 101 and 102, she says that she has always been interested in environmental issues, especially since her parents were involved in land conservation on Cape Cod. Clare is passionate about encouraging occupants in her building to save energy by turning their computers off when they're not using them, keeping heat down and air conditioning up, and recycling, making sure bins are in all the right places. She posts signs near printers and copiers with facts about how many trees are used everyday and is encouraging the use of recycled paper. She distributes Green Tips to every building occupant, maintains the CGIS Green Program website, and is currently working to address the growing problem of computer waste at Harvard by encouraging reuse and recycling. Thanks to Clare's efforts, CGIS now uses Green Seal certified soap and cleaning supplies and 100% recycled paper products in the bathrooms. In the CGIS café, she is trying to get as many green features as possible. These efforts have translated into the use of recycled napkins, fair trade coffee, local and organic food when possible, a "bring your own mug" campaign, and the elimination of individually packaged sugar and cream. It's not easy to strike a balance between helping people to be environmentally conscientious and not overdoing it by being overbearing. "It's important to gauge the response, adjust our work accordingly, and then to take it one step further."