NEWS RELEASE

Contact: Jan Fiderio at 603.283.2107

November 29, 2011 for Immediate Release

Drink from the Tap, Please, Not the Bottle

Take the pledge to support public water systems, AUNE Students Ask

(Keene, NH) -- Eight Antioch University New England (AUNE) students involved in the “Think Outside of the Bottle Antioch” campaign are asking the AUNE community to just say no to that throwaway bottle of water and drink water from the faucet instead. So far this semester, close to four hundred AUNE faculty, staff and students have signed a pledge to do so.

The campus campaign is part of the national Think Outside the Bottle campaign coordinated by Corporate Accountability International. It’s also a service learning project chosen by students in the fall Organizing for Social Change course taught by Steve Chase, director of advocacy for social justice and sustainability.

In support of the pledge campaign, the AUNE library has a display about water privatization, which includes a campaign pledge sign-up sheet. The library is hosting daily showings of the water documentary Tapped, at 11:30 a.m. from November 28 through December 2, in its media room.

The students are also asking that bottled water not be sold at AUNE or purchased for AUNE events. Donna Locher, of Donna’s Café, has agreed to no longer sell bottled water in her food service. Other units in AUNE are already making changes. The Education Department, for example, has agreed not to purchase bottled water for its departmental events; the Environmental Studies Department may soon follow suit. AUNE President David Caruso did not include bottled water in the new green vending machines just installed in the student lounge.

“We also want to make it easier to use tap water at AUNE,” said Mike Sharon, student and campaign activist, who has been working with “Doc” Wicker, director of facilities, and Tim Jordan, vice president of finance and administration, to explore putting faucets on the drinking fountains that make it easy to fill reusable personal water bottles, and installing a filtered hot and cold tap water dispenser in the student lounge like the one in the faculty and staff lounge.

“I’m incredibly proud of how these students have run such an effective campaign for personal and institutional change here,” Chase said. “These students have been applying the theories and skills we are studying, and doing something valuable for AUNE at the very same time.”

The Think Outside the Bottle pledge:
"I pledge to Think Outside The Bottle, which means 1) personally opting for public tap water over buying expensive bottled water, and 2) supporting AUNE's efforts to prioritize strong public water systems over the needless expense of commercial bottled water, creating massive plastic bottle waste, and letting transnational corporations turn water into a commercial commodity instead of a protected human right."

Sign the pledge here on-line. here.

About Antioch University New England (AUNE)
Antioch University New England offers highly respected doctoral, master’s and certificate programs in education, environmental studies, management and psychology. Located in Keene, New Hampshire, this unique institution serves approximately one thousand students each year. Our graduates have gone on to be leaders of positive change, working toward a more just and sustainable society. Founded in 1964, Antioch University New England is the oldest of Antioch University’s graduate campuses. Learn more at: www.antiochne.edu

About Antioch University
Antioch University serves adult students around the world and across the country, online and at its five campuses in four states. Each campus offers degree programs that meet—and often anticipate—the pressing needs of its region and the wider world. The University is also home to the landmark PhD in Leadership and Change; Antioch Education Abroad, an exceptional opportunity of immersive service and study programs; and WYSO, a leading public radio affiliate and an essential source of global news and opinion.

Antioch University is a nonprofit private 501(c) (3) organization and member of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools, accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. For more information, www.antioch.edu.

Last Updated: 12/10/11