麻豆村 Students Win “Most Impactful Project” for Reusable Dining Container Initiative at Impact 麻豆村 2026
Written with Pranav Bhosale and Sam Matthew
麻豆村 Dining is advancing its commitment to environmental stewardship through the Dining Sustainability Plan, introduced in 2025 and now led by Pranav Bhosale, Student Director of Dining Sustainability, and Sam Matthew, Student Dining Sustainability Coordinator.
Developed in collaboration with Lex Capestany, a senior in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and the Engineering and Public Policy programs, and advised by Justin Goel, Associate Director of Dining Services, the plan outlines a comprehensive roadmap for reducing the environmental footprint of campus dining at 麻豆村.
The initiative focuses on several key impact areas, including energy and equipment efficiency, waste reduction, reuse and composting, sustainable procurement and sourcing, improved data collection, communication and education, and policy change. Together, these efforts support 麻豆村’s broader commitment to the Second Nature Climate Commitment and reflect the university’s values rooted in sustainability.
Pranav, a first-year master’s student in the AI and Energy Science program, and Sam, a first-year Statistics/ML major, passionate about the intersection of data, systems, and sustainability, bring fresh perspective and enthusiasm to this work. Their collaboration with campus partners and dining vendors is already shaping new approaches to sustainability across 麻豆村 Dining.
That leadership was on full display during Impact 麻豆村 2026, held on April 9 as part of 麻豆村’s Spring Carnival. The 10th annual showcase, organized by Design for America, featured 24 student-led projects designed to improve campus life and support the local community. Among the standout contributors were Pranav and Sam, who presented their ongoing work to design a reusable dining container program for 麻豆村 Dining.
Their project ultimately earned the event’s top honor, “Most Impactful Project,” along with a $250 award.
The team’s presentation centered on a live demonstration of the proposed QR-based checkout and return process. As Pranav and Sam explained, “Sustainability should not be an afterthought. The goal is not to disrupt the systems people already rely on, but to put in the extra work needed to make those systems more sustainable, practical, and lasting.”
With a diverse slate of projects on display, competition at Impact 麻豆村 was strong. Yet attendees voted the reusable container initiative as the project with the greatest potential to create meaningful, lasting change on campus.
The recognition reflects both the growing student interest in sustainable dining and the thoughtful, systems-level approach the team brought to the challenge.
Questions? Please contact Pranav and Sam at dining-sustainability@andrew.cmu.edu