Month: September 2026

Don’t Mess With Mansfield – Community Cleanup Day November 14, 2026

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The Town of Mansfield and UConn are pleased to team up against litter in our town. Join in to meet others in the Mansfield community and do good for our people and planet.

UConn & Vicinity Town Wide
Date & Time: Saturday, November 14

Cleanup Check In Stations will be open Noon to 4pm

Optional RSVP HERE.

 Saturday, November 14

At your leisure throughout the day.

OR Noon to 4pm to participate with UConn students.
Where: Volunteer to clean up in the core of campus, Hunting Lodge Rd, Separatist Rd, North Eagleville Rd, Moulton Rd, or Eastwood/Westwood Rds.

Check In Station Map

Litter pickup supplies will be provided at check in stations.

 UConn welcomes all residents to join students in cleaning up North Eagleville Rd. Park in F Lot and check in at the litter clean up station near Wings Over Storrs. Bags, gloves and safety vests will be provided.

On your own? You’re welcome to go anywhere you feel safe collecting roadside litter. Roads that are especially littered include Browns Rd, Chaffeeville Rd, Maple Rd, Pleasant Valley Rd, Mansfield City Rd, Moulton Rd, Stearns Rd, White Oak Rd and Gurleyville Rd. Consider making a commitment to pick up litter on a section of road throughout the year by joining Adopt A Road.
What To Do With Full Trash/Recycling Bags: Bring your litter bag to your Check In station once you are finished. Casella trucks will be making rounds to pick up bags from the stations. Bags of litter from independent clean ups may be placed out with household trash for those with collection service or taken to the Mansfield Transfer Station for no charge. The Transfer Station is located on Rte 89, one mile from the intersection of Routes 195 and 89 in Mansfield Center at 221 Warrenville Rd. The Transfer Station is open Tuesdays, 8:30 am to 4:00 pm, Thursdays, 12:00 pm to 4:00 pm and Saturdays, 8:30 am to 4:00 pm.

 

If you’re joining UConn, bring your bag back to the litter station at Wings Over Storrs.

Litter is an unsightly blight on our roadways, and hurts the environment. It can be especially dangerous for wildlife. Small animals may crawl into bottles and get stuck, and litter can blow into storm drains and streams and may eventually make its way to the ocean. When litter gets eaten by animals and sea life, they can starve to death or suffocate. Litter also attracts pests. Be part of the solution, not the pollution!

Since starting this program in 2024, we have collected over 4,000 pounds of litter!

Read last year’s story about Don’t Mess with Mansfield in UConn Today.

UConn Office of Sustainability            mansfield CT logo

UConn@COP Fellows Announced for COP31 in Turkey

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UConn@COP is a competitive fellowship program that sends students to the international climate-focused United Nations Conference of the Parties (COP). The event brings together students, diplomats, government officials, activists, leaders, and delegates to discuss climate change. Students have the opportunity to engage and attend sessions that discuss ongoing negotiations in the global environmental sphere.

Twelve UConn students were selected to attend COP31 this November in Antalya, Turkey. The Office of Sustainability received approximately 60 applications for the fellowship, all of which were exceptional. The UConn@COP Selection Committee, consisting of faculty, staff, and past UConn COP fellows reviewed each application, and collaboratively decided who would be accepted into this year’s cohort. Betsy Mortensen, Experiential Learning Programs Manager for the Office of Sustainability, and member of the COP Selection Committee shared her thoughts on this year’s applicants, “As always, the selection committee was super impressed by the students who applied, and by the diversity of the majors that were represented. Climate change affects all sectors so we’re glad that we can bring students from diverse fields to COP31.” The COP Fellowship is grateful to have engaged with so many driven students.  

Students will attend COP 31 from November 13th to November 21st, 2026. They will bring back the experience of a lifetime and educate their peers about their learnings both while they are at the conference as well as back on campus. One of the fellows, Judith Otunnu ‘27 (CLAS) shared, “I hope to strengthen my understanding of how environmental justice issues manifest on a global scale and learn from diverse perspectives that will inform my work as an environmental scientist after graduation.”   

The following students will be attending this year’s conference: 

  1. Samantha Glass, Ph.D. Candidate in Oceanography
  2. Megan Romansky, M.S. Candidate in Applied and Resource Economics
  3. Faryal Akbar ’27 (CLAS)
  4. Brenny Alcantara ’27 (CLAS)
  5. Amelia Chien ’28 (CAHNR)
  6. Ryan Engels ’27 (CLAS, SPP)
  7. Agatha Freitas ’28 (CLAS)
  8. Paige Gregory ’28 (CLAS)
  9. Amber Hwang ’27 (CLAS)
  10. Judith Otunnu ’27 (CLAS)
  11. Kinga Sigmond ’29 (CLAS)
  12. Suhitha Sreedhar ’27 (BUS)

Check out our Fellows page to learn more about each student.

Thanks to generous donations, students are able to attend the trip with nearly all expenses paid by the UConn@COP program. Special thank you to the UConn School of Business for supporting the travel costs of Suhitha Sreedhar and Ryan Engels this year.

Meet the fellows and learn about their experience at the conference at the Climate Change Cafe on December 2nd, 2026 at the Student Union, Room 304 from 4-6 PM. Refreshments will be provided.