The Recycling Bag is a recycling pilot in Donovan Hall, Haggin Hall, and Lyman T. Johnson Hall. At UK, we want to make recycling as easy as possible for everyone. The goal of this pilot is to test if The Recycling Bag will improve the ease of recycling for wildcats who live on campus.
Use The Recycling Bag as you would use any recycling bin to collect your waste. When your bag is full, take it to your residence hall's recycling compactor, empty the contents using the handle on the bottom of the bag and bring it back to your room to be used again.
You can recycle and use the bag confidently:
A great feature about The Recycling Bag is that you can fold it and put it in your backpack if you are on your way to campus!
You can place any accepted cardboard, paper, plastic, metal and glass inside of The Recycling Bag. Use the Waste Wizard, a web-base search tool to discover what you can recycle quickly and easily.
The Recycling Bag is a reusable bag provided to every room in Donovan, Haggin and Johnson Halls. It replaces the traditional in-room recycling bin and gives you a convenient way to collect recyclables in your room before taking them to your hall's recycling compactor.
Your residence hall is participating in a pilot program that replaces your in-room recycling bin with a reusable recycling bag. This bag should be viewed as your new recycling bin. Please note this bag holds the same amount of recyclables as the recycling bins located in other residence halls. The goal is to make recycling more convenient and improve participation. The results of the pilot will help determine whether the program expands to all residence halls.
Donovan, Haggin and Johnson Halls were selected for the Fall 2026 and Spring 2027 pilot program. Starting with a few residence halls allows us to evaluate participation, gather feedback and make improvements before considering expansion to additional halls.
No. The Recycling Bag is only for recyclable materials. Non-recyclable waste should be placed in a separate bin (not provided by UK Housing).
While participation is voluntary, we encourage everyone to recycle. Every bottle, can and piece of paper recycled helps reduce waste sent to the landfill.
Empty your bag your residence hall’s recycling compactor. The compactor is located outside of Haggin Hall on Hilltop Ave.
Contact your Resident Advisor or fill out a FIX IT request.
If needed, simply wipe it out or rinse it with mild soap and water and allow it to dry before using it again.
A fee will be applied to the room for the missing bag. Please ensure that The Recycling Bag is available to everyone in the room and there when you check out at the end of the school year.
At UK, it is our goal to become a zero-waste campus and reduce waste going to the landfill. This pilot is designed to make recycling easier and more convenient for students by providing a reusable bag that can be folded and stored in a backpack after it's emptied. Additionally, the pilot aims to encourage more participation and help the university improve recycling services in residence halls.
If you have any questions or feedback about The Recycling Bag pilot program, please e-mail us so we can address any concerns. Your experience and feedback will improve recycling for future wildcats living in the residence halls.