Action Plan to Reducing Plastic Waste

Reducing single-use plastics

The Plastic Free initiative combines practical changes across food outlets, retail, events and everyday campus life. Actions include introducing reusable container schemes and compostable takeaway packaging, transitioning retail products and stationery towards plastic-free or compostable alternatives, removing single-use plastics from University-catered events, and participating in circular economy schemes that reduce demand for new plastic.

Ongoing plastic waste reduction initiatives:

1. Simply Cups Program
   The University works with Simply Cups to collect and recycle disposable coffee cups that would otherwise be difficult to recover through standard recycling streams. Dedicated collection stations are available across Callaghan, Newcastle City and Central Coast locations. Since the program began in 2019, more than 81,000 disposable coffee cups have been recycled.
2. Bags to Benches
   Through the University's partnership with Plastic Police, soft plastics collected on campus are recovered and transformed into products such as outdoor benches. More than 362,500 pieces of soft plastic have been collected and recycled through the program, giving difficult-to-recycle material a useful second life.
3. Plastic Free guide for campus retailers
   The University works with food outlets, events, markets and catering providers to reduce single-use plastics and move towards reusable, plastic-free and compostable alternatives. This includes supporting the transition away from items such as plastic cutlery, straws, bags, bottles and takeaway food and drink containers.

Putting the plan into practice in 2025

During 2025, the University's waste and recycling programs continued to expand across campus. The 2025 Annual Report records continued operation of Simply Cups and Soft Plastics Recovery alongside broader resource-recovery initiatives.

• Recycling and resource-recovery infrastructure remained available across campuses to make waste separation easier.
• The University continued working with external partners on recovery pathways for materials that are difficult to process through standard recycling streams.
• Plastic Free education and retailer guidance continued to support everyday choices that reduce reliance on single-use plastics.

These measures combine waste avoidance, reuse, recycling and community participation to reduce the amount of plastic used and discarded across the University's campuses.

A University waste audit found that coffee cups account for 3% of general waste and 2% of recycling. Bringing a reusable cup is the most effective way to avoid this waste in the first place.