Angelina Durbin
Mary Gates Leadership Scholar
Autumn 2025
Major: Environmental Public Health
Pronouns: she/her
Mentor: Chris Jaehne, Student Life
Project
FreeFoodAlert: A Food Waste Reduction Messaging Service
FreeFoodAlert is an existing program that sends text alerts to students on college campuses when leftover food from catered events is available. This project involved implementing FreeFoodAlert within UW Dining's catering system to reduce campus food waste and provide UW students with free, nutritious meals. Implementing this program required extensive stakeholder collaboration among UW Dining, Environmental Health, Sustainability, Recycling, and Student Life. Ensuring the program would remain a lasting resource for students also required securing permanent funding and staffing to support operations.
What I learned
I learned to stay optimistic and navigate ambiguity when unexpected challenges arose during project implementation. This project took more than two years to complete, and at times I wanted to drop everything and give up. I hit countless dead ends while sourcing funding for the program, finding permanent staff to oversee implementation after my graduation, and training different UW departments on how the program operates. If I gave up when people told me I was in over my head, this program would never have made it to the implementation stage. Every campus stakeholder I spoke with about their concerns brought me closer to the program's launch. I learned to outsource support to students who were passionate about reducing food waste and to rely on my mentor and other university staff members with valuable institutional knowledge. I also learned how valuable others' perspectives are to consider when implementing a large-scale program that impacts departments across campus.
Advice for future applicants
Don't let rejection or adversity stop you from pursuing a project that you value and care about! Hearing "no" repeatedly can be very discouraging. Instead of seeing rejection as a stopping point, see it as an opportunity to shift your mindset and try a new approach. Your project matters and the work you are doing is important. Don't lose sight of that! Logistical challenges almost always have a workaround, and asking your mentors and other interested students for support can offer solutions you may not have considered.
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