Got stuff? On Saturday, Feb. 4, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Spelman College along with other Atlanta University Center Consortium institutions will collect it from you as they kickoff the 2012 RecycleMania tournament. To jump start their participation in RecycleMania, which runs from Sunday, Feb. 5 through Saturday, March 31, Spelman, Morehouse College, Morehouse School of Medicine, Clark Atlanta University, and the Interdenominational Theological Center will partner for RecycleMania Day to collect recyclable materials – paper products, plastics, cans, cardboard, glass, cell phones and computer monitors. The drop-off site is at Milligan Parking Lot (Corner of Westview and Lee Street) at Spelman.

After the joint kickoff event, the five AUC institutions will begin an eight-week competition against each other and more than 600 other colleges and universities nationwide and in Canada to see which campus can reduce, reuse and recycle the most waste. The eight-week tournament is preceded by two pre-season reporting weeks that began Jan. 22. Schools will be ranked in eight categories, including the largest amount of total recyclables, the least amount of trash per capita, and the highest recycling rate. Top schools in each category earn “bragging rights,” while the winners of each are recognized with an award made of recycled glass. For more about RecycleMani, visit this link.

Collin Kelley has been the editor of Atlanta Intown for two decades and has been a journalist and freelance writer for 35 years. He’s also an award-winning poet and novelist.