Creating a Newsletter for the

New Recycling System

at Camp Withycombe:
A Project Report

Prepared for:

Laura Powers, Project Director

Washington State University

Prepared by:

James Mooney
Blaire Roberts
Griffin MacConnell
Rayann Searles
Kelsey Nash

April 6, 2016
1

Date:

April 6, 2016

To:

Laura Powers, Project Director

From:

James Mooney
Blaire Roberts
Griffin MacConnell
Rayann Searles
Kelsey Nash

Subject:

Project Report for the Recycling System Newsletter for Camp Withycombe

Attached is the report for our project, Creating a Newsletter for the New Recycling System at Camp
Withycombe: A Project Report. We chose to take on this specific task from a selection of five projects,
presented by group members, based on initial research projects and recommendations. We completed the
project by completing research on newsletters and by creating content to go into a newsletter that would
successfully detail the new recycling program at Camp Withycombe.
To complete our task of creating an effective newsletter, we completed some primary research on
different types of newsletters and by evaluating research already done by James Mooney, who served as
our topic expert and who wrote the original recommendation of implementing a recycling system at Camp
Withycombe. We created content based on these findings and recommendations.
We found that the best way to create our newsletter would be digitally. We did not want to create more
garbage by creating something that many would just throw away and not even recycle. We made sure to
include the following in the newsletter: How does the recycling system work, where can employees of the
camp recycle, and what will be required to of employees to maintain the recycling system.
Our final project successfully does its job of informing Camp Withycombe employees about the recycling
system and the role they play in the program. Thank you for your role in bringing us together to work on
this exciting project.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents
Executive Summary............................................................................. 4
Introduction..................................................................................... 4
Research Methods............................................................................... 4
Results........................................................................................... 5
Conclusions...................................................................................... 5
Recommendations............................................................................... 5

Executive Summary
In order to create a newsletter that would inform the employees of Camp Withycombe about the
camps new recycling program and their role in it, we set out to research and compile
information on newsletters in general. The goal was to make the newsletter as effective as it
could be in getting the information employees needed out there while also not being counterproductive to the idea of recycling by printing out numerous papers that could possibly be
thrown away immediately, creating more waste.
We found that the best choice for us was a digital newsletter that could be stored and viewed
online or printed out to appease everyone involved. Content was created using the research
James Mooney did during his initial recommendation memo where he recommended that a new
recycling system be created. We recommend that the newsletter be stored primarily as a digital
copy used for first-read and reference purposes.
Introduction
Camp Withycombe is a training facility occupied by military employees for the National Guard
located in Clackamas, Oregon. What this military base lacks is a cost-effective recycling
program. In addition, one of the underlying issues with the current system is that classified
documents become leaked. With our newly updated recycling program, it is our hope employees
and visitors to the base understand and participate in the proper use of recycling.
Research Methods
In the initial stages of the project, an audience analysis was done from the employees at Camp
Withycombe. For the design section, Kelsey has been working with TinyLetter, MailChimp, and
Google Flashissue App. When coming up with the project I interviewed a number of
commanding officers and non-commissioned officers in order to gain a better understanding of
the scope of my issue. The first person that had some credible information was the post
commander for Camp Withycombe. His name is LTC Hildbrandt. He suggested that I make a
recycling center in the middle of the post where I could collect the commodities I needed from
each office. More visibility to the issue will remind people that they have a responsibility to take
care of recyclables the proper way.
My second interview was LTC Hildbrandts secretary, SSG Fleming. She informed me most of
the office workers throw all their paper in the shred companies bins because it was the most
convenient way to remove the waste from the office.
My third interview was with COL Safe. He runs the Construction and Facilities for the National
Guard. He generates a lot of waste from the construction portion of the house because the Army
is remodeling many of their armories to bring them up to code and current building standards. He
laid out a liabilities matrix that demonstrated where many of our opportunities to reduce overall
waste from the taxpayer. I immediately honed in on the amount of money we spend to not only
remove solid waste, but how much we spend to shred documents.

Results
We found that a newsletter, sent by email, would be the best means of spreading the proper
information to our target audience at Camp Withycombe. As a group, we decided that an online
newsletter was preferable to a physical copy due to the ability send to a large quantity of people
with relative ease, a higher chance of being read, along with lower costs.
After initial research into newsletter design programs, many of which share similar features, our
designer chose Googles Flashissue App as the best system to use. The information used in the
newsletter goes into detail on the recycling system being put in place at Camp Withycombe,
along with the benefits the program provides. The system is a simple three-bin design: blue for
plastic, green for paper, and a black one for locked classified documents. This system will safely
allow classified documents to be disposed of separately from other waste and recycling from the
camp. We decided that a professional, three-page, newsletter would be the best fit for his project
and would allow us to share important information such as locations, proper use, and benefits
(see appendices 1.1). The recycling system is set to be in two locations on each floor: outside the
entrance to the employee lounge, and outside the entrance to offices. These locations are the
most convenient for personnel and provide the maximum efficiency. Simple images of each bin
will be presented in order to give the audience a visual to base the information on. We believe
that this newsletter, sent by email, detailing the benefit of the new system along with providing
visual cues to the audience is the best fit for our repurposing project.
Conclusions
The purpose of this repurposed program was to implement a cost-effective recycling service that
disposed of waste in a safe and effective manner. After analyzing different methods of
communicating the new system and interviewing different employees on site, we designed an
improved a new recycling program at Camp Withycombe. We feel that with our changes,
employees and visitors to the base will feel Camp Withycombe is an eco-friendly environment
that provides cost-effective opportunities to dispose of waste.

Recommendations

That Fort Withycombe take immediate action and implement the changes
mentioned in this report. The new recycling program offers a more eco-friendly
environment and safer working conditions for personnel than the one previously
used on the fort.

The new program offers a more convenient way for personnel to properly recycle
all materials near their work stations. The new three-bin color design being
implemented will help with any confusion concerning where different recycling

materials should go. It will provides more security with a locked bin for
classified materials, which will help avoid any documents being leaked or taken
off the installation.

With the creation of a fort newspaper, all personnel will have a complete guide to
all the new aspects of the recycling program.

With the main recycling point located in the middle of the fort, all personnel will
have equal ease of access to the recycling center. This will also make it less
confusing for soldiers, since there is only one main area for their sections to take
their recycling material.

There is some concern regarding the three-bin design and how effective that will
be in the long run. We may need to have more bins allocated for cans, bottles,
cardboard and other materials in the near future.

Overall, the new recycling system will provide a more efficient and convenient
way for personnel to dispose of their recycled materials.

The current program is quite effective and is an improvement on the old one.
There will be new advances in recycling, and in the future this program may need
to be updated to incorporate more recycled materials

Appendices 1.1