Christine Gift: Leading Sustainability Efforts at Port City Java – Park Shops
Christine Gift, the Unit Manager of Port City Java at Park Shops, has been passionate about the environment for as long as she can remember. From camping as a toddler to growing her own food and preserving it into homemade pickles, sustainability has always been a central part of her life. This mindset has carried over into her 14-year career with NC State Campus Enterprises, where she encourages her team to adopt sustainable practices in their daily work.
Gift’s environmental awareness stems from her childhood, where she spent time outdoors gardening alongside her father. “I started camping when I was eighteen months old,” she reflects. “My dad had rose gardens and azalea gardens, and he taught me how to garden when I was really young. I started doing all that—growing and preserving food.”
That early connection to nature has shaped her deep concern for issues like climate change, clean water, and waste reduction. “Our planet is warming—look what just happened to the beautiful [Western North Carolina] that I spent so much time in,” she says, referencing the devastating impacts of flooding. “It’s very concerning to me that our waterways have become polluted… all the microplastics in the water, and that’s going even into the fish that we eat. It’s just pretty terrifying.”
As the Unit Manager for Port City Java – Park Shops since 2022, Gift brings her sustainable habits into her role, ensuring daily operations reflect mindful practices. “In my store, what I try to do is to make sure that students know what should and should not be thrown away,” she explains. “I tell them I’m saving the planet one bucket at a time, one carton at a time.”
Efficiency is also key to her approach: “I’m very mindful of water usage. I want to maximize my dishwasher loads,” she notes, adding that she keeps food waste minimal by preparing only what’s needed for the day. “I have hardly any waste,” she says proudly, “and I make sure I don’t prepare more food than I’m going to use in the period.”
While Gift has made great strides at Park Shops, she’s eager to take sustainability efforts even further. “They compost at Talley. I hope that one day we can do the same at Park Shops. I would love to at least do my coffee grounds,” she shares. Though composting isn’t currently available at her location, Gift remains hopeful that a solution will come.
She also dreams of finding ways to reduce food waste beyond recycling. “I have leftover sandwiches in my grab-and-go case—especially on Friday, I have to throw all my muffins out. I would love to be able to take those to a food pantry or homeless shelter,” she says, recognizing the logistical challenges of refrigeration and transport. For now, she’s focused on achievable steps: “We’ll table that one for a later date and work on recycling the things that we can.”
Raising awareness is another priority for Gift, who hopes to inspire others to take action. “I would love to increase awareness… to get people excited about it,” she says. “Because it is kind of a chore. It’s so much easier to just throw everything in one can.