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Connecting the Dots...By Seth Jansen Sustainability planning provides tools to evaluate where we’ve been, where we’re going, and how we’re going to get there. It provides information to prioritize the myriad of actions we could take and understand their contribution to achieving long-term goals…The outcome of our process working with institutions on their plans is often a “wedge diagram,” a graph that represents a carbon baseline, forecast for future emissions, and reduction strategies for potential actions.
This simple tool can be a powerful mechanism for prioritizing actions and evaluating progress. Moreover, this approach can be applied to sustainability issues related to water, waste, purchasing, and even more qualitative issues like accessibility or student engagement.
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Education & Research
Curriculum
Co-Curricular Education & Student Organizing
Research
Campus Operations
Buildings
Energy
Transportation
Waste
Planning, Administration & Engagement
Affordability & Access
Coordination & Planning
Funding
Public Engagement
New Resources
Opportunities
Jobs & Internships
| 28. | Dean of Diversity and Inclusion, U Puget Sound |
| 29. | Director, Sustainability Coordination, Temple U |
| 30. | Faculty, Institute for International Peace Studies, U Notre Dame |
| 31. | Faculty, Sustainable Development, Hobart & William Smith Colleges |
| 32. | Refuse and Recycling Manager, Ohio U |
| 33. | Sustainable Food Program Manager, Stanford U |
| 34. | Communications Coordinator, Office of Sustainability, Emory U |
Events
Education & Research
Curriculum
Funded by $2.1 million in grants from the U.S. Department of Energy, the college’s new solar photovoltaic training yard will provide a space for hands-on training to industry professionals and prospective technicians.
See also: AASHE Resource: Campus Solar Photovoltaic Installations Databases
Co-Curricular Education & Student Organizing
Two teams of five interior architecture students have won a competition to turn a City-County building lobby into Green Central, a hub of information about the City of Pittsburgh’s sustainability action-plan projects and resources to help residents develop their own. The winning designs include custom-made recycling bins that evoke the roots of a tree. The mayor’s Green Trust Fund will pay for the project.
Research
The university’s Schatz Energy Research Center will conduct a plug-in electric vehicle planning study as part of the Alternative and Renewable Fuel and Vehicle Technology Program. The multi-year study is funded through the California Energy Commission and will prepare Humboldt County for the broad scale adoption of electric vehicles.
The university has received a grant from the National Science Foundation to research clean energy development in West Virginia and the Shanxi Province of China. A team of four experts and faculty will conduct research for approximately three years and will focus on links among energy consumption, the economy, the environment and technology.
Campus Operations
Buildings
With the recent LEED Gold certification of the University of California, Los Angeles’ Clinical and Translational Research Center, the University of California system has hit a milestone of 100 LEED-certified facilities. The UC system policy requires that all new buildings and major retrofits meet LEED standards, See also: AASHE Resources on Campus Green Buildings
See also: AASHE Resources on Campus Green Buildings
Designed to meet LEED certifications, the classroom facility features a green roof and an exterior constructed of 85 percent recycled copper to increase weather resistance.
Energy
The new solar system will provide 16.1 megawatts of energy to power the University System of Maryland and the Maryland Department of General Services.
See also: AASHE Resource: Campus Solar Photovoltaic Installations
Consisting of more than 40,000 solar panels, the $40.8 million project will generate 8 megawatts of power to satisfy 63 percent of the electrical demand on campus.
The college has announced plans for a three-month in-depth analysis of all campus facilities to identify opportunities for energy savings and infrastructure improvements. The evaluations will cover 24 buildings and more than 660,000 square feet of space
Transportation
A fleet of 20 bicycles, 10 mountain bikes and 10 cruisers are available to the campus community as part of a recently launched bike checkout program. The university will also further its bicycle-friendly efforts by designating cycling-specific lanes on campus roadways, installing improved bicycle parking at all residence halls and posting bicycle safety signs.
See also: AASHE Resource: Bicycle Sharing & Rental Programs (AASHE Member Resource)
Charging stations have been installed in three campus locations. The installations were provided by Car Charging Group through its partnership with Forest City Enterprises.
Waste
Bottled water will no longer be available in vending machines, retail outlets or at catered events in an effort to reduce 98,000 plastic bottles that go through the university’s waste and recycling system each year. The university has installed nearly 60 water bottle refilling stations to encourage the campus community to use refillable bottles.
See also: AASHE Resource: Campus Bottled Water Bans (AASHE Member Resource)
The Office of Sustainability, Facilities Management Services and USC Athletics have partnered to minimize the waste created by tailgaters at football games. About 75 student volunteers from campus organizations will spread out at each home game to educate tailgaters about recycling and strategies for minimizing waste. Volunteers will also be stationed at new recycling and compost bins.
See also: AASHE Resource: Campus Recycling and Waste Minimization Policies (AASHE Member Resource)
Led by a student “Take Back the Tap” initiative that secured a Brita “Filter for Good” grant, several water filtration fountains have been installed on campus.
See also: AASHE Resource: Bottled Water Awareness and Reduction Campaigns (AASHE Member Resource)
The university has launched a no-sort system in the residence halls and cafeteria. Resident advisors have been trained to help students understand the new recycling process.
See also: AASHE Resource: Campus Recycling and Waste Minimization Policies (AASHE Member Resource)
The university’s Center for Urban Environmental Research and Policy Biodiesel Program has partnered with Northwestern University to increase biodiesel production, education and outreach on both campuses.
Planning, Administration & Engagement
Affordability & Access
The college has hosted 25 high school students for Imagine College, a pilot outreach program created to fulfill the college’s 2020 Diversity and Inclusion goals. The six-day summer immersion program was designed to help students make college a part of their reality and give them tools to navigate the college process. Students will explore various areas of study, career options and the college admissions process.
Coordination & Planning
The university has recently become a signatory of the Illinois Campus Sustainability Compact, the Catholic Coalition on Climate Change’s St. Francis Pledge, American College & University Presidents’ Climate Commitment (ACUPCC) and the Talloires Declaration. These agreements outline the university’s pledge to work toward expanding its sustainability program, engaging the campus community, greening its operations and monitoring its performance.
As the university’s first chief sustainability officer, Joanne Perdue will work with the senior leadership team and academic coordinator for sustainability to integrate the values and aims of the university’s Academic Plan and Institutional Sustainability Plan into teaching, co-curricular student activities, research, service learning and operations across campus.
Funding
As part of its SunShot Initiative, which aims to drive solar energy to be cost-competitive with other energy sources by 2020, the U.S. Department of Energy has announced new investments totaling $10 million over five years for two university-led projects to advance solar power system technologies. The University of California, Los Angeles will lead a team of researchers from Yale University and the University of California, Berkley to investigate liquid metals as potential heat transfer fluids. The University of Arizona will partner with researchers from Arizona State University and Georgia Tech to develop and demonstrate new, molten salt-based fluids as possible alternatives to traditional heat transfer fluids.
Public Engagement
Interns at the university’s Extension program have partnered with Prince George’s County to place rain barrels across the County in an effort to reduce erosion and bring the County closer to refining its stormwater management program. Once the university is able to secure more funds, organizers hope to include rebates for rain gardens, green roofs and impermeable pavers.
Motivated by the sustainability crisis and energized by the drive for social justice that inspired the Occupy Movement, this book by AASHE Advisory Council member Tina Evans draws on scholarship in critical theory, economics for sustainability and resilience, deep ecology and ecopsychology.
Written by the Natural Resources Defense Council and published in partnership with the Green Sports Alliance, this report provides a collection of successful sports industry greening initiatives across North America. The case studies highlight what teams, venues and league jewel events are doing to protect the planet and educate fans.
AASHE is offering “Back-To-School” discount packages for both first-time AASHE members and first-time STARS Participants starting August 27 and running through Sept. 21, 2012. First-time members that sign up for an AASHE membership will receive a 10 percent discount and one free AASHE 2012 conference pass. First-time STARS Participants will receive a $250 discount on STARS registration. New institutions that sign up for both AASHE membership and STARS will receive a 20 percent discount on AASHE membership and a $400 discount on STARS registration, plus one free AASHE 2012 conference pass.
The program offers the chance to credential sustainability work through single seminars or a six-seminar sustainability leadership certificate. All work is completed online. Participants will learn to assess their organization's green policies and practices, communicate sustainability initiatives and evaluate best practices. New online seminars begin 11 times each year. Next two session start dates: September 20 and October 11. Discounts are available to AASHE members. Upcoming seminars include "How Green is Your Organization: Sustainable Policy and Practice" and "How Green is Your Organization: Sustainable Infrastructure." Most Ithaca sustainability seminars are now GBCI (Green Building Certification Institute) approved.
Organized by Teens Turning Green, the 30-day Project Green Challenge encourages high school and college students to experience conscious living, informed consumption and the collective impact of individual actions. Kicking off Oct. 1, 2012, the initiative will include daily green challenges with supporting resources, tips, facts and a Green Guide. Twelve finalists will be flown to California for the two-day educational summit Green University, where they will learn more about making a large impact in their own communities.
The Biomimicry Institute invites submissions for its 2012 Student Design Challenge, open to students from any university. Students are challenged to use biomimicry to design a solution that improves water access and management. Teams must register by Oct. 19, 2012 to participate.
Oct. 14-17, 2012; Los Angeles, CA
Host: AASHE
Sept. 25, 2012; 2:00 p.m. Eastern; Online
Host: AASHE
Oct. 1-15, 2012;
Host: Northwest Earth Institute
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