American Public University System (WV) has dedicated its new energy-efficient academic center, designed to meet LEED Gold certification. Environmentally friendly features were employed during the construction and material selection of the 45,000-square-foot building to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The center will feature an extensive recycling program and two electric vehicles for local travel.

Bates College (ME) has announced plans to turn down the heat in buildings across campus during the winter break in an effort to reduce campus energy consumption. Buildings occupied during the break will be maintained at an average of 65 degrees Fahrenheit and unoccupied buildings will be heated to 55 degrees. The college’s Committee on Environmental Responsibility and Energy Task Force estimates that the curtailment program will save more than $50,000 in energy costs over the break.

Bristol Community College (MA) has opened a new facility for training Massachusetts’ work force for jobs in weatherization, energy auditing, solar power and other environmentally friendly occupations. The Green Center includes replicas of different parts of a home, including exterior siding, an interior wall and the cross-section of an attic. The goal of the center is to prepare students to take advantage of the green economy.

Carleton College (MN) has announced plans to erect a second, utility-grade wind turbine that will provide power directly to the college’s electrical grid. Pending final approval from City of Northfield and Rice County officials, construction will begin in spring 2011. The proposed output of the turbine is estimated around 5,000 megawatts of power per year, potentially reducing the college's annual consumption of purchased electricity by 30 to 40 percent.

Central Michigan University has placed 100 new recycling bins around campus. The new receptacles are painted maroon and gold to stand out to and make it difficult for students to ignore. The university conducted research to determine where the heaviest traffic occurs and placed the bins accordingly. The university expects the new bins to help increase the amount of recycled waste.

College of the Desert's (CA) Coeta and Donald Barker Foundation Nursing Complex has earned LEED Silver certification. Sustainable design features include the use of solar tubes that provide lighting, PVC cool roofing and the use of recycled denim jeans as insulation. The complex was also designed to improve indoor air quality, thermal comfort and classroom day lighting.

The results of the 2010 Campus Conservation Nationals reveal DePauw University (IN) as the top electricity reducer among the 40 institutions that participated in the first annual nationwide electricity and water use reduction competition. To achieve its 25.8 percent reduction, the DePauw Energy Wars team motivated students by listing energy-saving "Battle Tactics" on residence hall bulletin boards to illustrate concrete ways to reduce energy consumption. Students could also become "Conservation Vigilantes," going beyond individual actions to coordinate with others in their residence hall. Toward the end of the 19-day competition held this month, the university organized "The Big Turn-Off," an hour-long event that encouraged students to turn everything off in their rooms and congregate in the main area. DePauw University will receive Lucid Design Group's Building Dashboard software for two buildings, allowing students to view, compare and share building resource use data. Taking home top water reduction honors was Humboldt State University (CA) with a 15.4 percent reduction in participating residence halls. In total, participating institutions saved $50,200 in energy costs and averted 816,000 pounds of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

Students, faculty and Duke University (NC) alumni are encouraged to transform socially minded theories into practice through the university's new campus-wide initiative to develop entrepreneurial ventures. The effort will build on ideas generated in existing campus social innovation programs by seeking opportunities to partner with private companies and the local community. One example of such an effort is Bull City Forward, a community of innovators who develop and scale solutions to community challenges and entrepreneurial opportunities. Led by the director of the university's Entrepreneurial Leadership Initiative, Bull City Forward recently opened a storefront hub for social entrepreneurs.

To help students prepare for careers in resource conservation, environmental stewardship and community service, Furman University (SC) has announced that it will offer a B.S. in sustainability science. Students can declare the major as of Nov. 2, 2010, when it was unanimously approved during a faculty meeting. Offered through the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, the program will focus on the relationships among human, social and environmental systems, and how changes in one system, directly or indirectly, affect the others.

The National Wildlife Foundation (NWF) has declared Life University's Marietta, Ga. campus a Certified Wildlife Habitat. Home to foxes, beavers, woodchucks, raccoons, opossums, squirrels, fish and several species of reptiles and amphibians, the campus contains the significant sources of wild food, water, shelter and places where wildlife can raise their young to qualify for the designation. NWF also recognized the university's conscientious planning, landscaping and sustainable gardening.

North Shore Community College (MA) has partnered with Division of Capital Asset Management to install 352 solar photovoltaic panels on its Frederick E. Berry building. The solar panels are expected to produce 5 percent of the building’s electrical requirements. The college received $333,469 in federal funds to cover the cost of the installation. Energy savings from the project will pay for the $148,050 federal government loan for Clean Renewable Energy.

North Shore Community College (MA) has announced the establishment of a green scholarship to assist students enrolled in its new environmental studies program. The scholarship was initiated by the New England Biolabs Foundation, a private foundation whose mission is to foster community-based conservation of landscapes, seascapes and biocultural diversity, because a large percentage of North Shore Community College graduates stay to live and work in the local community.

Rice University’s (TX) McMurtry College building has earned LEED Gold certification. The 324-bed residential hall was built as part of the university’s goal to expand its undergraduate population. Sustainable features include smart controls to regulate air-conditioning, motion detectors that turn off lights, passive solar design, thick exterior walls to provide high thermal mass, low flow plumbing and covered bike racks. The building was made possible by a multimillion dollar gift from university alumni.

Santa Clara University (CA) has completed the first phase of its smart microgrid installation, scheduled for a December 2011 completion. The microgrid will help the university maximize energy savings by tying its power source, transmission, distribution and consumption data to weather reports. The power source can be solar, wind, geothermal or another kind of electricity generator. The microgrid will also deliver data in real time and measure carbon emissions. The university has completed the installation of sub-meters in 14 campus buildings and integrated the smart microgrid's on-site alternative energy sources including solar and fuel cells. The next phase will connect the entire campus to the microgrid. Once completed, the university expects to reduce energy consumption by 50 percent and save about 20 percent in energy costs.

Skidmore College (NY) has hired Riley Neugebauer as its new campus sustainability coordinator. Neugebauer has significant experience working with student groups and previously held sustainability positions with American University (DC) and Allegheny College (PA). She has also worked as a research analyst in renewable energy options and energy efficiency, and currently serves on the AASHE Advisory Council. Neugebauer will work on the completion and implementation of the college's Climate Action Plan in addition to other projects that include "composting, managing the Eco-Rep program, creating awareness around diversity and sustainability, stewardship within the campus-owned forest, building community relationships and investigating alternative financing for renewable energy," she tells AASHE Bulletin.

State University New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry has partnered with National Grid and ECR International, a designer and manufacturer of hydronic and HVAC equipment, to install a freewatt plus home energy system in the campus-owned residence of the college president. The system operates using micro-combined heat and power technology, which uses a high-efficiency gas furnace or boiler combined with an engine/generator to generate heat, producing electric power as a byproduct. The electricity generated by the freewatt system can be used to power the college residence or can be sold back to the electric grid.

The University of Connecticut has launched a single stream recycling program on campus. The new program will allow users to throw all types of recycling materials including paper, plastic, glass and aluminum into a single container. Since the start of the program, 100 outdoor recycling bins have been purchased. The university expects the single stream recycling to increase campus recycling efforts.

The United Negro College Fund Institute for Capacity Building has awarded 23 green planning grants totaling $240,000 to assist with institutional sustainability planning for minority serving institutions. The grant will also encourage the institutions to participate in the American College & University Presidents' Climate Commitment (ACUPCC). The program seeks to ensure that future campus construction is certified under the LEED program and will offer training, technical support, networking activities and resources for minority serving colleges and universities committed to sustainability.

The University of South Carolina has partnered with Keep the Midlands Beautiful and Sonoco Recycling to run a trial recycling program at off-campus student housing locations. Sonoco has provided collection bins for aluminum and plastic materials and has agreed to empty them free of charge. The university's Off-Campus Student Services is working to get groups like Students Advocating a Greener Campus involved to help expand the program past the trial phase.

The University of Toledo (OH) has partnered with Northwest State Community College (OH) to offer an alternative energy technology associate degree. The degree will offer a systems design track for those interested in developing technology and a systems service track for students interested in careers involving installation and maintenance. Students enrolled in the alternative energy technology program will be admitted to both the university and community college.

The University of Wisconsin-Platteville's Pioneer Farm has received $1.18 million for a bio-energy project to convert manure into methane used to generate electrical power. With plans to make the farm a showcase for new bio-energy technology with educational and research opportunities for students and faculty, the project will include the construction of a manure pit, solids separator, substrate holding tank, preheating and missing tank, anaerobic digester, gas scrubber and a gas-driven electrical generator. The campus farm will test other organic material in the digester including cheese whey, food waste and byproducts from biodiesel processing. The system is estimated to save the farm about $73,000 in annual energy costs and have a 14-year payback period. A $156,200 Focus on Energy grant will be awarded when the project is completed in December 2011.

Virginia Tech Dining Services has opened its Farm and Fields Project in the Owens Food Court on campus. The project provides students with local, organic and sustainable dining options that incorporate products from both nearby producers and the university’s own farm. The project is continuously working to add a greater variety of food from local sources and has introduced an expanded selection of products including milk and ice cream.

Wake Forest University’s (NC) Golf Learning Center has received LEED Gold certification. The building features innovative heat reflecting roofing tile, low VOC paints and adhesives and native landscaping. The golf center’s location also ensures pedestrian access and eliminates the need for an asphalt parking area.

Waubonsee Community College (IL) has announced plans to launch a solar energy curriculum program in the spring of 2011 with the aid of its recently installed 24-panel photovoltaic solar array. The college will use a $120,000 grant from the Illinois Clean Energy Community Foundation to fund an indoor renewable energy laboratory and other program start up costs. The college also has plans for geothermal and wind energy courses.

The Multicultural Center at Western Illinois University's Macomb campus has received LEED Silver certification. Sustainable features of the 14,000-square-foot facility include a green roof, energy-efficient lighting and a geothermal heating and cooling system. A number of recycled materials were also used during construction. The university received a $100,000 grant from Illinois Clean Energy Community Foundation to offset costs associated with pursuing LEED certification.

More than 100 signatory campuses of the American College & University Presidents' Climate Commitment (ACUPCC) submitted public greenhouse gas (GHG) inventories since the last update in the AASHE Bulletin on June 21, 2010. The GHG inventory is the first major reporting requirement of the Commitment and is due within a year of signing. In the November 15 issue, AASHE listed the first 70 of 131 institutions that submitted new inventories in alphabetical order. The remaining 61 campuses that have submitted new inventories include: Saint Joseph's College of Maine; Salisbury University (MD); San Antonio College (TX); San Francisco State University (CA); Santa Clara University (CA); Southern Oregon University; Southwestern College - Kansas; St. Catherine University (MN); St. Cloud State University (MN); St. Philip's College (TX); State University of New York at Buffalo; State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry; State University of New York College at Oswego; State University of New York Empire State College; SUNY Orange (NY); The College of New Jersey; The Ohio State University, Columbus Campus; Towson University (MD): Trident Technical College (SC); Trinity College (CT); Union College (NY); Unity College (ME); University of Arizona; University of California, Berkeley; University of California, Davis; University of California, Irvine; University of California, Santa Barbara; University of California, Santa Cruz; University of Cincinnati (OH): University of Colorado at Boulder; University of Idaho; University of Illinois at Chicago; University of La Verne (CA); University of Maine; University of Maine at Machias; University of Maryland Baltimore County; University of Maryland College Park; University of Massachusetts Medical School; University of Nevada, Reno; University of New Hampshire; University of New Mexico-Valencia; University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; University of Puget Sound (WA); University of Redlands (CA); University of Utah; University of Washington Bothell; University of Washington Seattle; University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire; University of Wyoming; Utah State University; Valencia Community College (FL); Virginia Commonwealth University; Wake Technical Community College (NC); Warren Wilson College (NC); Washington & Jefferson College (PA); Western Iowa Tech Community College; Western Michigan University (MI); Western Oregon University; William Paterson University of New Jersey; and Wilson College (PA).

American University (DC) has begun giving incentives to bike commuters. The monthly incentive comes as a $20 Commuter Check for Bicycling voucher valid for bicycling gear and services at participating bicycle shops nationwide. The vouchers can be spent each month or accumulated for up to a year and placed toward a larger purchase. Starting this month, bike commuters can request a January 2011 voucher through PayFlex at www.healthhub.com. In accordance with the federal legislation that makes this tax free program available, this benefit is available only to commuters who are not enrolled in any other transit or parking benefit.

Georgetown University (DC) has installed three bike share docking stations near the university’s main campus. Bike share members can rent the bicycles for an annual or monthly fee. Day passes are also available. The District’s Department of Transportation and Arlington County in Virginia launched Capital Bikeshare earlier this fall to help decrease car emissions and increase healthy activity. The university has partnered on the effort as part of its overall sustainability goals.

Grand Rapids Community College (MI) has announced plans to create a renewable energy certificate and associate degree program. The college’s goal is to tie the program with the recently launched wind safety technician and green building deconstruction programs. A new solar photovoltaic installation program will begin in February.

North Carolina State University's Utilities and Engineering Department has been awarded $1.2 million for energy projects and fellowships through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The university will add 10 fellowships that will focus on synergy projects among its Energy Management Office, FREEDM Systems Center, University Sustainability Office, NC Solar Center and Advanced Energy to help launch energy programs on campus and in North Carolina. The remaining funds will go toward energy conservation measures on campus like the installation of energy-efficient lights.

Paul Smith’s College (NY) has partnered with Johnson Controls, Inc. to launch a campus-wide energy conservation program. Through building and lighting retrofits, weatherization measures and the installation of an integrated building management system, the college expects to save $4.6 million in energy costs over the next 15 years and reduce greenhouse gas emissions from buildings on campus by 22 percent. The program is expected to be complete in December 2011.

St. Thomas University School of Law (FL) has announced a new Master of Laws in environmental sustainability. Featuring a core curriculum that includes natural resource law and policy, environmental law, Earth jurisprudence, ecology and ecosystems management for lawyers, the one-year program is open to those who have earned their Juris Doctor degree or equivalent. Students will have the opportunity for real-world experiences alongside case studies through externships and one-credit short courses led by visiting professionals that will start in March 2011.

State University New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry students recently held a recycled plastic art exhibition to increase waste awareness after a campus waste audit last spring revealed an unsettling amount of plastic waste. Works included a plastic hippopotamus and a biosphere made from a discarded television.

Students at Syracuse University (NY) hosted a denim drive throughout the month of October as part of Cotton Incorporated’s campaign, “Cotton from Blue to Green.” The denim is converted to cotton fiber insulation for houses in communities that are in need. The university collected more than 1,000 jeans, enough to insulate two houses. Since the campaign's inception in 2006, about 540 homes have received insulation.

Trinity University’s (TX) Miller Residence Hall has received LEED Gold certification. The 1953 building was renovated at a cost of $4.1 million as part of the university’s ongoing maintenance. Sustainable features include low-flow plumbing fixtures, energy-efficient lighting, increased building insulation and double-glazed windows.

The Berkeley Student Food Collective has opened a storefront on the University of California, Berkeley campus to provide local, healthy and sustainable foods to the campus community. Operating as a nonprofit collective, university student members will donate two hours of free labor a week with the aim to keep food prices low. Fruits and vegetables grown within 150 miles are available, along with local dairy products, organic juices and bulk bins with staples like rice and flour. The student group, which now has about 50 active members, incorporated as a California nonprofit and won a $91,000 grant from the university's The Green Initiative Fund, which commits a small part of student fees to sustainability projects. The group signed a lease on a former nail salon in August and since then have been working to convert the 600-square-foot space to a food market.

The University of California, Merced has partnered with AmeriCorps and the California Public Interest Research Group to create a new service-learning student group, the UC Merced Energy Service Corps. As part of the club’s official launch, students helped make the Merced County Rescue Mission more energy-efficient by weatherizing all windows and replacing all light bulbs with compact fluorescent lights. With 16 groups at college campuses throughout the state, the statewide goal is to educate 30,000 people about energy efficiency and conduct 4,000 energy surveys.

Trees that were removed in preparation for a new campus library at the University of Chicago (IL) have recently reappeared as furniture on campus. Where possible, trees that were removed during the construction of the Manseuto Library were replanted nearby. The university worked with Horigan Urban Forest Products, Inc. and local woodworkers to repurpose the remaining trees that were slated for disposal into benches, conference tables and closet doors.

Two University of Chicago (IL) students have launched a composting program through the campus' Uncommon Fund, which provides funding for student ideas, projects and events. In partnership with the university’s Cobb Café, the students spearheaded the placement of compost bins next to trashcans and recycling containers inside the café. Collected food waste is brought to the Resource Center, a local nonprofit, to be converted into compost.

AASHE's Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System (STARS) has awarded its first STARS Gold rating. The University of Colorado at Boulder is the third school to submit for a rating, earning STARS Gold with high ratings in operations, education and research, and planning, administration and engagement. More than 230 colleges and universities throughout the U.S. and Canada have registered for STARS, with 229 of those recognized as STARS Charter Participants (institutions that signed on prior to Aug. 20, 2010). STARS Charter Participants, including the University of Colorado at Boulder, range from individual campuses to university districts, community colleges to research universities, tribal to parochial, and public to private institutions. Previously rated schools include Pacific Lutheran University (WA) and Royal Roads University (BC).

The University of Idaho's Sustainability Center has administered its second annual Tailgate Recycling Program, a student-run effort to reduce waste associated with tailgate activities. Student volunteers supplied fans with recycling bags and dispersed receptacles throughout the parking lot to collect aluminum, plastic, glass and paper recyclables. After three home games, 74 volunteers have collected almost 1,500 pounds of recyclables. The university works with Moscow Recycling to ensure that all materials are properly sorted and transported to a recycling center.

The University of North Texas' System Board of Regents has approved the installation of three community-scale wind turbines on its Eagle Point campus. The turbines will replace unsustainable campus energy sources with wind energy in an effort to reduce the university's carbon emissions. The university recently completed a wind turbine feasibility study that included fish and wildlife assessments, avian studies, noise analyses, air transportation impacts, engineering reports and statistical estimates. The turbines are slated for a fall 2011 installation.

Sewanee - the University of the South’s (TN) Spencer Hall has received LEED Silver certification. Notable sustainable features of the 49,000-square-foot building include a chilled beam cooling system, low-flow fume hoods, passive solar design, native landscaping and a heat-exchange wheel for continual refreshment of indoor air with fresh outdoor air. The university also diverted 92 percent of on-site generated construction waste from the landfill.

Members of the Vanderbilt University (TN) student organization, the Alternative Energy Club, recently initiated a hands-on training and biodiesel fuel demonstration. Led by club members, small groups of volunteers made mini-batches of biodiesel starting with waste vegetable oil. The club merged with the Vanderbilt Biodiesel Initiative this fall, which has been making biodiesel on campus for several years.

Western Technical College’s (WI) Lunda Center has received LEED Silver certification. Sustainable features include rain gardens, native landscaping, tinted windows and energy-efficient lighting and HVAC systems. Durable materials and products that are non-toxic, high in recycled content and easily recycled were used during construction.

Western Washington University installed a green roof on its Miller Hall Student Collaboration Space. The roof consists of a mat system of sedum, a flowering plant that requires little maintenance. The roof will help lower campus heating and cooling costs, reduce stormwater runoff and provide protection resulting in a longer lifespan of the roof.

The Zilkha Center for Environmental Initiatives at Williams College (MA) has launched a new campus sustainability website. The site features sustainability news stories and upcoming events, and encourages each campus building to keep track of its energy use with an energy dashboard feature. Interns in the college's summer instructional technology program helped design the website.

Wofford College (SC) has received LEED Platinum certification and a preservation award from a local historical association for its restoration and renovation of the Goodall Environmental Studies Center. Recognized for its attention to historical detail, the project used local and recycled construction materials and 78 percent of the construction waste was recycled. The campus center also features rainwater harvesting for irrigation and a reflective “cool” roof.

More than 100 signatory campuses of the American College & University Presidents' Climate Commitment (ACUPCC) have submitted public greenhouse gas (GHG) inventories since the last update in the AASHE Bulletin on June 21, 2010. The GHG inventory is the first major reporting requirement of the Commitment and is due within a year of signing. In alphabetical order, AASHE is listing the first 70 of 131 institutions that submitted new inventories. The remaining 61 campuses will appear in the November 22 issue. New inventories were submitted by: Alfred University (NY); Allegheny College (PA); Antioch University New England (NH); Bentley University (MA); Berea College (KY); Bethany College (WV); Black Hills State University (SD); Bowdoin College (ME); Bridgemont Community and Technical College (WV); Brookhaven College (TX); Bunker Hill Community College (MA); California State University, Chico; California State Polytechnic University, Pomona; Cape Cod Community College (MA); Chandler-Gilbert Community College (AZ); Clark University (MA); College of Lake County (IL); College of the Holy Cross (MA); Colorado College; Colorado State University; Columbus State Community College (OH); Connecticut College; Cornell University (NY); Delaware State University; Drury University (MO); Eastfield College (TX); Eckerd College (FL); Emerson College (MA); Fairfield University (CT); Florida Gulf Coast University; Florida International University; Franklin & Marshall College (PA); Franklin Pierce University (NH); George Mason University (VA); Georgia Institute of Technology; Goshen College (IN); Grand Rapids Community College (MI); Guilford College (NC); Harford Community College (MD); Harrisburg Area Community College (PA); Haywood Community College (NC); Hibbing Community College (MN); Hollins University (VA); Houghton College (NY); Joliet Junior College (IL); Kalamazoo College (MI); Kennesaw State University (GA); Life University (GA); Macalester College (MN); McLennan Community College (TX); Mercyhurst College (PA); Middlesex Community College (MA); Monroe Community College (NY); Monterey Institute of International Studies (CA); Montgomery County Community College (PA); Naropa University (CO); North Iowa Area Community College (IA); North Shore Community College (MA); Northeast Lakeview College (TX); Northwest Vista College (TX); Norwalk Community College (CT); Onondaga Community College (NY); Pacific Lutheran University (WA); Palo Alto College (TX); Pomona College (CA); Purchase College, State University of New York; Randolph College (VA); Richland College (TX); Rider University (NJ); and Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology (IN). In related news, Yale University (CT) has published a Yale Greenhouse Gas Reduction Strategy 2010 executive summary.

Austin College (TX) recently recycled seven pallets of electronic waste during its community e-waste recycling event as part of the college’s Great Day of Service and the Thinking Green initiative. A truck was provided by certified green recycler e-Waste Collections to accept and properly process the unwanted electrical equipment and materials for recycling. A wide variety of items were dropped off including broken air-conditioning units, computer monitors, printers, power supplies, keyboards and binding machines. Items collected will be reviewed for possible reuse or refurbishing.