Students Organize Around Campus Food Day 2013
(U.S.): Campus Food Day was celebrated recently at 350 U.S. colleges and universities. The event mobilized students to unify the food movement and launch efforts to change food policies on campus through events such as lectures, documentary screenings and petitions. Johns Hopkins University, Northeastern University and The University of Massachusetts, Amherst signed onto the Real Food Campus Commitment, pledging to source 20 percent of its food from local, fair, sustainable and humane farms and food businesses. As of Campus Food Day, 22 institutions have signed the Real Food Campus Commitment.
'Sustainable Campus International Competition' Announces Winners
(Canada): In its inaugural year, the SCIC recognized sustainability innovations from worldwide post-secondary institutions. Superior Institute of Management (Dakar, Senegal) placed first for its Green'Act, a program that enables students and community members to collect waste and sell recyclables back to industry. Two Canadian institutions, McGill University and MacEwan University, competed for first alongside Superior Institute of Management. A total of 13 projects from seven universities located in five countries submitted works.
U California Santa Barbara Opens First Farmers' Market
(U.S.): In an effort to promote eating local and providing a place for community to exist and grow, the Gaucho Certified Farmers' Market will allow any farmers within the three- county area to sell fresh produce to students and the community.
U Canterbury Green Roof Research Shows No Need for Water
(New Zealand): University researchers recently released that green-planted roofs do not need to be irrigated in winter or summer to thrive. Research also revealed the benefits to an on-campus river, for which they won a local award.
U Maryland Initiates Rain Garden Construction & Research
(U.S.): The soon-to-be-completed rain garden will be remediated using native plants and stored in underground cisterns for pollution monitoring. The water will be reused on the university's Public Health Garden, Teaching Garden and Community Garden.
U.S. Solar Decathlon 2013 Announces Winners
(U.S.): Vienna University of Technology, a first-time U.S. Department of Energy's Solar Decathlon competitor, took first place overall in the international competition whose design philosophy was guided by differing climes and lifestyles. University of Las Vegas Nevada won second and Czech Technical University placed third.
Atlantic Cape CC Completes 2.2MW Photovoltaic Project
The recently dedicated project includes more than 2,000 panels and spans four parking lots. The monitored system is projected to provide enough energy for approximately 220 homes and will be used as a teaching tool for students.
Auburn U Reduces Facilities Filter Waste
After a recent partnership with a large filter manufacturer, the university reduced the amount of filters from nearly 30,000 per year to 4,549 in fiscal year 2013 leading to conserved electricity and monetary savings.
Berea College to Open Local-Produce Grocery Store
The yet-to-be-opened store will offer organic fruits and vegetables, freshly prepared food, fish and humanely raised meat that are harvested, prepared and sold by Berea students as part of their jobs with the college. The goods will come from the college's on-campus farm.
Bowdoin College Proposes 1.3MW Solar Installation
The 1.3-megawatt photovoltaic installation, which is projected to supply approximately eight percent of the college's annual electricity usage, is proposed to be built atop two athletic facilities and include a 127-acre ground mounted installation.
Chatham U Receives $15M Gift
The Falk Foundation recently awarded the university funding that will support the university's School of Sustainability & the Environment through an academic endowment and help fund construction of the Eden Hall Campus. Further, the funding will be applied to student internships and expansion of the university's Rachel Carson Institute.
Concordia U Students Learn About Homelessness
In an effort to understand the plight of the homeless demographic, students organized an event in which they built cardboard shanties that they slept in overnight and spent time serving the homeless.
Cornell U, Texas A&M U Win 2013 Global Climate Award
The recently-won award recognized these universities for their achievements in providing clean, sustainable energy solutions through its on-campus combined heat and power system. The award's focus was on identifying and recognizing systems that illustrate the overall importance of district energy (heating & cooling) in providing sustainable energy solutions, providing a global benchmark for environmental excellence, and offering a platform for sharing successful ideas and encourage further interest in district energy.
Gonzaga U Signs St. Francis Pledge to Protect Creation & the Poor
Responding to calls by Pope Francis, the Society of Jesus and the U.S. Catholic Bishops for mission-based sustainability consistent with Catholic ideals and values, the university recently signed the St. Francis Pledge to Protect Creation and the Poor, an initiative of the Catholic Coalition on Climate Change. The pledge addresses the impact of climate change on the socio-economically depressed population and advocates for behavior change.
Moraine Valley CC Signs ACUPCC
The community college recently signed the American College and University Presidents' Climate Commitment, pledging to eliminate net greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.
Oakland U Celebrates LEED Platinum Building
Building features include water and energy efficiency, regionally-procured materials, site placement that works with the sun to conserve energy, outdoor areas to encourage community, charging stations for electric vehicles, and a ground-source heat pump system.
Penn State Students Aid in Stormwater Infrastructure Rebuilding
Students from the university's architecture program, staff and community volunteers worked with the Penn State Cooperative Extension and Public Media to rebuild one of the city's rain gardens and stormwater remediation areas. The project was part of an outreach effort for Penn State Public Media’s documentary "Water Blues, Green Solutions," which aims to encourage public education and awareness of green infrastructure.
Sullivan County CC to Install 2MW Photovoltaic Array
Made possible by a grant from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, a power purchase agreement has been signed to construct a two-megawatt solar plant on nine acres of campus beginning in 2014. The array is projected to generate approximately 60 percent of the college's annual electricity consumption.
U Maine Farmington Receives $5,000 Grant for Curriculum
The university recently received the funding from Northern New England Campus Compact for integrating climate change and water quality community projects into students' regular coursework during the 2013-14 academic year.
U Maryland Partners for Sustainable Seafood
The university's Dining Services recently partnered with The Wide Net Project to contribute to restoration of the Chesapeake Bay's health and provide nutritious food to vulnerable communities.
U Maryland Uses Houseplants to Aid Indoor Air Quality
Helping staff and faculty members achieve silver status for its green office program, students from the university's Institute of Applied Agriculture assist in the production of potting and maintaining plants for distribution.
U Michigan Completes First-Year Sustainability Survey
The recently released, first-year results of the university's sustainability awareness and behaviors evaluation were recently released. The program is tracking the “sustainability culture” on the university’s Ann Arbor campus over a six-year period, with particular focus on four campus sustainability goal areas: climate action, waste prevention, healthy environments and community awareness. Results revealed, among other points, student transportation behavior is more sustainable than faculty and staff, faculty tend to conserve energy and prevent waste, and staff members are most aware of the range of sustainability initiatives.
U Wisconsin Green Bay Composts Pre-Consumer Food Scraps
Attempting to reduce the amount of organic material it sends to the landfill, the university now sends all pre-consumer food waste from its' dining halls 50 miles to the University of Wisconsin at Oshkosh for composting.
Virginia Tech Installs Solar-Powered Bus Shelter
To address the difficulty of running power lines to the shelter, which sits atop a steam tunnel, the university and local transit authority identified battery-banked solar power as a good solution.
Western Washington U Students Pilot Rentable Mug Program
In an effort to reduce waste and money spent on handling that waste, students from a Campus Sustainability Planning Studio class initiated Project MUG this fall using grant funding from the university's green fee. Project MUG enables students to rent a reusable mug for beverages.
Clarkson U Adds Reusable To-Go Containers
After a recent student project proposal indicated the desire for reusable to-go containers, the university's Dining Services/ARAMARK has implemented the reusable containers system to decrease waste sent to landfills.
Creighton U Signs to Protect 'Creation and the Poor'
The university recently signed the St. Francis Pledge to Protect Creation and the Poor, an initiative of the Catholic Coalition on Climate Change. The pledge addresses the impact of climate change on the socio-economically depressed population and advocates for behavior change.
Excelencia in Education Observes Schools for Latino Successes
Excelencia in Education recently recognized Cañada College, University of Texas at Brownville, Pan American and Austin, Esparanza College of Eastern University, Rio Hondo College, Del Mar College, Bluegrass Community and Technical College and Grayson College for their efforts in helping Latino students to succeed academically.
MIT Appoints First Sustainability Director
Prior founding director of Yale University's sustainability office, Dr. Julie Newman will lead Massachusetts Institute of Technology's first Office of Sustainability. She achieved her doctorate in natural resources and environmental studies from University of New Hampshire while establishing its office of sustainability beginning in 1997.
Moravian College Inventories Campus Trees
In an effort to preserve and manage their tree population, ecology students continue to work with an outside tree company to identify tree types, record GPS coordinates, measure vital info and assess the health of each specimen.
Northern Illinois U Promotes Programs in Diversity
Birthed from a communications class, diversity education ambassadors promote the university's academic programs in diversity and importance of being culturally competent through in-class discussions.
Penn State Commences Sustainability Grant Program
Supporting collaborative projects that improve and expand campus sustainability at the university, the new Reinvention Fund will invest approximately $600,000 in projects proposed by teams from across all of the University's colleges, campuses and administrative units. Faculty can submit proposals under one of three different areas while student proposals will fall under the grant category student sustainability innovation.
Sullivan County CC Breaks Ground on New Compost Facility
Food waste from two food service areas and campus offices will be composted at the college's new open bay composting facility. An anonymous donation to the college affords four stipends of $500 for students to operate the facility during the fall of 2013 and spring of 2014.
The Ohio State U Offers Sustainability Minor
After the launch of a major by the same name, the new Environment, Economy, Development and Sustainability minor is a multi-disciplinary program designed to provide a foundation in sustainability concepts and theory.
