U Iowa Renovation of Stuit Hall Earns LEED Gold

The building incorporates passive solar design, a rain garden to capture storm water from the roof, occupancy sensors to control electric lights, new insulation and windows, low-VOC and formaldehyde-free products, energy-efficient mechanicals, and recycling storage and collection centers on every floor.

U Maryland Apiary to Add 8 Hives with New Grant Money

The beekeeping club has received a $9,600 grant from the Sustainability Fund to expand the university’s apiary with eight more hives. Members hope to develop a “Terps Bees” brand of honey products and beeswax candles to sell at the Maryland Food Co-op, farmers markets and the university’s convenience shops.

U Michigan Diversity Resolution Passes Assembly

The Senate Assembly voted to approve a resolution that would increase efforts to promote inclusivity. The goals of the four-part resolution include reassessment of the strategies used to increase diversity, adoption of active, intentional, creative and ongoing efforts to improve diversity, assurance that diversity efforts are woven into the university’s fabric, and publicly asserting the goal of improving diversity on all three university campuses.

U Vermont’s Eco-Reps Launch Follow the Leaf Campaign

The university’s Eco-Reps have launched a Follow the Leaf campaign in an effort to make it easier for students to make sustainable choices. As part of the launch, the Eco-Reps held an even that included green leaf eco-pledges and their own Eco-Option label.

Warren Wilson College Signs Real Food Challenge Commitment

The college and Sodexo Dining Services have signed the Real Food Challenge Commitment. The agreement, augmenting previous sustainability commitments by the college, states that Warren Wilson will procure 40 percent “real food” annually by the year 2020. The College’s local foods crew is charged with monitoring the food purchasing.

Washington U St. Louis Announces Land Lab Winners

The Sustainable Land Lab is a joint program between the city and the university’s Office of Sustainability to turn vacant land into innovate public competition that will give teams the opportunity to demonstrate their ideas through tangible projects at the scale of a single vacant lot. Winners of the inaugural competition include a franchise-model urban farm, a bistro built out of re-used shipping containers, and a sunflower lab piloting efficiency of plant-based soil remediation.

Western Michigan U Receives Funding for Solar Racing Vehicles

Three student engineering teams will receive $8,000 from Eaton Corp. to help design and develop racing vehicles. One of the projects being funded includes a solar-powered vehicle for the American Solar Challenge.

American Public U System Explores New Wellness Efforts

The university system has increased sustainability and wellness efforts that focus primarily on employees. Recent initiatives include a carpooling program and hosting walking clubs during lunchtime. The university also plans to host a wellness day that will feature information on composting, wellness clinics, vendors and yoga.

California State U Fresno to Offer Water Mgmt Masters Program

The university has created a professional science masters degree in water resource management. Some of the courses to be offered include geospatial technologies, climatology, water economics, hydrological systems and natural and agriculture uses of water. The new degree requires students to have a Geographic Information Systems certificate or the equivalent work experience.

Cuesta College to Open Sustainability Resource Center

The college has announced plans to open a Sustainability Resource Center that will focus on alternative energies in the San Luis Obispo County school systems and the local community. The center will provide resources and training for teachers at all grade levels and delivery of sustainability learning modules to students both at Cuesta College and local schools. MidAmerican Solar, SunPower and NRG Energy provided financing for the project.

Drake U Campaign Leads to Restriction of Bottled Water Sales

The university has announced plans to restrict sales of plastic single-serving water bottles next fall. A student-led campaign worked for months to raise support for the initiative. To ease the transition, every new student will receive a reusable bottle that can be filled at hydration stations.

Georgetown U Dedicates Solar Street Project

The student-spearheaded initiative, Solar Street, has installed 75 solar panels across rooftops of six university-owned historic townhouses. The project is expected to offset an average of approximately 40 percent of the electricity used in each townhouse, and provide up to $43,000 in savings to the student body government over the 20-year life of the power purchase agreement.

Indiana U Bloomington Sustainability Fund Announces First Project

The Student Sustainability Council has announced plans to install motion-sensing, energy-efficient lighting as its first capital project. The project will be funded by the student-supported and student-directed sustainability fund, which was established via an 11,000-signature student petition in fall 2010.

Kennebec Valley CC Receives Grant for Sustainable Ag Program

The college will receive a $2.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration to create an agriculture-oriented education hub. A two-year associate degree in sustainable agriculture will be one of the first programs to make its debut in the fall. The program will provide students with the technical and small business skills needed to manage or develop a small farm or agricultural business.

Kentucky Dept. of Agriculture to Launch Farm to Campus Program

Under the Farm to Campus program, the state agriculture department will partner with Eastern Kentucky University and other state colleges to assist with buy-local efforts. Over the next two years, the department will target college campuses to increase Kentucky Proud products in their bookstores, gift shops, cafeterias and food service systems.

North Central College Earns Earth Flag for Campuses Award

The college has earned an Earth Flag for its sustainability efforts. A green audit was performed to identify energy efficiency opportunities and potential environmental hazards. Following the audit, the college adopted several recommendations, including establishing a recycling program and other initiatives to reduce waste and energy consumption.

Obama’s Proposed Budget Aims to Increase College Affordability

President Obama’s proposed budget for the 2014 fiscal year includes several measures to increase student financial aid and college affordability. The budget calls for market-based student loan rates that would stay fixed for the loan's lifetime. The plan also includes a “Pay as You Go” measure, allowing students to pay no more than 10 percent of their discretionary income. Moreover, any outstanding debt after 20 years of payment would be forgiven.

Ohio State U Wins Environmental March Madness Championship

The university won the second annual Environmental March Madness Tournament, defeating other schools in the “Sustainable 16”. Organized by Enviance, an environmental software company, institutions competed against one another based on environmental curriculum and campus sustainability efforts. The university will be awarded $5,000 for its Environment, Economy, Development and Sustainability (EEDS) program.

RISD Pilots Nature-Culture-Sustainability Studies

The Rhode Island School of Design has created a pilot program in Nature-Culture-Sustainability Studies (NCSS). This two-year program aims to ascertain levels of student interest in NCSS and create a pathway of study which would allow students to compliment and add focus to work explored in their major areas of study.

Rochester IT Debuts Green Education and Research Hub

The institute has opened its new Sustainability Institute Hall, a living lab that represents RIT’s commitment to the environment. The 84,000-square-foot facility was designed to exceed LEED Platinum standards and features solar panels, vertical wind turbines, and specialized research areas that include the Staples Sustainable Innovation Lab, Eco-IT test bed and a fuel cell test bed.

San Diego State U LGBT Student Union to Receive Diversity Award

The LGBT Student Union has been selected to receive the school’s annual “Diversity Award,” a top honor that reflects the organization’s commitment to inclusion on campus and in the community.

San Francisco State U Students Monitor Recycling Bins

The Cesar Chavez Student Center has launched a new program that aims to educate students on waste diversion. Ten student volunteers will monitor recycling bins to ensure items are discarded properly. The university’s goal is to reach 100 percent waste diversion by 2020.

Southern Oregon U to Offset 100 Percent of its Water Use

In partnership with the Bonneville Environmental Foundation (BEF), the university announced that it will offset 100 percent of its water use through a five-year commitment to BEF’s Water Restoration Certificate program. Funded through a student-led green fund, the university will restore approximately 80 million gallons of water per year to the Klamath River Basin.

U Buffalo Davis Hall Achieves LEED Gold

Among the hall’s eco-friendly features are an outdoor plaza that includes water-efficient landscaping and methods to capture stormwater, a small green roof, bicycle racks, the use of recycled building materials, and energy-efficient heating, cooling and ventilation systems.

U Buffalo Debuts Bike Share Program

The university’s office of Sustainability has partnered with the office of Parking and Transportation Services, Buffalo BikeShare and a New York-based company to launch a beta test of a new bicycle-sharing program. BikeShare harnesses GPS technology, allowing users to track and rent a bicycle with the convenience of a mobile device or computer during the beta test phase. Bicycles can also be rented from the keypad interface on the bicycle.

U Colorado Colorado Springs to Implement E-Waste Recycling Policy

The university has announced plans to institute a new electronics recycling policy beginning July 1. All university computers and electronic equipment will be addressed by this policy and will be recycled with an e-Steward certified recycler.

U Colorado Integrates Sustainability into General Ed Requirements

As part of the university’s Sustainability Strategic Plan Goal 2, students will be required to take one course that integrates sustainability into its coursework beginning in fall 2014.

UC San Diego Receives Alternative Transportation Award

The university has received a SANDAG iCommute Diamond Award in recognition of the university’s contributions to alleviating the region’s traffic congestion and greenhouse gases with alternative transportation options.

U Maine Machias New Green Fee Funds Sustainability Projects

The university’s new Green Fund Committee has selected its first set of campus sustainability projects to receive funding. Projects selected include installation of new recycling stations and water filling stations, distribution of reusable water bottles and new bins for electronic waste collection.

U Maine Machias Releases Carbon Emissions Report

The university has reduced its greenhouse gas emissions from heating and electricity by 44 percent between 2006 and 2012. Campus-wide oil consumption was reduced by 48 percent over the seven-year period. Electricity use dropped by 11 percent, resulting in fewer upstream emissions from utility production, and the campus saw a 26 percent reduction in water use.

U Minnesota Expands Resilient Communities Project

The university’s Resilient Communities Project (RCP) has selected North St. Paul as its partner community for the 2013-2014 academic year. Each year, RCP chooses a city partner, helps identify potential projects, and matches the city’s project needs with University of Minnesota courses. The partnership will bring the expertise of hundreds of graduate students and the university to sustainability-related projects identified by North St. Paul.

U Minnesota Launches Virtual Warehouse

The university has launched a new online exchange to facilitate reuse and waste reduction. Similar to Craigslist or Freecycle, the virtual warehouse allows users to exchange university property without visiting the ReUse warehouse or moving items to a building's dock for pickup.

U New Hampshire Receives Grant to Expand Sustainability Institute

The university’s Sustainability Institute has received a $50,000 grant from the Verizon Foundation to expand its Sustainability Learning Collaborative initiative. The project will link university faculty with regional high school teachers and community college faculty to help develop sustainability curricula for classrooms.

U New Hampshire Releases Updated GHG Report

The university has lowered its greenhouse gas emissions by nearly 26 percent compared to a 2001 baseline. Emissions are expected to continue their downward trajectory in coming years as more efficiency projects on campus are completed, new policies and practices are considered, and the university’s transportation demand management and outreach and behavioral programs continue to expand.

U Oregon Sports Arena Earns LEED Gold

The 400,000-square-foot Matthew Knight Arena features bike-friendly enhancements, recycled and regional building materials, and water efficiency measures that include a 50 percent reduction in water used for landscaping and a 30 percent reduction in building water use.

Arizona State U Polytechnic Campus Dedicates Solar Array

The university and SunPower Corp. have dedicated a one-megawatt solar photovoltaic plant on campus. Technology used in the plant concentrates the sun's power seven times to achieve one of the lowest levelized costs of electricity for solar power plants available today. According to estimates provided by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the system will offset the production of 1,277 tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually.

Brown U Advisory Committee Votes to Recommend Coal Divestment

The Advisory Committee on Corporate Responsibility in Investment Policies (ACCRIP) has endorsed university divestment from 15 coal companies. The committee will send the recommendation and proposed guidelines for investment screening to the university’s president. The Corporation is expected to discuss coal divestment in May and will present ACCRIP’s recommendations.

Central Michigan U Students Create Renewable Energy Device

Engineering and technology students are building an energy-harvesting device that will be used to power a temperature display in front of the Engineering and Technology Building. The device, which contains a material that generates energy when pressed, will produce electricity from the vibrations created by pedestrian’s footsteps as they walk in and out of the building.

Colby College Reduces GHG Emissions, Declares Carbon Neutrality

The college met its climate neutrality goal in the American College & University Presidents’ Climate Commitment, becoming the largest institution to reach that goal to date. Climate neutrality was achieved through several initiatives including a switch to 100-percent renewable electricity, use of sustainably harvested wood biomass as its primary fuel for heat and hot water, increasing energy efficiency, lowering temperatures in buildings and waste management initiatives.

Cowell College to Eliminate Paper Towels in Residence Halls

The college has announced plans to eliminate the use of paper towels in residence hall bathrooms. Small hand towels will be provided to residents in an effort to reduce the volume of used paper towels that go to the landfill.

Ecotech Institute Announces New Facility Management Program

This associate degree program will prepare students for careers in the field of facility management, focusing on the operation, maintenance, analysis, auditing and cost of energy management systems. The program was developed in coordination with the International Facilities Management Association and is designed to train students for facility management jobs that emphasize sustainability.

Georgetown U Joins EPA’s Green Power Leadership Club

The university has been added to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Green Power Leadership Club. The university purchased Green-e Energy certified renewable energy certificates equal to 109 percent of electricity use on the main, medical and east campuses.

Harvard U Police Department Converts to Hybrid and Electric Fleet

The university’s police departed has converted its entire fleet of marked patrol cars to hybrid and electric vehicles, in part to address growing concerns about climate change and public health. The move is expected to cut costs for the department by increasing the fleet’s fuel economy by a factor of 10. The fleet conversion was funded by a Harvard Green Revolving Fund interest-fee loan administered by the Office of Sustainability and Campus Services.

Portland State U, UC Berkeley Students Spend Spring Break Farming

As part of an alternative spring break program, 24 students from Portland State University and the University of California, Berkeley partnered with Petaluma Bounty, a nonprofit educational farm, to learn about food justice. The students planted vegetables, spread compost and helped with other labor-intensive projects on the farm.

San Diego State U to Receive Solar Project

North American Development Bank has provided a $19.2 million loan to NRG Solar to construct a five-megawatt solar project at the university’s Imperial Valley campus. The electricity generated will be sold to the IID, a California irrigation district and publicly-owned utility, under a 25-year power purchase agreement. The university will have access to the facility for research and educational purposes.

Santa Clara U to Ban School Branded Bottle Water

The university has finalized a petition to ban the sale of Santa Clara labeled plastic water bottles on campus. The petition received over 800 signatures and student organizers are currently working with Bon Appétit to replace plastic with glass bottles.

Sodexo, Real Food Challenge Sign Food Transparency Agreement

Sodexo and the Real Food Challenge have announced an agreement to advance supply chain transparency on Sodexo-contracted campuses. The agreement institutes a rigorous and comprehensive set of standards, defined by the Real Food Calculator, for judging the social responsibility and sustainability of Sodexo’s vendors and food producers.

St. Charles CC Named Tree Campus USA

The Arbor Day Foundation has designated the college as a 2012 Tree Campus USA for the third year in a row.

SUNY ESF Launches Bicycle Safety Committee

The university has formed a Bicycle Safety Committee to provide a focus on education and improved communication on best practices as well as increasing bike infrastructure on campus. Since its launch, the committee has coordinated the curb removal from campus pathways, obtained a bicycle accident report from the City of Syracuse Police Department and began collaborating with neighborhood groups and city officials about making cycling safer.

U Calgary EEEL Building Achieves LEED Platinum

The Energy. Environment. Experiential. Learning (EEEL) building uses 78 percent less energy than a conventional laboratory building. It features vertical green sunshades that move throughout the day to reduce glare and solar heat gain, concrete “Earth Tubes” that run air underground to the main lecture theatre to regulate temperature, and captured rain water mixed with recycled process water for graywater use.