Quebec Students Strike Over Tuition Hikes
Following a National Day of Action in protest of the rising cost of higher education organized by the Canadian Federation of Students, thousands of college students in Quebec took part in strikes over tuition hikes that will nearly double tuition over five years. Premier Jean Charest said that scholarships and loans would increase in order to guarantee student access, as part of a broader series of measures to increase funding for Quebec universities.
San Diego State U Offers Water Management Certificate
San Diego State University (CA) will begin offering a water management and landscape sustainability online certificate in March. The program is designed to prepare students for occupations in the water conservation industry and will explore new areas of development in the region including desalination and water purification plants.
The George Washington U to Offer Sustainability Minor
The George Washington University (DC) has announced a new minor in sustainability beginning this fall. Developed based on student interest and employers' demand for students with sustainability education, the minor will include tracks in science and engineering; human well-being and society; and policy, governance and leadership.
U California Merced Installs Hydration Station
In an effort to reduce the number of plastic water bottles on campus, the University of California, Merced has installed a new hydration station to refill reusable bottles. The station will cost the university $54 a month to operate including the maintenance, electricity and filter. The university is planning to install three more stations.
U Colorado Boulder Student-Fee Funded Bldgs Go Carbon Neutral
The Student Government at the University of Colorado Boulder has reached carbon neutrality with its student-fee funded facilities. The three facilities have reduced energy use by 15 percent over the last five years, when the goal was first announced, and saved about $1.6 million in energy costs. To offset the remaining emissions needed to reach zero, student fees were used for projects including solar thermal installations to heat water for low-income housing.
U Idaho Awarded $3.5 M for Sustainable Transportation Research
The U.S. Department of Transportation has awarded $3.5 million to the University of Idaho's National Institute for Advanced Transportation Technology to lead efforts to make the nation's transportation system more sustainable. Researchers will study driverless intersection controls, eco-driving methods, eco-routing based on time and traffic, communication between vehicles to steady traffic flow, vehicle performance adjustments for efficient operation in controlled traffic systems, optimized freight routing, decision support tools for policy makers, and encouragement of driver behavior that reduces fuel consumption and increases safety.
U Kentucky Pilots Single Stream Recycling Program
A graduate student has spearheaded a single-stream outdoor recycling pilot program at the University of Kentucky. The $12,990 initiative was made possible by a funding and maintenance partnership between the Student Sustainability Council and the Physical Plant Division.
U Michigan Debuts Interactive Campus Sustainability Map
Developed from a student project in a "Sustainability and the Campus" course, the University of Michigan has unveiled an interactive map with information on sustainable sites and programs located on campus. Highlighting LEED buildings, campus improvement sites, academic programs and event locations, the map allows users to customize their search by selecting the categories they are most interested in.
University of Wisconsin-Manitowoc Launches Energy Analysis
The University of Wisconsin-Manitowoc has partnered with Honeywell to perform an in-depth energy analysis of all campus facilities and promote energy awareness on campus. The analysis will identify opportunities for energy savings and infrastructure improvements. Based upon preliminary analysis, savings opportunities in excess of 20 percent have been identified.
U North Texas Dining Services Reduces Food Truck Deliveries
The University of North Texas’ Dining Services has partnered with a local food distributor to provide a delivery truck dedicated solely to the university, minimizing the number of deliveries per week from 17 to three. The new vehicle also features emission-lowering and fuel-efficiency technologies.
U South Carolina Debuts Campus Community Garden
The University of South Carolina has dedicated a community garden available to students, faculty, staff and community members through a semester-long rental agreement. There is a waiting list for the garden's first planting season.
U Vermont Lab Building Earns LEED Gold
The University of Vermont’s James M. Jeffords Hall has achieved LEED Gold certification. The 97,000- square-foot, $56 million lab and office building features an underground central steam and chilled water system, occupancy system for lighting and ventilation, and regionally produced construction products. More than 90 percent of construction and demolition waste was diverted from the landfill.
U Virginia Students Lead Hunger Strike in Support of Living Wages
Twelve students at the University of Virginia have begun a hunger strike in support of a Living Wage policy for university employees. The Living Wage Campaign at the university has seen 14 years of teach-ins, concerts, film showings, marches, seminars, reports and community outreach with no success. The campaign is demanding a fair minimum wage for direct, contracted and subcontracted employees.
Yale U Creates Citizen Science Initiative
Yale University ‘s (CT) Office of Sustainability and the Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History have partnered to create Citizen Science, a new initiative that aims to engage community members with urban ecology on campus. The Citizen Science initiative will train a group of students, faculty and staff to survey and record biodiversity on campus. The idea to create the program arose from the university’s 2010 Sustainability Strategic Plan stating a commitment to developing ecosystem and land management plans, as well as a commitment to understanding biodiversity within the urban ecosystem.
Brown U Debuts 168-Panel Hybrid Solar Array
Brown University (RI) has installed 168 solar panels on the roof of its new aquatics center. The hybrid installation combines a solar-powered electrical and heating system to provide electricity for the building and heat for the pool. The $800,000 project will be operational in April, when the building opens for students.
Concordia College Moorhead Hires First Sustainability Coordinator
Concordia College, Moorhead (MN) has appointed Kristin Brethova as its first sustainability coordinator. Brethova will lead the charge for a more environmentally and economically streamlined campus and serve as a resource for student-driven sustainability projects. Initial projects include the implementation of an outdoors recycling program and collaborating with university officials to establish conservation goals.
Harvard U Building Goes Double LEED Platinum
Harvard University (MA) has announced a second LEED Platinum certification for its Campus Services building. The university initially achieved its first LEED Platinum certification with the building in 2007 in the New Construction category. Now, the building has earned a second Platinum nod in the LEED for Existing Buildings: Operations and Maintenance (EBOM) category and has outperformed the energy reduction predictions developed during the original renovation.
Huffington Post Covers Growing Field of Sustainability Studies
Students are challenging their faculty to develop creative solutions to the world’s environmental sustainability crisis, reports a recent Huffington Post story. Focusing on the growth of environmental studies programs at U.S. universities, the article says that "more and more students are coming into our colleges with an intuitive and profound understanding of the changing nature of the planet." New academic programs at New York institutions including Columbia University, the New School and Bard College are profiled for their efforts to satisfy students' search for "new approaches to economic life that will permit the material comfort they have grown up with, while keeping the planet intact."
Luther College Receives $384K for Sustainability Education
Luther College (IA) has received a $383,612 grant from the Margaret A. Cargill Foundation toward sustainability education including student internships, environmental education outreach programs and a new staff coordinator to oversee these efforts. The college is also launching the Luther Sustainability Grant Fund, which will award $3,500 per year to student projects.
Manhattan College Earns Fair Trade Status
Manhattan College (NY) has received Fair Trade College status from Fair Trade USA. The certification is a result of five years of work to expand fair trade products within all campus dining halls, restaurants, cafes and bookstore.
Northern Maine CC Partners for Green Workforce Training
As part of the American Association of Community Colleges' (AACC) Sustainability Education and Economic Development (SEED) initiative, Northern Maine Community College has announced collaborations with local business partners on a new suite of courses to prepare students for the green workforce. The college will work to expand biomass conversion, small and large wind installations, and financing structures to support energy-efficient modifications throughout the region.
Northwest Technical College Gets $250K for Green Job Training
Northwest Technical College (MN) has received a $250,000 Minnesota State Energy Sector Partnership Grant to teach students about new green energy products and services. The college will partner with the Rural Minnesota Concentrated Employment Program and other local organizations to provide training in the installation and maintenance of solar panels, wind turbines and energy-efficient heating units.
Obama Seeks $8 B for Community College Job Training Programs
In his budget for the 2013 fiscal year, President Obama has proposed $10 billion for job training programs including an $8 billion "Community College to Career Fund," reports a recent Chronicle of Higher Education article. The fund would provide money to community colleges and states to form partnerships with businesses to train an estimated two million workers in high-growth and in-demand areas. The budget would also raise the maximum Pell Grant by $85, double the number of work-study jobs and reward colleges and states that slow their tuition growth and sustain their higher-education budgets.
Saint Michael’s College Receives Fair Trade Status
After passing a campus-wide Fair Trade Resolution and Fair Trade Procurement Policy, Saint Michael’s College (VT) has been named a Fair Trade College by Fair Trade USA. The college will work to make fair trade coffee, tea and bananas available in the dining facilities at all times and integrate fair trade information and events into the campus community.
San Diego State U Unveils Electric Vehicle Charging Stations
San Diego State University (CA) has announced the installation of 14 electric vehicle charging stations across campus that are free for students, faculty and staff. The stations were made available by a grant from the University of California Department of Energy.
Seattle U Awarded $100K to Create Urban Farm
Seattle University (WA) has received $100,000 from Wells Fargo Bank to transform an unused wastewater treatment site into an urban farm. Biosolids compost and reclaimed water recovered from the wastewater treatment process will be used to nourish the soil and vegetables. The produce harvested at the farm will go to local food banks.
Seattle U Buildings Go Carbon Neutral with Upgrades, Offsets
Through new infrastructure enhancements and offsets, campus buildings at Seattle University (WA) have achieved carbon neutrality. The university saves emissions with a new natural gas fuel source, highly efficient gas boiler loop and a manure-to-power project investment. Ninety-eight percent of the university’s electricity is produced from Seattle City Light’s mix of hydro, wind and biomass, and the remaining 2 percent is offset with renewable energy credits.
Temple U Students Use Art to Promote Safe Bird Migration
To raise awareness about bird collisions on campus buildings and offer potential solutions to the problem, graphic and interactive design students at Temple University (PA) have created decorative window film panels that enable birds to recognize windows as an obstruction. Nearly 1,000 birds die from building collisions each year on the campus, which sits in the middle of a migratory path.
Tufts U Launches Community Supported Agriculture Project
Tufts University (MA) has partnered with a local sustainability-minded farm to launch a Community Supported Agriculture pilot program for the campus community. Fresh produce will be delivered to the campus weekly through April. The farm accepts food stamps and is willing to receive payments in installments.
U Georgia Art Museum Earns LEED Gold
The University of Georgia’s Museum of Art has achieved LEED Gold certification. Sustainable features include two underground cisterns for landscape use, rain gardens, low-flow plumbing fixtures and passive solar design. Ninety-one percent of the construction waste was also salvaged or recycled for use on site or in campus projects.
U Iowa Encourages Recycling with Removal of Waste Cans
The University of Iowa has taken its campus-wide single-stream recycling program a step further by removing waste containers from all classrooms in a campus building. With the goal of encouraging students, faculty and staff to recycle as many items as possible, the pilot initiative may be expanded to more buildings in the future.
U Kentucky Debuts DIY Bicycle Repair Stand
The University of Kentucky's Wildcat Wheels Program has launched a DIY Bicycle Repair Stand in an effort to enhance the services available to campus cyclists. The new stand includes a waterproof dispenser with free, pre-glued patches and instructions on how to patch a flat.
U Maryland College Park Installs Lighting Occupancy Sensors
The University of Maryland, College Park has installed more than 200 occupancy sensors in response to student concerns that many classroom lights remain on overnight and exceed campus building lighting standards. About 30 classrooms also received new energy-efficient fixtures with more planned. Funded through the Maryland Energy Administration State Agency Loan Program and PEPCO rebates, the project is estimated to save $100,000 in utility costs per year.
U Michigan Establishes Student Clean Energy Venture Challenge
The University of Michigan has partnered with DTE Energy to establish the Michigan Clean Energy Venture Challenge. The program provides student teams interested in clean energy entrepreneurship the education, mentorship and resources to accelerate their ideas forward. Sixteen student teams from six universities statewide have been selected to present their business ideas and will compete for more than $100,000 in prizes. The competition is part of a national effort to encourage young entrepreneurs to develop renewable energy solutions through President Obama’s Startup America campaign.
U Missouri Expands Partnership to Support Low-Income Students
The University of Missouri's School of Medicine has announced an expanded partnership with the Cristo Rey Network to provide access and opportunities to low-income students who might not otherwise consider the medical profession. The Cristo Rey network supports 24 Catholic college preparatory high schools that are available to low-income youth, and offers a work-study program that funds 70 percent of the tuition. The university will expand its three-day Summit, where low-income students get to experience health careers and campus life, to more students in the Midwest by June 2012.
U North Florida Partners to Enhance Diversity, Inclusion Efforts
The University of North Florida has partnered with the OneJax Institute, a local nonprofit organization, to promote understanding among different religions, races and cultures on campus. The institute will work with students, staff and faculty to strengthen community partnerships and conversations on diversity and inclusion, and will complement services provided by the university’s Interfaith Center and the Intercultural Center for PEACE.
Washington U St. Louis Students Push for Renewable Energy
Students at Washington University in St. Louis (MO) have launched Renew WashU, a new initiative to push the university to invest in renewable energy. With wind and solar energy, the students say that the university has the potential to use 100 percent renewable energy.
Washington U St. Louis Students Spearhead Green Landscaping
Two Washington University St. Louis (MO) students have been awarded $5,000 to convert grassy campus areas to bio-swales, expand the student-run organic garden and enlist a small flock of sheep to maintain selected turf areas on campus. Their sustainable landscaping proposal won first prize in the university's Olin Sustainability Case Competition.
York U Turns Down Heat for National Sweater Day
In an effort to reduce campus energy consumption and draw attention to climate change, York University (ON) recently took part in World Wildlife Fund's National Sweater Day. The university's Sustainability@York initiative encouraged faculty, staff and students to participate by sending in photos of their sweaters for a chance to win a sustainability prize pack.
Antioch U New England Sets Up Sustainability Blog, Facebook Page
Educating for Sustainability (EfS) faculty in the Department of Education at Antioch University New England (NH) have launched a new blog and Facebook site. Resources include videos, links, curriculum resources and discussions about issues in teaching, learning and sustainable practices.
Austin College Reports $43K Savings in Energy Costs
Austin College (TX) has announced a savings of $43,603 over a six month period in 2011 with minor energy efficiency improvements around campus. The college raised building temperatures two degrees during the summer; installed a more efficient chilling system, and students participated in an energy reduction challenge in the residence halls. The college is aiming to use 100 percent renewable energy resources by 2015.
Boise State U Students Aim to Break Veggie-Power Speed Record
A Boise State University (ID) student team has announced plans to break the land speed record of 215 miles per hour for a vegetable oil-powered truck. The Greenspeed team broke the record for a truck in its class last year, and now has its sights on a modified 1998 Chevrolet S-10 pick-up truck. The team will compete during Speedweek at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah this August.
Bowling Green State U Students Initiate Eco-Friendly Bike Racks
Bowling Green State University’s (OH) Undergraduate Student Government and Office of Campus Sustainability have announced plans to purchase 20 new bicycle racks made from recycled plastic. The group hopes that more bicycle racks will result in more bike commuters to campus.
Canadian Students Protest Tuition Hikes
The Canadian Federation of Students recently organized a National Day of Action in protest of the rising cost of higher education. Students at Lakehead University (ON) held a companion event on their campus, calling for the federal government to extend the 30 percent tuition grant to all students instead of what they call an "unfair" amount of students that are actually eligible.
Johnson County CC Health Education Center Receives LEED Gold
Johnson County Community College’s (KS) Olathe Health Education Center has received LEED Gold certification. Featuring a geothermal heat pump and passive solar design, the building consumes 48 percent less energy than a comparable new building. The center was also completed $1 million under budget.
Kauai CC Partners with Community for Sustainable Living Institute
Kauai Community College (HI) has opened Ho'ouluwehi: The Sustainable Living Institute of Kauai to build upon the campus’ current sustainable programs including a community garden and the Farm to Table project. Through partnerships with the community, the institute will provide training for sustainability workers, entrepreneurs and interested residents.
Kentucky Students Go Barefoot in Protest of Tuition Hikes
Hundreds of students from Kentucky's eight universities went barefoot at the state capitol in protest of proposed spending cuts to higher education. With the inevitable higher tuition and increased fees that these cuts represent, "we're going to end up being the barefoot state everyone makes fun of," said one of the student protestors. Students from the University of Louisville are taking the protest one step further by helping to write a resolution that redefines college affordability as "monetarily obtainable by prospective students regardless of background, socioeconomic status, or family or personal income."
Marietta College Dining Announces Waste Reduction Efforts
Marietta College’s (OH) Dining Services has partnered with Future Organics, Inc. to launch a new composting initiative on campus. The college will aim to divert 195 cubic yards of waste per year. To minimize waste further, the college has also debuted reusable mugs and to-go containers, introduced cage-free eggs and sustainable seafood, and eliminated dining trays.
McGill U Science Complex Earns LEED Gold
McGill University's (QC) Life Sciences Complex has been awarded LEED gold certification by the Canada Green Building Council. The two-facility complex features a heat recovery system, innovative management of fume hoods, lighting efficiency, and heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems with variable speed drives. Rainwater captured from the building's reflective roof is stored in a cistern for toilet and urinal use, cutting potable water consumption by 50 percent. Ninety-six percent of construction-related waste was diverted from landfills.
North Carolina State U to Install 5.5 MW Heat Recovery Generators
North Carolina State University has announced plans to renovate its Cates Utility Plant with two 5.5-megawatt heat recovery generators in August. Using waste heat from the combustion reaction, the new units are expected to reduce energy consumption by 30 percent and reduce greenhouse gas production by 8 percent. The university has entered into a performance contract for the $61 million project, and expects energy savings of $4.3 million in the first year.
