NAAEE 2021 Call for Presentations
The North American Association for Environmental Education invites proposals for the annual conference, happening Oct. 12–15, and the research symposium, happening Oct. 7–8. The conference theme is Power of Connection. Conference organizers are seeking compelling proposals that focus on the power of connection—building on lessons learned about how education helps bring people together from all backgrounds and disciplines to solve the most pressing problems and create more just and sustainable communities. The deadline to submit is May 7.
Earth Day Photo Opportunity
For Earth Day this year, AASHE is seeking pictures depicting sustainability in action, whether that is cleaning up a local river, planting trees, starting a compost bin or something else. Pictures shared on Twitter using @AASHENews may be retweeted, and pictures submitted to the Campus Sustainability Hub by April 30 may be included in a future blog post.
AACC Advancing Diversity Award
The American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) invites applications for its Advancing Diversity award, which recognizes colleges that have contributed significantly and over a sustained period of time to advancing diversity in community college leadership, the community, and within higher education as a whole. The deadline to submit is Dec. 31.
World Sustainable Development Teach-In Day 2020
The World Sustainable Development Teach-In Day, happening online on December 4, aims to accelerate progress toward achieving the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals by focusing on education. Academic staff from any country are encouraged to contribute presentation slides designed in an open educational resources style, prepared in English, German, French, Portuguese or Spanish language related to one of four categories. The presentations will be made accessible and academic staff are invited to hold a lecture based on one of the presentations. The teach-in day is lead by Hamburg University of Applied Sciences and Manchester Metropolitan University (U.K.).
Request for Proposals: The Way Forward Grants
Bringing Theory to Practice invites proposals for a new round of multi-institutional innovation grants, as part of a larger initiative called The Way Forward. Proposals must involve collaborations with at least two higher education institutions, and respond to current crises–systemic racism, the pandemic, and the economic catastrophe–and the imperative for change in higher education. Grant proposals are due Dec. 7.
2020 AASHE Sustainability Awards Ceremony
On Dec. 3, starting at noon U.S. Eastern time, AASHE will host a live reveal of the 2020 AASHE Sustainability Award winners. From over 450 applications and nominations, 11 winners will be named, including the Lifetime Achievement Award winner. This year’s winners hail from the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Spain, Portugal and Australia.
AASHE Member Discount: Free Subscription to gb&d Bimonthly Magazine
AASHE members are eligible to receive a free subscription ($60 value) to gb&d’s (Green Building & Design) bimonthly magazine. Green Building & Design is a trade magazine that connects and inspires green building professionals by partnering with those at the forefront of sustainable design, development, planning and policy. This offer expires on Dec. 31.
Publication Opportunity for Practitioners & Scholars
For this issue of the eJournal of Public Affairs, the editors seek submissions from community practitioners and scholars exploring collaborative, participatory approaches to strengthening democracy. These submissions may take multiple forms, from articles to descriptive essays and multimedia formats. Submission topics could include, but are not limited to, coalition-building and movement building; student civic education/engagement initiatives; community based participatory research; and deliberative dialogue and action. Deadline to submit is Feb. 1.
2021-2022 Newman Civic Fellows Nominations
The Newman Civic Fellowship recognizes and supports community-committed students who are changemakers and public problem-solvers at Campus Compact member institutions. Fellows are nominated by their president or chancellor on the basis of their potential for public leadership. Through the year-long fellowship, Campus Compact provides students with training and resources that nurture their assets and passions and help them develop strategies for social change. Nominations will be accepted through Feb. 1.
Campus Race To Zero Waste 2021
Campus Race to Zero Waste, formerly Recyclemania, is a friendly competition and benchmarking tool for college and university recycling programs to promote waste reduction activities to their campus communities. Over an eight-week period each spring, colleges across the United States and Canada report the amount of recycling and trash collected each week and are ranked in various categories.
Challenge Campus 2030: Edition 2
The 2nd edition of the Challenge Campus 2030 invites students, and university professors and researchers to submit their vision for a 2030 campus that has achieved all 17 Sustainable Development Goals. Projects can fall under one of three themes: student life, the campus in the city, or new educational issues.
Self-Assessment Matrix to Embed Sustainability in Teaching
Anyone teaching in academic year 2020-21 is invited to participate in a pilot research initiative that asks faculty to assess how sustainability is embedded in their courses. Participants will have the opportunity to share their own classroom practices and will be invited to join an international working group. The deadline to participate is Nov. 16.
Funding Opportunity Announcement: US DOE Connected Communities
Under this funding opportunity announcement, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) will select a portfolio of connected community projects totaling up to $65 million in varying climates, geographies, building types, building vintages, and distributed energy resources. Through funding these projects, DOE aims to find and share technical and market solutions that will increase demand flexibility and energy efficiency.
Next Generation Leaders Program
Next Generation Leaders (NGL) is a two-year initiative that will provide a forum for young people enrolled in universities to reflect on their engagement experiences, learn from each other, and present recommendations for future action to a global audience. Applications are due Jan. 22, 2021. Next Generation Leaders is an initiative between the Mastercard Foundation and the Talloires Network of Engaged Universities and aims to create a virtual community of university student leaders who are committed to civic engagement and social responsibility.
Call for Input: Sustainability Indicators With Times Higher Education & QS
Two events with Times Higher Education and QS will invite feedback on the topic of sustainability metrics in academic league tables. In order to accommodate as many time zones as possible, each event will include two sessions. An event on Oct. 29 will feature Duncan Ross with Times Higher Education (THE) on the future developments of THE Impact ranking. A session on Nov. 4 will feature Daniel Kahn, Leigh Kamolins, Andrew MacFarlane with QS on the intention of including sustainability in the QS World University Rankings.
Campus Recycling & Waste COVID Impact Survey
The College and University Recycling Coalition (CURC) invites respondents to complete this survey that aims to assess longer term impacts (lasting beyond the current fall term) to campus recycling and waste programs in the face of the COVID pandemic.
Call for Students: New Fashion Initiative Academic Consortium
The New Fashion Initiative is a foundation promoting circularity, collaboration and accountability in the fashion industry. This year, the New Fashion Initiative's Academic Consortium, happening on Nov. 20 encourages post-graduate students to apply to collaborate with professors and industry experts. Applications are due Oct. 31.
2020 AASHE Sustainability Awards Ceremony
This free, live awards ceremony, taking place virtually Dec. 3 from noon - 1:30 p.m. Eastern, celebrates 11 outstanding AASHE Sustainability Award winners advancing sustainability through projects, initiatives or research at higher education institutions. While the ceremony is free for anyone to attend, registration is required.
Call for Applications: AASHE Governance
AASHE seeks interested candidates to serve on the Advisory Council and STARS Steering Committee. The STARS Steering Committee is responsible for approving changes to STARS credits, new versions of the assessment system and serves in an advisory role on all matters related to STARS. The Advisory Council promotes and supports the organization’s growth and development, and advises staff on complex or specialized matters, including STARS technical support, and general programmatic goals. Applications are being accepted through Oct. 26.
STARS Sessions at the AASHE GCSHE
STARS (Sustainability Tracking, Assessment, and Rating System) sessions at the AASHE Global Conference on Sustainability in Higher Education (GCSHE), which begins Oct. 20, include introductory content for institutions just getting started with STARS, more detailed content for practiced users, and deep dives on specific topics such as food purchasing. Additionally, there will be opportunities to ask questions and provide feedback with STARS staff.
NexGenLead
NexGenLead is a free, three-week virtual program that aims to connect students in community to a dialogue on leadership and sustainability, while learning about and practicing responsible leadership competencies and taking ownership of their education. Organized by oikos International and swissnex Brazil, the program runs from Oct. 31 through Nov. 21.
History of Sustainability in Higher Education Survey
Researchers from the University of Michigan, University of Wyoming and Mount Holyoke College invite responses to a survey that seeks to explore the perceptions of the history of sustainability in U.S. higher education. The survey is anonymous. Participants may choose to enter a raffle to win one of four $25 cash prizes. The survey will close on Oct. 30.
Free for Students: Virtual Global Climate 2020
Hosted by The Alliance for Sustainability Leadership in Education (EAUC) out of the U.K., the Virtual Global Climate 2020 conference, happening Nov. 16 - 20, is free for students to attend. The conference seeks to bring together university and college students, academics and professionals to address the climate and ecological emergency.
Survey: Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on SDGs Implementation
Administered by the U.N. Department of Economic and Social Affairs, this survey seeks to understand how COVID-19 is impacting the contributions of stakeholders from different sectors to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It also aims to identify how COVID-19 is affecting countries' abilities to engage stakeholders and promote effective partnerships around implementation and follow up of the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs.
Call for Applications: AASHE Governance
AASHE seeks interested candidates to serve on the Advisory Council and STARS Steering Committee. The STARS Steering Committee is responsible for approving changes to STARS credits, new versions of the assessment system and serves in an advisory role on all matters related to STARS. The Advisory Council promotes and supports the organization’s growth and development, and advises staff on complex or specialized matters as well as general programmatic goals. Applications are being accepted through Oct. 26.
Appalachian Energy Summit Webinar Series
In lieu of an in-person Appalachian Energy Summit this year, the UNC System initiative is presenting a webinar series this fall. Webinars happen once per week through Oct. 22 and will focus on business for good, local government sustainability and energy initiatives, and project delivery.
AASHE GCSHE 2020 Pre-Conference Session: Mobilizing to VOTE: Climate 2020
This advanced broadcast session of the upcoming AASHE Global Conference on Sustainability in Higher Education will highlight the voter registration process and Get Out The Vote (GOTV) campaign. Happening Sept. 30 at 3:00 p.m. Eastern time, this webinar aims to introduce attendees to Our Climate's GOTV campaign, underscore the importance of encouraging voters to vote on climate-related issues, and motivate attendees to mobilize their peers.
AASHE Member Discount: Free Subscription to gb&d Bimonthly Magazine
AASHE members are eligible to receive a free subscription ($60 value) to gb&d’s (Green Building & Design) bimonthly magazine. Green Building & Design is a trade magazine that connects and inspires green building professionals by partnering with those at the forefront of sustainable design, development, planning and policy. This offer expires on Dec. 31.
Campus Compact Election 2020 Series
This multi-part series, presented as part of Campus Compact's Education for Democracy initiative, will explore how colleges and universities can deepen their commitment to political learning, civic education, and building a diverse democracy through teaching and learning, student life, and civic engagement.
Environmental Health Coalition Workforce & Education Assessment
The Environmental Health Coalition encourages those involved in the hiring of entry-level environmental health employees to complete the assessment. The purpose of this assessment is to determine if environmental health employers are experiencing difficulty in locating adequately prepared environmental health employees for their entry level positions, and if so, in what environmental health areas are they experiencing the most challenges.
Unlimited Conference Registrations to the AASHE GCSHE
AASHE members are eligible to take advantage of a unique pricing structure for the virtual Global Conference on Sustainability in Higher Education (GCSHE), happening Oct. 20 - 22 and themed Mobilizing for a Just Transition. Member institutions can become host sponsors, which provides campuses with an unlimited number of conference registration passes, as well as unique opportunities to be recognized for their commitment to sustainability.
This Way to Sustainability Call for Proposals
The planning committee of the This Way to Sustainability online conference, using the theme Resilience from the Ground Up: Strengthening Diversity in Soil, Communities and Economies, encourages presentation and poster submissions. This Way to Sustainability, happening March 25-26, 2021, is a student-run conference focusing on challenges, ideas, solutions and resiliency in planning a sustainable future. Proposals are due Nov. 1.
AASHE Discussion Series Recap: Racial Equity, Social Justice & Sustainability
During the month of August, AASHE led a discussion series about how the sustainability community is collaborating to advance racial equity and social justice (RESJ), and to discuss the intersection of sustainability with RESJ. Register now for today's recap webinar, happening from 3 - 4:00 p.m. Eastern, which will provide a recap of the discussion series and reflections on moving forward. Presenters are V.S. (Raghu) Raghavan, director of sustainability and associate director of the Miller Worley Center for the Environment at Mount Holyoke College, and Shá Duncan Smith, assistant vice president and dean of Inclusive Excellence and Community Development at Swarthmore College. Today's moderator is AASHE's Kimberly Smith, director of Marketing, Meetings and Membership.
Wege Prize 2021 Call for Team Applications
Wege Prize is an annual competition challenging students to collaborate across institutional, disciplinary and cultural boundaries to redesign the way economies work. Participants contend for over $30,000 in total cash prizes. The Wege Prize is organized by Kendall College of Art and Design’s Wege Center for Sustainable Design with support from the Wege Foundation. The deadline to submit an application is Nov. 9.
AASHE Discussion Series: Racial Equity, Social Justice & Sustainability
Join one of two more sessions held this month on how higher education is advancing racial equity and social justice, and how these intersect with sustainability. The presenters are Kimberly Lewis, senior vice president of Market Transformation and Development for the USGBC; Eriqah Vincent, network engagement director for Power Shift Network; and Debbie Namugayi, senior consultant at RE Tech Advisors. The discussion will be moderated by AASHE’s executive director, Meghan Fay Zahniser. A recap webinar will be held on Aug. 25.
Being Black in College Webinar Series
Presented by ACCEPT (Admissions Community Cultivating Equity & Peace Today), Being Black in College is a 4-part series that is specifically curated to the needs and experiences of Black students exploring higher education. Each session will feature college admissions experts sharing their personal advice and perspectives, and each will conclude with a question and answer period so attendees can ask questions specific to their own journeys to college.
Indigenous Youth Video Contest
The Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians is encouraging video submissions from Indigenous youth for the National Tribal Leadership Climate Change Summit. Videos should explore the impacts of climate change through the eyes, experiences and passions of Indigenous youth. Up to four winners will receive travel awards and up to four runners-up will receive partial travel awards to attend the summit in Seattle, taking place May 16-20, 2021.
Faculty Workshop Series Wrap-up: Coping With Climate Anxiety in the Classroom & for Yourself
Happening 3:00 - 4:30 p.m. Eastern on Aug. 6, this faculty session is a follow-up to the previous series of workshops offered for faculty to address their own emotions so that they can create and hold space in the classroom for students to integrate and process hard realities about climate change impacts. After leading a brief activity, this session will use breakout and full group discussion to prepare for fall semester and how AASHE might support this work going forward. The deadline to register is Aug. 5.
