Colorado State U Offers Bike Training to Older Staff
Faculty and staff 50 years old and older can get personalized training through university’s Parking and Transportation Services, thanks to a Kaiser Permanente grant. The Back on the Bike program is designed to get more people in active transportation and physical activity by offering bike tune-ups, safety gear and tricks to travel in traffic and overcome other safety or comfort obstacles through personalized travel training.
St. Louis U Adjunct Faculty Vote to Form Union
Part-time faculty working in St. Louis University’s College of Education and the College of Arts and Sciences voted 89 to 28 in favor of unionizing, pushing for higher wages and access to health benefits.
SUNY New Paltz Bolsters Diversity & Inclusion Support with New Hire & Task Force
The university recently announced Tanhena Pacheco Dunn as chief diversity officer after being hired in 2012 as executive director of Compliance and coordinator of Campus Climate and Title IX. Pacheco Dunn came to SUNY New Paltz from Vassar College. Additionally, a new, 21-member Diversity and Inclusion Plan Task Force has been tasked with leading the development of a draft campus diversity and inclusion plan.
Ten Canadian Institutions Top 2016 Greenest Employers List
Organized by the Canada's Top 100 Employers project, the 10 colleges and universities are Dalhousie University, Humber College, Kwantlen Polytechnic University, Mohawk College, Red River College, University of British Columbia, University of Alberta, University of Northern British Columbia, University of Toronto and York University. The Greenest Employer award recognizes employers that lead the nation in making environmental values part of their organizational culture.
Wesleyan U Funds Sustainability Education and Social Justice Programs
Among this year's initiatives and projects that the student-run Green Fund allocated money to are the development of sustainability curriculum into existing courses, an event featuring a Stony Brook University professor about ecofeminism, eco-grief and climate justice, and funding to a pilot program that offers cooperative food shares to a local elementary school.
U Iowa Marks Progress on 2020 Sustainability Goals
Some areas of progress include net negative energy growth, with a nearly 15 percent reduction in per capita emissions of fossil fuel-produced carbon dioxide from university-related transportation and travel, a 42 percent waste diversion rate and 14.4 percent renewable energy use.
Green Mountain College and Audubon International Announce Partnership
Graduate students at Green Mountain College can apply their place-based education by exploring and implementing Audubon International’s programs alongside professional staff. Staff at any of Audubon International's member facilities will receive discounts to enroll in the college’s online graduate curriculum in one of four sustainability disciplines. The goal of the partnership is to improve training opportunities for sustainability professionals and students, and lead to new research on sustainability practices.
Northeastern U Shares Campus Sustainability Report
Released at the time of the COP21 climate talks in Paris, the report lists the university's 2025 goals and provides an update to the campus' climate commitment and progress, improvements to buildings and water infrastructure, and campus resilience and business continuity.
Southern Illinois U Carbondale to Open Sustainability Display
The new Innovation and Sustainability Hub will feature informational displays about current and future innovation and sustainability efforts on campus and serve as a collaborative space to share information and increase awareness and student participation.
Harvard U Provides 2015 Sustainability Report
The new report in an online format provides progress updates in the areas of emissions and energy, campus operations, nature and ecosystems, health and well-being, and culture and learning.
MIT Report Highlights Creation of Climate Action Advisory Committee
In a new report released in April, MIT announced a new Climate Action Advisory Committee to consult on the implementation of climate plans, develop a set of strategies and benchmarks for the school's engagement with industry, government and other institutions, and assist in finding ways to engage the broader community in climate action. The report also outlines progress on its five-year climate action plan released in October 2015.
EPA Honors Winners of Campus RainWorks Challenge
In April 2016, the Environmental Protection Agency announced four winners and two honorable mentions for the 2015 Campus RainWorks Challenge. University of Texas at Arlington (Master Plan category) and University of Maryland, College Park (Demonstration Project category) were first place winners, with Stevens Institute of Technology (Master Plan) and University of California, Berkeley (Demonstration Project) taking second place. The Campus RainWorks Challenge encourages students to learn about the current or potential impacts of climate change on campus and demonstrate how using green infrastructure practices on their campuses can build resiliency to those impacts while effectively managing stormwater runoff.
Education Dept Announces 2016 Green Ribbon Schools Award
This year's U.S. Department of Education Green Ribbon Schools recognition award went to Elon University; Georgia Institute of Technology; Hawkeye Community College; Macalester College; Raritan Valley Community College; Slippery Rock University; University of Colorado, Colorado Springs; University of Louisiana at Lafayette; University of Montevallo; and University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. The Green Ribbon Schools recognition award honors postsecondary institutions that are demonstrating progress in three pillars: environmental impact, health and wellness, and sustainability education.
Johns Hopkins Releases New Sustainability Report
Through efforts to meet the university's pledge to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 51 percent by 2025, the newly released report reveals greenhouse gas emissions were down 30 percent from 2007 levels, despite a 9.3 percent increase in its building footprint and 4.6 percent increase in total energy consumption. A portion of the reduction is attributable to the regional electricity grid's fuel mix, which now uses less coal and more natural gas and renewable sources.
U Virginia Launches First Sustainability Plan
In honor of Earth Day, the university has launched its first comprehensive, strategic roadmap for sustainability that addresses pressing global challenges. The plan was developed by the University Committee on Sustainability and facilitated by the Office for Sustainability, representing over one hundred students, staff and faculty.
California State U Monterey Bay Uses Falcons in Demolitions
As the university prepares for demolition of some buildings, it is using a technique called bird abatement where birds of prey, in this case falcons, are used with handlers to deter other avian friends from making homes in the vacant, soon-to-be torn down structures. Simulating hunting patterns, the falcons do not hunt the other birds, their presence provides enough of a threat to warn other birds not to nest. If a nest is completed or found with eggs in or near any of the buildings, the demolition will have to be halted until the eggs hatch and the birds mature enough to fly on their own.
U Illinois Chicago Announces Four Climate Commitments
In a campus-wide ceremony, the university's chancellor presented four climate commitment action items that were developed by the university's Committee on Sustainability and Energy. The commitments include reducing carbon emissions yielding to a carbon-neutral campus, reducing, reusing and recycling material leading to a 90 percent waste diversion rate, increasing water efficiency to an amount equal to or less than what falls within the university's boundaries, and creating a resilient campus landscape that supports a biodiverse plant and animal ecosystem.
Stanford U Energy System Innovation Receives Award
Stanford Energy System Innovations (SESI) was awarded with the Engineering News-Record Editor's Choice & Best Energy/Industrial awards. The SESI system transformed the university's energy supply from a 100 percent fossil-fuel-based combined heat and power plant to grid-sourced electricity and a more efficient electric heat recovery system.
Arizona State U Appoints Sustainability Operations Officer
Nichol Luoma is the new University Sustainability Operations officer and associate vice president for University Business Services at the university. Before her associate vice president interim appointment, Luoma served as the university's chief procurement officer, responsible for procurement and contracting. Under her leadership, university procurement was recognized by the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education's (AASHE) Sustainable Campus index as No. 1 in the purchasing category.
U Calgary & York U Make '2016 Future 40' List
The Corporate Knights 2016 Future 40 Responsible Corporate Leaders of Canada holds University of Calgary at No. 8 and York University at No. 22. In its third year, the Future 40 is a ranking of Canadian organizations and institutions based on 12 key performance indicators covering resource, employee and financial management. The Future 40 shortlist is derived from companies with revenues under $2 billion or maintaining fewer than 2,000 employees in 2014.
U Connecticut Names Chief Diversity Officer
Joelle A. Murchison has recently been named chief diversity officer and associate vice president to the university. Murchison, who begins her new role in July, will serve as the university’s main strategist responsible for guiding efforts to define, assess, and promote diversity, inclusion, and educational and employment opportunity. She will develop programs and coordinate activities to recruit and retain faculty, students and staff from diverse backgrounds.
U Michigan Reports on Sustainability Progress
The newly released progress report highlights funding for sustainability-related research in the areas of water, climate and communities, greenhouse gas emissions reductions and expansion of the university's food waste composting program.
U Oregon Earns National Accolades for Sustainable Event Planning
The university events staff helped the football game earn Gold certification from the Council for Responsible Sports, which advocates for environmentally and socially responsible events. Highlights include 40-plus percent waste diversion, 100 percent renewable resources for electricity, reduced water use and food donation totaling 850 pounds.
McHenry County College Wins IGEN Award
The college won the College Leadership and Sustainability Award from the Illinois Green Economy Network (IGEN) at the 2016 IGEN Sustainability Conference held in January 2016. IGEN's awards program honors colleges across the state for incorporating sustainability as a measure of success.
Frostburg State U Allocates Funding to 12 Sustainability Projects
Twelve projects, about half of which were student proposals, recently received grant funding from the university’s President’s Advisory Council on Sustainability. Funded projects include increasing sustainability awareness, performing environmental research, presenting research at academic conferences and making direct environmental impacts on campus. Funding preference was given to those projects that involve and benefit students, are linked to an academic class offering experiential learning, provide long-term campus benefits and address the university's Climate Action Plan.
Kentucky State U Director Earns Environmental Education Honor
Jennifer Hubbard-Sánchez, director of the center for environmental education at Kentucky State University in Frankfort and state specialist for sustainable programs, was selected from nominees across the U.S. as one of five Outstanding Educators by Project Learning Tree. Hubbard-Sánchez connects Kentuckians with a special interest in teaching about climate change. Project Learning Tree is the national environmental education program of the American Forest Foundation.
Higher Education Institutions Under Pressure to Disclose Investments
The Associated Press reports that Congress and campus activists have stepped up pressure on colleges and universities to reveal financial investments made through their endowments. While lawmakers are questioning whether to tax colleges on investment portfolios, activists, including alumni and students, are demanding to know if investments are held in certain industries. An inquiry by The Associated Press to 50 public and private universities asking them to disclose their investments revealed "most schools issue annual reports with broad information and few details about specific investments".
Bucknell U Buildings Earn LEED Gold
The university's South Campus Apartments and Student Commons building, now displaying the Gold designation, feature natural light and energy-efficient lighting technology, FSC-certified wood, efficient plumbing fixtures, wind power and native plant landscaping.
U California Santa Cruz Researcher Earns NSAC Recognition
The National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC) has given its Sustainability Champion award to the university's alumnus Mark Lipson, currently a researcher with UCSC’s Center for Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems. NSAC said the award was made to honor Lipson’s years of service to the organic and sustainable agriculture movement, and his “groundbreaking work on Capitol Hill shepherding historic changes, such as the much-celebrated five-fold increase in funding for organic research secured in the 2008 Farm Bill.”
U Calgary Launches Institutional Sustainability Strategy
The university recently completed a comprehensive institutional sustainability strategy that, for the first time, incorporates an academic framework to advance education and research for sustainability. During the launch, the university also announced a new interdisciplinary sustainability certificate that will be offered to all undergraduate students. The strategy is the result of more than two years of broad consultation with students, faculty, staff and community partners.
U Arkansas Appoints Eric Boles as Sustainability Director
Eric Boles, a University of Arkansas graduate with a master's degree in biological engineering, will now serve as the director of the Office of Sustainability. He is tasked with leading strategies to help the university achieve zero waste by 2021 and climate neutrality by 2040. He indicates one of his priorities is not alienating campus community members from the effort to implement sustainability.
Saint Mary's College California Releases Sustainability Report
The college's latest sustainability review cites its operational and academic successes and future plans. As an U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Green Power Partner, the college has offset 100 percent of electricity consumption with renewable energy credits.
U British Columbia Releases Annual Sustainability Report
The university’s newest sustainability report aligns with the university’s new 20-year Sustainability Strategy through targeted priorities in teaching, learning and research, operations and infrastructure, community, and communications and engagement. Highlights from the report include 636 sustainability courses, 48 sustainability programs, a 22 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions relative to 2007, and a clear focus on community well-being.
U Chicago Faculty Form Union
A vote of 96 to 22 in early December resulted in non-tenure-track faculty forming a union affiliated with Service Employees International Union (SEIU) reports Inside Higher Ed. The University of Chicago is one of several to form SEIU-affiliated unions for full-time, non-tenure-track faculty members.
U Delaware Employs New Sustainability Manager
Michelle Bennett assumed her role as sustainability manager in August of 2015 for the Newark campus. Her appointment and the establishment of an office of sustainability are part of the university's strategic plan. She comes to the University of Delaware from Macquarie University in Sydney, Australia.
U New Hampshire Appoints Deputy Chief Sustainability Officer
Miriam Nelson, a researcher and author on nutrition and physical activity, will become the deputy chief sustainability officer and director of the university's Sustainability Institute in March of 2016. Nelson arrives at the University of New Hampshire from Tufts University's Tisch College of Citizenship and Public Service and professor of its Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy.
U Nebraska Omaha Hires First Sustainability Coordinator
After earning her master's degree in sustainability from St. Louis University, Sarah Burke will facilitate the implementation of university's Sustainability Master Plan and help support sustainability-based curricular and co-curricular programs, events and research activities for the campus community.
Swarthmore College Hires New Sustainability Director
Aurora Winslade will join the college in December 2015 from Hawai'i Energy where she designs and manages programs to shift the market toward increased energy efficiency. Previously Winslade launched the sustainability office at the University of Hawai'i and was the inaugural sustainability director at the University of California, Santa Cruz.
AASHE, Second Nature, NWF & USGBC Make Joint Statement
Last week Julian Keniry from the National Wildlife Federation (NWF), Jaime Van Mourik from the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), Tim Carter of Second Nature and Meghan Fay Zahniser with AASHE came together at the AASHE 2015 Conference & Expo to unveil a shared vision between the organizations to advance sustainability by working more closely together to benefit higher education institutions.
Stratford U Announces Move to Become a Public Benefit Corporation
The university, a for-profit, Virginia-based institution with national accreditation, announced last week a legal change to the company's charter, which allows it to focus more on activities that do not generate profit including actions aimed at benefiting the public.
U Mississippi Removes State Flag with Confederate Symbol
After months of protests on campus, last week several campus bodies all passed measures requesting the university remove the state flag. The flag will be stored in the university's archives, along with the resolutions that call for its removal. The state is currently debating changing the flag's design.
Ten Institutions Top AASHE's 2015 Sustainable Campus Index
The AASHE 2015 Sustainable Campus Index highlights top-performing colleges and universities in 17 areas, as measured by the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System (STARS). The report also highlights best practices from over 50 U.S., Canadian and Mexican institutions that have submitted a STARS report in the last 12 months.
Saint Joseph’s College Partners With EcoMotion to Advance Sustainability
EcoMotion’s tasks will include conducting a greenhouse gas inventory, developing a climate action and sustainability plan, advising on Saint Joseph’s newly established green revolving fund, formalizing campus engagement, along with providing strategic marketing and communications to document sustainability progress and foster community awareness.
Stanford U Releases 2014-15 Year in Review
The newly released, digital edition of Sustainability at Stanford: A Year in Review highlights 14 topical areas and monthly snapshots that represent collaborative efforts across multiple campus entities. Topical areas include assessment and evaluations, behavior-based programs, collaborative governance, interdisciplinary research, student leadership and activities, and training and education.
Penn State U Names First Transportation Coordinator
Cecily Zhu recently took the helm as the university's first transportation coordinator. Before coming to Penn State, she most recently worked as a transportation policy and planning fellow for the Pittsburgh Community Reinvestment Group. Editorial Photo Credit: Lilyana Vynogradova / Shutterstock.com
