Lehigh U Transitions to 100% Recycled Paper
(U.S.): An initiative by the university's Purchasing Sustainability group, the transition to 100 percent recycled paper at all public computing sites comes after a request by the student community.
Oxford College Acquires Land for Organic Farm
(U.S.): After an alumni recently donated land, the college will now offer an organic farm to model sustainable farming techniques and for integration into the school's curriculum.
Sabah U Malaysia Opens Recycling Center
(Malaysia): In a strategic effort to make its campus more sustainable, the university's Environmental Management System will be trained to implement the recycling initiative, conduct an environmental audit, and organize the first regional conference on sustainability.
Second Nature Announces Climate Leader Finalists
(U.S.): Second Nature and the American College & University Presidents' Climate Commitment (ACUPCC) have announced the finalists of the Fifth Annual Climate Leadership Awards, presented to ACUPCC signatory schools that demonstrate "unparalleled campus innovation and climate leadership that helps transition society to a clean, just and sustainable future." Second Nature is partnering with Planet Forward in a public voting competition featuring the finalists' climate leadership and campus innovations during Earth Month.
U Massachusetts Amherst Receives $485K to Bolster Food System
(U.S.): Seeking to transform the food landscape to a more sustainable one, the Kendall Foundation has recently awarded the university $485,000 over two years with an initial focus of cultivating new suppliers of environmentally sound produce and offering more free-range poultry and animal products in its newly remodeled dining hall.
U Southern Queensland to Construct Green Building
(Australia): When completed the new building will contain electric car charging stations, a 40-bicycle facility with covered and secure storage, showers and lockers, rainwater collection and grey water system, and a management system for the lighting and electrical systems.
Antioch U New England Launches Terracycle Partnership
Beginning in January 2014, the university's Social Justice and Sustainability team is collecting a variety of packaging materials that are currently not recycled, such as chip bags and toothpaste tubes, in an effort to increase its waste diversion.
U Alabama Birmingham Reuses Water for Savings
A network of pipes and tanks now collect and reuse condensate from the university's central cooling system saving it millions of gallons of water and thousands of dollars per month.
AASCU Proposal to Maintain College Affordability
The newly released proposition from the American Association of State Colleges and Universities proposes using existing federal resources to create a new federal matching grant program that leverages federal funds to incentivize states to boost operating support for public higher education, in turn mitigating tuition price increases and improving college affordability.
North Carolina State U Students Opt to Live in EcoVillage
The new sustainability-focused living and learning community drew 63 students whose focus is on service programs and a first-year student course on sustainability, which encourages students to lead, serve, problem solve and engage in complex issues.
San Diego State U Achieves LEED Platinum, Smoke-Free, LGBT Center
The university's recently completed LEED student union is designed with retail space, community areas, an outdoor courtyard and recreation areas. The lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender resource service center recently opened its doors to offer student support and a sense of community.
U Kansas Researchers Devise Diversity Assessment Tool
In an effort to measure diversity in higher education, the recently published paper discusses the researchers method to create the final instrument, ACES, which quantifies Attitude towards diversity, Career activities and professional norms, Environment conducive to diversity, and Social interactions with diverse groups.
U Michigan Attains Marine Stewardship Council Certification
The university recently achieved the MSC Chain of Custody third party certification, which supports sustainably-managed fisheries also certified by MSC standards. Five residential dining halls will offer seafood designated as MSC-certified.
San Francisco State U Offers New Sustainability Courses
After winning funding from the California State University's Campus as a Living Lab Grant Program, in spring 2014 the university will be offering courses in sustainable transportation, supply chain management, geography and environmental science. The winning proposals were developed with the aid of the university's Physical Planning & Development and were awarded $38,207.
Small Steps, Big Wins Campus Challenge Announces Fall Results
A national contest to empower college students to take positive social and environmental actions, such as donating blood or recycling, released the top scoring schools for fall semester as Oklahoma State University, University of California at Berkeley, Southern Illinois University, Penn State University and Washington University.
Green Mountain College Announces Results of Alumni Survey
As a baseline for measuring future progress, preliminary data from 12 questions on a 2012 class survey indicate that 43 percent of graduates spend more than 10 hours per week deliberately enhancing the social fabric of their communities and 72 percent report that their lives reflect the college's environmental mission.
North Carolina Launches the LGBTQ College Consortium
The North Carolina LGBTQ College Consortium aims to foster communication and build community among the state’s various lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgendered and queer college student organizations with annual meetings and a conference, periodic conference calls, webinars and leadership development events.
Oklahoma State U Creates Healthy Food Labeling System
After receiving grant funds, the university's Dining Services program recently implemented the labeling system to indicate more healthful foods per U.S. Department of Agriculture guidelines. The system also labels more than 800 grab-and-go items with nutrition and allergen information.
Stonehill College to Construct 2.7MW Solar Farm
The new contract for a 15-acre, 2.7-megawatt photovoltaic array will offset the university's carbon emissions, save money, help build a culture of sustainability on campus, and is tied in with the college’s Catholic ethos.
U California Riverside to Install 3MW Solar System
Supporting the system-wide University Policy on Sustainable Practices, which calls on each campus to contribute to the production of up to 10-megawatts of on-site renewable power by 2014, the university will install the three-megawatt, 10-acre system in summer 2014.
U Oregon Building Earns LEED Platinum
The building's features include recycling waste water, domestic hot water from solar thermal panels, efficient heating and cooling systems, operable windows, solar shading and rain gardens.
Bentley U Install Recycling Machines
The newly installed recycling machines accept bottles and cans, giving a five-cent deposit back to recyclers and displaying real-time recycling data.
Cornell U Faculty Vote to Divest
By a 43-13 Faculty Senate vote, a resolution called for the divestiture by 2035 of all investments in the top 200 holding companies ranked by fossil fuel reserves.
Green Mountain College Students Build Sustainable Mobile Home
Motivated to build a mobile living space that could be towed behind a four-cylinder vehicle, the Renewable Energy and Ecological Design students custom-built a 70-square-foot room with a composting toilet, rainwater collection system and a 120-watt photovoltaic panel.
North Carolina State U Students Engineer Heat Ventilation System
Students from the university's Landscape Construction Studio class recently designed and implemented the heat ventilation system for a garden space that has steam pipes underneath it causing vegetation to die. The student-staff collaboration won a local award.
Portland State U Awards Research Grants
In an effort to advance sustainability research, the university's Institute for Sustainable Solutions and Research and Strategic Partnerships awarded up to $5,000 for 10 stimulus grants to help develop and prepare proposals for external funding for projects geared toward urban sustainability, ecosystem services, and social determinants of health.
SUNY ESF Students to Initiate Campus-Wide Composting
Students from the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry are constructing a new facility for a campus-wide aerobic compost system that aids the composting process in colder months.
U Illinois Building Achieves LEED Platinum
The newly renovated building was provided with upgraded climate controls, electric, lighting and plumbing systems, recycled demolition materials, low-flow water fixtures, and use of daylighting.
Western Carolina U Building Awarded LEED Gold
The university's Health and Human Sciences Building features daylighting, passive solar design, a rooftop garden, and use of recycled materials and materials with low volatile organic compounds.
Bicycling Magazine Pins Nine Cyclist-Friendly Colleges
The magazine's recent ranking evaluates efforts to incorporate innovative ways to increase cycling as a means of transportation. Highlighted universities include University of Louisville; Bowdoin College; University of California, Davis; Michigan State University; Portland State University; University of Colorado, Boulder; University of Minnesota; University of Arizona; and Stanford University.
Princeton U New Sustainability Website Goes Live
The university's new website is an online sustainability platform where the campus community can get involved, explore the campus as a living lab, view live data, and read news and announcements.
Cornell U Hosts Climate Change Website
(U.S.): The newly released website houses university research and outreach program information, issue-specific pages to help farmers, local government and youth educators, a climate change forum, videos and question and answer section.
