Pepperdine U Launches Center for Sustainability
Pepperdine University (CA) has announced the creation of the Center for Sustainability. The new Center, which has also launched a new website, seeks to advance sustainability at Pepperdine through the implementation of sustainable measures, the communication of successes and challenges, and the education of the university community. The Center for Sustainability has already implemented several new initiatives including switching to all recycled paper towels, biodegradable to-go ecotainers in cafeterias, and composting of food waste. Other new efforts include the availability of rental cars through Hertz Car Sharing and expanded e-waste recycling and battery collection.
U Buffalo to Support Local Clean Energy Companies
The University at Buffalo has received a $1.5 million grant from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) to establish a clean energy business incubator program that will provide business support to accelerate the successful development of early-stage, clean energy technology companies in Western New York. UB's program, Directed Energy, is designed to utilize the technical expertise of scientists and engineers at the University with the business development skills of the University's Technology Incubator in order to foster clean energy companies and job growth in Western New York. The Directed Energy program also will develop curricula to better prepare university students for the green economy and to help companies provide quality continuing education to employees. Alfred University is a partner of the program.
U Calgary Receives Funding for Cogen Plant, Energy Upgrades
The University of Calgary (AB) has received $29.8 million from the Federal and Provincial Governments to support the construction of an energy efficiency cogeneration plant and a campus-wide energy performance program that will convert an ageing heating and cooling plant into a 12-15 megawatt cogeneration facility. The new system will generate electricity from natural gas and capture the waste heat to be used in buildings across campus. It is expected to result in $3.5 million in cost savings on energy bills per year and reduce the University’s carbon dioxide emissions by 80,000 tonnes per year when it comes online by the end of 2011.
U California Santa Barbara Housing Complex receives LEED Gold
The University of California, Santa Barbara's San Clemente Villages graduate student housing complex has been awarded LEED Gold certification. San Clemente Villages features four separate apartment buildings with 973 beds in 325 one-, two-, and four-bedroom apartments. The structure, which was completed in fall 2008, is believed to be the largest LEED-certified housing facility on any college or university campus in the country.
U California Santa Cruz Building Awarded LEED Silver
The University of California, Santa Cruz's Engineering 2 building has been awarded LEED Silver certification. The structure, which was completed in 2004, is cleaned with environmentally friendly products, saves 276,000 kW of electricity and 17,000 therms of natural gas annually compared to a similar conventional building, and features trees planted nearby to replace those cut down during construction.
U Florida Football Complex Receives LEED Platinum
The University of Florida's Heavener Football Complex has received LEED Platinum certification. The $28 million complex includes offices, conference rooms, an atrium, and weight-training facilities. The facility’s energy-saving features exceed state and national standards requirements by 35 percent and include low-e glazing on glass, insulation, and reflective materials, which make the heating and air conditioning systems more efficient. The structure also contains energy-efficient lighting and light sensors that turn off automatically when the room is empty; a system for analyzing future energy use; light-colored roofing and concrete pavement on the plaza to keep temperatures lower in and around the building; low flow fixtures, dual-flush toilets, and water-saving shower heads; and a green roof. Additionally, one hundred percent of the building's irrigation is reclaimed water, and native plants combined with non-evaporating sprinklers allow the landscaping to use 50 percent less water. The complex is the first building in Florida and the first athletic facility in the nation to achieve LEED Platinum status.
U Illinois Chicago Signs Talloires Declaration
The University of Illinois at Chicago has signed the Talloires Declaration. By signing this international declaration, UIC commits to implement a 10-point action plan to incorporate sustainability and environmental literacy into its teaching, research, operations, and outreach.
U New Hampshire Completes Landfill Gas-to-Energy Project
The University of New Hampshire has completed a project that uses purified methane gas from a nearby landfill to power its five-million-square-foot campus. UNH will receive up to 85 percent of its electricity and heat from the gas, making it the first university in the US to use landfill gas as its primary fuel source. After the gas is purified and compressed in a processing plant at a nearby landfill, it travels through a 12.7-mile-pipeline to UNH’s cogeneration plant, where it will replace commercial natural gas as the primary fuel source.
U Oregon Installs Electricity Generating Fitness Machines
The University of Oregon has installed 15 elliptical machines in its Student Recreation Center that generate electricity while in use. An average half-hour workout on the fitness machine produces enough electricity to power a laptop computer for one hour. The product, known as ReCardio, captures and diverts the kinetic energy normally produced by exercise and given off as heat to an inverter that changes the energy into the alternating current that's used in the electrical grid. The University plans to add five more energy generating machines in the near future.
U Tennessee to Host State Solar Institute
The University of Tennessee has announced plans to join Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the Tennessee Valley Authority as a partner in Governor Phil Bredesen's proposed Volunteer State Solar Initiative. UT and ORNL will be home to The Tennessee Solar Institute, one of two projects in the proposed initiative subject to U.S. Department of Energy approval. The Tennessee Solar Institute would receive $31 million to focus on basic research to improve solar product affordability and efficiency.
U Texas Austin Hires Sustainability Director
The University of Texas at Austin has appointed Jim Walker as its first director of sustainability. In his new position, Walker will be part of the University's Campus Planning and Facilities Management unit. He will work closely with the President's Task Force on Sustainability and plans to meet frequently with on-campus and off-campus stakeholders to identify existing sustainability efforts and opportunities for collaboration. Walker will assume his new position full-time by August 1, 2009.
U Wisconsin Extension Creates Online Sustainability Mgmt Degree
The University of Wisconsin-Extension has created an online Sustainable Management Bachelor's degree, a program designed to provide students with the management skills needed to lead sustainable business strategy. The 63-credit BS degree, which is only available to students who have completed an Associate's degree or the first two years of a Bachelor's degree, is an interdisciplinary program that helps students gain a broad understanding of the ways in which business systems, natural systems, and social systems intersect. The curriculum includes courses in Environmental Studies, Triple Bottom Line Accounting, Natural Resource Management, Information Systems, Logistics, Supply Chain Management, and Sustainability.
U Wisconsin Oshkosh Cancels Plans to Bring KFC to Campus
The University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh has cancelled its plans to sign a six-year contract with Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) after a group of faculty, students, and staff expressed concerns related to animal welfare and argued that the contract would go against the University's commitment to sustainability. After researching the issue further, students collected over 450 signatures on a petition calling for the University to drop KFC and the University decided to consider other options.
27 New Campus Greenhouse Gas Inventories Released
26 signatory campuses of the American College & University Presidents' Climate Commitment (ACUPCC) have submitted public greenhouse gas (GHG) inventories since the last update in the AASHE Bulletin . The GHG inventory is the first major reporting requirement of the Commitment and is due within a year of signing. New inventories were submitted by: Oregon State University; University of Southern Mississippi; University of North Texas; Sewanee: The University of the South (TN); Brandeis University (MA); University of Alaska, Anchorage; University of Minnesota-Rochester; Oregon Institute of Technology; New England Institute of Technology (RI); Xavier University (OH); University of Baltimore (MD); St. Mary's College of Maryland; Life University (GA); Loras College (IA); Temple University (PA); Illinois College; Roger Williams University (RI); The Richard Stockton College of New Jersey; Bergen Community College (NJ); Lewis and Clark Community College (IL); SUNY Rockland Community College; Minneapolis Community and Technical College (MN); The Community College of Baltimore County (MD); Manchester Community College (NH); Durham Technical Community College (NC); and Bristol Community College (MA). In related news, Elon University (NC) has also published a greenhouse gas inventory.
6 Colleges Test Electronic Book Reader
Case Western Reserve University (OH), Pace University (NY), Princeton University (NJ), Reed College (OR), Arizona State University, and the Darden School at the University of Virginia have partnered with Amazon and major publishers to supply a portion of the student population with the Kindle e-book reader this fall. Case Western has announced plans to give students the large-screen Kindle with textbooks for chemistry, computer science, and a freshman seminar already installed. Case hopes to compare the experiences of students with and without the new device.
Anne Arundel CC Installs Rain Garden
Anne Arundel Community College (MD) has installed several rain gardens on its campus. More than 600 plants were installed near storm water drains to slow rushing water and filter out impurities. The project, which was funded by a $24,000 grant from the nonprofit Chesapeake Bay Trust, was initiated by a student in an environmental science course.
Arizona State U Expands Student Financial Aid
Arizona State University has established the Barack Obama Scholars Program to help students from low-income families afford tuition. The program, an expansion of an already existing program, will provide funding for direct costs to all academically qualified Arizona freshmen from families that earn less than $60,000 per year. It more than doubles qualifying family income from $25,000 to $60,000 and more than triples the number of scholars from 500 first-year students this year to more than 1,600 students entering ASU in fall 2009.
College of the Atlantic Class Installs Wind Turbine
Students in the College of the Atlantic's (ME) Practicum in Wind Power course have installed a wind turbine on the campus' Beech Hill Farm. The College hopes that the wind turbine will provide enough electricity to power the farm.
Delta College Switches to 4 Day Schedule
Delta College (MI) has begun Green Fridays, a new schedule in which the campuses closes on Fridays. The campus extended its hours Monday through Thursday for students, faculty, and staff to perform their usual activities. The initiative seeks to reduce campus emissions without decreasing the level of education and services provided.
Georgia Tech, Caltech Partner Globally for Sustainability
The Georgia Institute of Technology and the California Institute of Technology have joined with five international technological universities to form the Global Alliance of Technological Universities. The Alliance brings together these engineering-based universities in the belief that one of the best ways to address global societal issues is through the joint and concerted development of technological solutions based on top class research in science and technology. “Grand Challenges” identified by the Alliance include biomedicine and health care, sustainability and global environmental change, security of energy, water and food supplies, and changing demographics/ population.
Humboldt State U to Improve Stadium Lighting Efficiency
Humboldt State University (CA) has announced plans to upgrade the Redwood Bowl stadium lighting. The Relight the Redwood Bowl project, which began with a student proposal, will finance the purchase of new fixtures that focus light directly on to the field. The number of light fixtures will drop by 40 percent, and the University estimates a savings of $186,221 and a reduction of 1,525,000 kilowatt-hours over a 25-year period.
Ithaca College Kitchen to Undergo Student-Designed Green Upgrade
A group of Ithaca College (NY) students have developed a plan to reduce energy consumption in the campus dining hall. Working in partnership with the Sodexo, the College's food service provider, the students conducted a water and energy audit, examined every piece of equipment for energy efficiency, and developed a baseline estimate of dining-service energy consumption and carbon emissions. The team then identified short and long range ways to curb energy use that included installing energy-efficient exhaust fans, making employees more aware of energy use, and adding light sensors. The team's plan will cut the energy bill by nearly $140,000 per year via low-cost or no-cost projects. Investments in energy-efficient equipment will cost just over $215,000 and will pay for themselves in 19 months.
Johns Hopkins U Releases Climate Change Report
Johns Hopkins University (MD) Task Force on Climate Change has released its final report. The document recommends that the University reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 51 percent by the year 2025. The report also calls for the University to expand its focus on the student experience, ensuring that students have more opportunities to get involved in climate change research activities, community-based learning, and sustainability-related social activities. Likewise, the report recommends that academic leadership find creative ways to match interested professors with meaningful sustainability projects on the Johns Hopkins campuses and in the surrounding communities. During the next several months, the University plans to develop an implementation plan based on the report.
Lafayette College Installs Water Refilling Stations
Lafayette College (PA) has installed seven "refilling stations" in high student traffic buildings on campus. The new installations, which work faster than a normal water fountain, aim to promote using reusable water bottles over disposable ones.
Louisiana State U Reduces Dorm Energy Use 18%
Louisiana State University has completed its UNPLUG Competition, a contest to reduce energy consumption in nine campus dormitories. As part of the competition, students were asked to make small adjustments in their daily routines in an effort to impact overall energy consumption. These adjustments included using task lighting and natural light whenever possible, adjusting the temperature in dorm rooms, unplugging nonessential electrical devices whenever possible, taking the stairs rather than the elevator, and taking shorter showers. Residents collectively reduced their energy use by 18 percent, saving the University $13,763 over the month of March.
Maharishi U Mgmt Students Build Community Greenhouse
A group of Maharishi University of Management (IA) students have helped to construct a greenhouse on a nearby farm. The students participated in a workshop held by the nonprofit organization Practical Farmers of Iowa in which the students, along with several members of the community, installed the 35 by 96 foot hoop house. The students' participation was part of the curriculum for MUM's Sustainable Living program.
Mount Allison U Adopts Carbon Emission Reduction Policy
Mount Allison University (NB) has adopted a campus-wide Carbon Emission Reduction Policy. The Policy concentrates on three major areas responsible for most of the University’s emissions: heating, electricity, and transportation. Reduction strategies include fuel-switching to lower emission sources as they become available and represent viable options, priority purchasing of high efficiency model appliances and computer hardware, and creating a central accounting system to monitor travel distances and mode of all university expensed travel.
New York Times Covers Campus Green Fees
The New York Times has published a blog post on the increasing number of colleges and universities that are implementing student-imposed green fees. The article mentions current or upcoming fees at Northland College (WI), Portland State University (OR), and Texas A&M, as well as green fee initiatives within the state legislature in Texas and Florida.
Northland College Class Installs Solar Panels on Library
Students in a "Sustainable Living: Photovoltaics" course at Northland College (WI) have selected and installed a 38 solar panel array on the campus library. The new photovoltaic system, which employs bifacial panels, can capture direct sunlight and light reflected by the building’s white roof. It is expected to produce 14 kilowatts of power, approximately the amount used by the library’s geothermal heating and cooling system.
Northland College Student Association Names Dir of Sustainability
The Northland College (WI) Student Association has named Byron Emmons as its first director of sustainability. Emmons will coordinate project selection for the use of the Renewable Energy Fund and will create a sustainability award for students who have shown exceptional efforts towards sustainability. The new director will also work to facilitate general advances in the practices, policies, and projects of NCSA and Northland College.
Pennsylvania State U Student Fitness Ctr, Ball Park Earn LEED Awards
Pennsylvania State University's 26,800-square-feet addition and 19,800-square-feet renovation to its Recreation Hall Wrestling and Student Fitness Center has earned LEED Gold certification. The Rec Hall features natural lighting, minimal site disturbance, re-use of existing facilities, recycled rubber in the fitness-area floor, and use of low-flow fixtures for all plumbing. In addition, PSU's Medlar Field at Lubrano Park, which Penn State shares with minor-league State College Spikes of the New York-Penn League, has earned LEED certification. The 5,500-seat field exceeded the standard ratio for undisturbed land to building site, exceeded the required energy-efficiency code by as much as 10 percent, and made use of recycled and local materials.
Portland State U Receives Grant to Study Rooftop Solar Energy
A team of researchers at Portland State University (OR) has received over $600,000 to study the integration of solar panels and eco-roofs on rooftops to assess how combining these green technologies might boost overall photovoltaic energy production and green roof function. The researchers want to know if shading provided by the solar panels might benefit green roof vegetation, which often suffers during hot, dry months. As part of the study, a set of solar arrays will be installed over a series of 12-by-15 foot stainless steel trays simulating green roof conditions. Each set of solar panels installed above the green roof trays will have a corresponding set installed in a separate array without the trays. Installation for both projects is tentatively set for early summer 2009.
Southern Illinois U Approves Green Fee
The Southern Illinois University Board of Trustees has approved a new green fee for the campus. The $10 per semester fee will provide funding for university efforts to conserve energy and explore further sustainability projects.
Stetson U Opens Environmental Learning Center
Stetson University (FL) has opened its new Marshall and Vera Lea Rinker Environmental Learning Center. The 2,800-square-foot building features a geothermal loop system, a rainwater collection system, a gray-water flush system, roofing made of recycled metal, wood harvested from certified sustainable forests, and double-pane windows with Low-E glass, which admits light while reducing heat gain in summer and reducing heat loss in winter. The structure is registered for LEED Gold certification.
St. John's U Pilots Composting Program
St. John's University (NY) has begun a pilot composting program on campus. The University is currently leasing, with the intent to purchase, a large-scale compost tumbler that breaks down food scraps in a manner that passes health safety standards. Earth Club members, with support from the University's team of Sustainability Coordinators, will oversee the operation.
Truman State U Receives Biofuels Grant
Truman State University (MO) has received a $34,000 grant from the Northeast Missouri Solid Waste District to fund a student group's project to convert waste vegetable oil into biodiesel. Bulldog Biodiesel, formed in 2007, collects oil waste from area restaurants and campus cafeterias and converts it into a clean-burning fuel used in several vehicles on Truman’s farm. In 2008, the group purchased a processor which can convert 50 gallons of fuel every 48 hours. The grant will allow the group to continue through June 2010.
U Illinois Chicago Receives Grant to Study Benefits of Green Housing
The University of Illinois at Chicago has received nearly $1 million from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to study the benefits of green housing. UIC researchers will evaluate the health and monetary benefits when 300 low-income residents move from distressed, unhealthy public housing into green, affordable, healthy housing.
U Iowa Opens Student Garden
The University of Iowa Environmental Coalition and the Office of Sustainability have opened a student garden on campus. The 1/3 acre garden will produce "field to market" vegetable crops for the student union. Students from the UI Environmental Coalition will manage the garden and will be responsible for preparing the ground, installing structures, and maintenance.
U Kansas Students Complete Campus Climate Action Plan
A class of 12 University of Kansas graduate students has completed a Climate Action Plan for the campus. The students spent one semester collecting data on the University's carbon footprint and researched ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The report suggests that the University monitor buildings’ temperatures when they are not in use, place solar panels on suitable surfaces, replace light fixtures with more efficient ones, and upgrade storm windows and awnings. The plan also recommends that students conduct energy audits of campus facilities as part of their course work and that the University should better educate incoming freshmen on alternative transportation options and offer more public transportation to commuters.
U Michigan, GM Announced Automotive Research Institute
The University of Michigan and General Motors have announced the formation of the GM/U-M Institute of Automotive Research and Education. The institute will be dedicated to clean and efficient vehicle technologies that address challenges such as energy diversity, sustainable mobility, and technology innovation. It will link U-M faculty and GM in projects and research questions, as well as enable an efficient exchange of technical personnel and knowledge. The projects will supplement ongoing work within GM and will provide U-M faculty and students with research focused on real-world challenges.
U Minnesota Morris Partners for Carbon Neutrality
The University of Minnesota, Morris has partnered with McKinstry, a design/build construction, engineering, energy services, and facilities management firm, to help attain its goal to become carbon neutral. McKinstry has completed an energy analysis of UMM; developed a Carbon Management Tool that demonstrates impacts and interactions between a multitude of conservation, energy storage, and supply side options; and created a plan for managing energy production, storage, and consumption. The new plan seeks to reduce UMM's carbon emissions by more than 80 percent by 2010. The University plans to purchase offsets for the remaining carbon emissions.
U North Carolina Begins Eco-Newsletter
The University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill has published its inaugural issue of "Act Today" a chronicle of sustainability at UNC. The new publication, which is published by the UNC Sustainability Office to inform the campus community about academics, research, public service, and operations that promote campus sustainability, is available in print and as an e-newsletter. The first issue focuses on solar energy.
U North Carolina Installs Reclaimed Water System
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has constructed a reclaimed water system that serves facilities on the University’s main campus. The reclaimed water system provides non-potable water which has received advanced treatment at the nearby Wastewater Treatment Plant including filtration and disinfection with ultraviolet light and chlorine. The new system will enable the University to reduce its use of drinking water for make-up water at cooling towers by about 660,000 gallons per day in Fiscal Year 2010. The University also plans to extend the reclaimed water system in the near future to serve additional cooling tower, toilet flushing, and irrigation needs on the main campus.
WA State Mandates State Colleges to Purchase 100% Recycled Paper
The State of Washington has approved the Paper Recycling and Conservation Act, which requires all state agencies and state colleges to purchase paper containing 100 percent post-consumer recycled content by the end of the year. In addition, the law requires all state buildings with 25 or more employees to reduce their printing and copying use by 30 percent by July 2010 and to recycle 100 percent of the copy and printing paper used in the office.
Wayne State U Works to Revitalize Surrounding Neighborhoods
Wayne State University (MI) has begun refurbishing run-down buildings in surrounding neighborhoods for campus use. WSU has opened a new police department, academic buildings, apartments, and a welcome center in renovated buildings in an effort to help the downtown Detroit economy.
Western Illinois U to Pilot Bike Share Program
Western Illinois University has begun collecting bike donations and abandoned bikes on campus in preparation for its pilot bicycle share program to be launched this fall. The program, which is being implemented by the Transportation Subcommittee of the WIU Campus Sustainability Committee, will allow students to check out bikes for up to 72 hours.
Western State College of Colorado Saves Paper with Printing Quota
The Western State College of Colorado has saved 90,968 sheets of paper through a new print management policy implemented at the beginning of the spring semester. The College implemented a 600 page printing quota in the computer labs for each student and only 1 percent of the student body went over the quota. The goal of the new policy was to raise awareness of unnecessary printing and to reduce the amount of paper waste in campus computer labs.
18 New Institutions Sign Presidents' Climate Commitment
18 new institutions have signed the American College & University Presidents' Climate Commitment since the last update in the AASHE Bulletin. In doing so, these campuses have committed to develop comprehensive plans for achieving climate neutrality. The new signatories are: Dr. William W. Destler of Rochester Institute of Technology (NY); Karen Lawrence of Sarah Lawrence College (NY); Richard F. Celeste of Colorado College; Patrick J. Schloss of Valdosta State University (GA); Dr. Lloyd Jacobs of University of Toledo (OH); Dr. David Fuller of Minot State University (ND); Dr. Stephen B. Jones of Urbana University (OH); Dr. Christopher Blake of Mount Mercy College (IA); Gary A. Lewis of Shasta College (CA); Dr. Thomas Ramage of Parkland College (IL); Jean Conway of Eastfield College (TX); Dr. Richard W. Cummins of Columbia Basin College (WA); Dr. E. Joseph Lee of Saint Joseph’s College of Maine; David L. Levinson of Norwalk Community College (CT); Dr. Gena Proulx of Joliet Junior College (IL); Russell A. Davis of Gloucester Community College (NJ); Dr. J. Larry Keen of Fayetteville Technical Community College (NC); and Barbara Woodlee of Kennebec Valley Community College (ME). 633 college and university presidents and chancellors have now signed the Commitment.
