Berea College Installs Solar Powered Compactors
The installation of three solar powered trash compactors will allow the college to remove 40 dumpsters. Instead of collecting waste every three to five days from traditional dumpsters, compacted waste can be hauled away every three to four weeks. Waste is weighed and recorded in the unit, allowing the college to explore further ways to reduce and eliminate waste.
California Passes Free Digital Textbook Library Legislation
Governor Jerry Brown has signed legislation that will give undergraduates free access to online textbooks for 50 of the most common courses at California public colleges. The newly established California Open Education Resources Council, which has nine members drawn from the University of California, California State University, and community college systems, will create and oversee the book approval process, then solicit bids to produce the textbooks in time for the 2013-2014 school year. The council can also choose to use existing open source textbooks.
Clemson U Launches Medical Device Reprocessing Program
The university has established a certificate program to train engineers to recycle and reprocess medical devices to save on supply costs and divert medical waste from landfills. The program received contributions from third-party reprocessing companies, including Stryker Sustainability Solutions.
Coast CC District Campus Earns LEED Gold
The building features indoor gardens, a reclaimed water irrigation system, native landscaping and 20 percent of the construction material was manufactured locally.
Denison U Laboratory Renovation Receives LEED Gold
The $14.5 million expansion and renovation of the university’s Ebaugh Laboratories repurposed 800 tons of material from the demolition for the project and worked to bring in 20 percent of the new material from local companies ranging no more than 500 miles from campus. The facility also features drought tolerant native landscaping.
Earlham College Introduces Single Stream Recycling
In an effort to make campus recycling more convenient, the college has adopted a new co-mingling recycling program. The college has also hired six students to manage the pick-up of outdoor recycling bins and help educate the campus about recycling through improved signage and bin locations.
Indiana U On-Time Completion Award to Offer Tuition Relief
Beginning next year, the university has announced plans to freeze tuition for students after their sophomore year if they are on track to graduate in four years. Under the program, qualified students will receive an on-time completion award equal to any increase in tuition and fees that they would otherwise incur during their final two years.
Loyola U New Orleans Renovation Awarded LEED Gold
The newly renovated Thomas Hall features low-flow plumbing fixtures, native and adaptive plantings, and 20 percent of materials within the building contain recycled content. Many opportunities for alternative transportation exist as part of the renovation including public transportation access and access for low-emitting and fuel-efficient vehicles.
Manhattan College to Open Center for Urban Resilience
The college has announced plans to open a new Center for Urban Resilience and Environmental Sustainability this fall. The goal of the center is to help faculty that already have great strengths in sustainability research to collaborate in ways that will help find solutions to the environmental challenges of cities and their surrounding areas. The center will also support outreach to private and nonprofit organizations, while fostering the further integration of environmental education into the college’s undergraduate program.
Northwestern U Creates Diversity and Sustainability Positions
The university’s administrators and Associated Student Government have designated new positions to address diversity and sustainability issues on campus. The student senate also created the Sustainability Committee and the Diversity Committee that will meet with university officials throughout the year to discuss common objectives and goals. The Sustainability Committee will also serve as a source of funds and support for the environmental organizations on campus.
Portland State U Professors Design Greener Portable Classroom
Two professors have designed a portable classroom to be as affordable and more environmentally friendly than the portables used in schools. The new concept doubles the number of windows and includes features that improve ventilation, help better regulate temperature, and reduce heat lost. The university-designed classroom would cost around $75,000 while traditional portables cost $60,000.
Princeton U Unveils New Trash Labels to Encourage Recycling
In an effort to change recycling behavior, Building Services have replaced “Trash” labels on disposal bins with “Landfill” labels. The university hopes the change in labels will encourage students to think more carefully about their consumption choices. Building Services, the Office of Sustainability and Green Leaders will be gauging the results of this program and its potential effects on disposal over the next few months.
Purdue U Dedicates Green Roof Laboratory
After raising more than $125,000 for the project, School of Civil Engineering students have unveiled a new green roof laboratory to celebrate the school’s 125th anniversary. Featuring soil and plant media, sensors to measure energy, and a weather station, the roof will provide a lab space to work on sustainability and green initiatives. The School of Civil Engineering, industrial partners, alumni and sustainability funds covered the additional $900,000 cost.
St. Peter’s U Launches Clean Energy Project
The university has created an energy resource area that contains equipment and software that will track the amount of solar energy being used on campus as part of a new energy conservation project. The project also includes installing solar panels, building a cogeneration plant and energy-efficient lighting in various campus locations. The university expects the new project to reduce the campus’ carbon emissions by 6.4 million pounds per year.
Syracuse U Monitors Green Roof
A civil engineering professor and a team of students have installed monitoring equipment on a rooftop garden that will gather data and show how effective the 1.5-acre roof system is at stemming stormwater runoff. Once the equipment is established, real-time data will be available on a website designed to allow teachers to use the information in their classrooms.
U Calgary Receives Endowment to Support Métis Students
The Métis Education Foundation has established a $750,000 endowment that will provide $60,000 in new scholarship opportunities annually to Métis students studying at the university. The endowment will create new entrance awards, continuing student undergraduate scholarships and graduate awards.
U California Los Angeles Debuts Solar Power Project
With the assistance of Facilities Management, students have installed 132 solar panels on the roof of the student-owned Ackerman Union. The panels will supply 2.5 percent of the building’s electricity. The university’s Green Initiative Fund provided a $176,000 grant to cover costs.
U Chicago Develops Green Roof Map
Interns with the university’s Environment, Agriculture and Food Group, along with the City of Chicago, Green Roofs for Healthy Cities and Loyola University’s Office of Sustainability, have developed the Chicago Campus Green Roofs Tool. The interactive mapping application features campus green roof locations, photos, performance data and information on public accessibility.
U Colorado Boulder Building Achieves LEED Platinum
The 336,800-square-foot biotechnology facility features an array of large-scale solar panels, energy-efficient freezer compressors and lab exhaust fume hoods, evaporative cooling and low-flow plumbing.
U Washington Turns Unwanted Items into Social Change
The university has made an effort to collect and donate reusable items that might otherwise go to the landfill. Last spring, the university’s Student Cleanup, Recycle and Moveout program donated 30 boxes of books to Better World Books, an organization that raises funds for literacy by selling used books online. Earlier this year, UW Recycling donated 1,540 pounds of food to the University District Food Bank; over 8,000 pounds of clothing to Northwest Center; 2,000 pounds of electronics to InterConnection; and 980 pounds of toiletries and emergency kit backpacks to Real Change.
U Wisconsin Madison Athletics Participates in Waste Recycling
The Athletic Department has partnered with the Office of Sustainability to create the Be the WE (Waste Eliminator) Program. The program uses student volunteers to serve as recycling ambassadors on football game days to help educate fans about recycling and assist the UW Facilities Department in its recycling efforts. Through the first three home games, the university has recycled 18,920 pounds of plastic and cardboard.
Washington U St. Louis Student Government Passes Plastic Bag Ban
The university’s Student Union Senate has passed a resolution calling for numerous campus businesses to replace plastic bags with paper ones. The resolution, drafted by a campus initiative called Another Step Towards Sustainability, encourages each distributor to eliminate their plastic bag distribution by the 2013 fall semester and replace them with eco-friendly paper bags.
Western Kentucky Receives Grant to Market Local Food
The U.S. Department of Agriculture has awarded the university’s Office of Sustainability and the Community Farmers Market (CMU) more than $82,000 in grant funds to help promote the "Local Food for Everyone" program. The two organizations will collaborate on a project that serves as a tool for educating regional farmers and consumers about the variety of locally grown foods.
Arizona State U Faculty BBQ Goes Green
The annual staff appreciation barbeque has achieved gold certification by the university’s Green Events program. Staff Council organizers implemented sustainable measures including the distribution of electronic agendas, encouraging the use of alternative transportation, avoiding Styrofoam with eco-friendly service ware, and enlisting the Green Team to inform attendees about sustainability and proper recycling practices.
Chamberlain College of Nursing Campus Achieves LEED Gold
The Cleveland campus is the first LEED Gold certification for the college. The building demonstrates the college’s effort to reduce the impact of its buildings on the environment and encourage sustainable business practices in local communities.
Drexel U Science Building Earns LEED Gold
The first facility on campus to achieve LEED certification features a living biowall, serving as a biological air filter for the building. The plants also naturally regulate the building’s temperature by cooling the air during warmer weather and acting as a humidifier during colder months.
Eastern Connecticut State U Installs Fuel Cell System
Under a 10-year Energy Services Agreement, UTC Power has installed a combined heat and power fuel cell system at the university’s Science Building. With effective use of the thermal output, overall system efficiencies of up to 90 percent are possible.
Indiana U Competition Saves 7 M Gallons of Water
In its first three weeks, the university’s Million Gallon Challenge has saved 7.3 million gallons of water. The campus launched the challenge to not only reduce water usage on campus but also raise awareness of the City of Bloomington's emergency water restriction order.
Inver Hills CC, Metropolitan State U Students Partner on Garden
Students and faculty from both colleges have harvested more than 1,300 pounds of vegetables from the first interdisciplinary vegetable garden on the Inver Hills campus. The produce will be donated to local food banks. The institutions will also plant 50 apple trees next to the garden. Two professors initiated the garden project as a way to provide students with hands-on experience.
Ivy Tech CC Renovation Receives LEED Silver
The newly renovated student life center is designed to use 50 percent less water and over 30 percent less energy than a typical building due to the use of waterless urinals, occupancy sensors and high-efficiency mechanical systems. The renovation also reused over 98 percent of the existing roof, slab and exterior walls.
Knox College to Conduct Sustainability Audit
The college’s new sustainability coordinator has announced plans for a yearlong comprehensive sustainability assessment of the campus. Following the completion of the assessment, open forums will be held to facilitate the creation of a sustainability plan.
Michigan State U Introduces Campus Food Truck
Culinary Services has introduced Eat at State On-the-Go, a food truck that will offer menu items made with local ingredients grown at the university’s organic farm, dairy store and bakery. The food truck will accept on- and off-campus dining plans.
Montgomery County CC Launches Public Safety Segway Patrol
The college has introduced a Public Safety Segway Patrol Program as part of its sustainability initiative. When charging, the segway releases14 times less greenhouse gas emissions than driving the public safety vehicle and zero emissions when in use, saving an estimated ton of carbon dioxide from being released into the atmosphere per year.
Northern Maine CC Dedicates Biomass Boiler
The newly installed wood boiler will provide heat to the two largest buildings on campus while replacing nearly 70 percent of the college’s fuel oil consumption with local, renewable energy. The project is expected to save more than $43,000 in utility costs annually and replace an estimated 47,000 gallons of fuel oil with local pellets.
Nova Scotia CC Unveils Green Home Living Lab
The house was constructed on campus to serve as an educational lab for students to learn about energy technologies used in a residential application. More than 30 monitoring and control points have been installed throughout the home to track energy consumption and help students and researchers determine the home’s efficiency.
Ohio State U to Purchase Wind Energy
The university has announced its signing of a letter of intent with Iberdrola Renewables to purchase 50 megawatts of wind energy capacity from the Blue Creek Wind Farm. The purchase equates to approximately 25 percent of the entire campus electricity load and will also create new opportunities for research.
Ohio U Announces Energy Performance Contract
The university is expected to save $38 million over a 15-year period through an energy performance contract with Constellation. By implementing water and energy conservation measures in 72 campus buildings, the university expects to conserve an estimated 9 million gallons of water and avoid the creation of 50,145 metric tons of carbon dioxide annually.
Ohio Wesleyan U Debuts Green Renovation
The $14 million renovation of the university’s historic residence hall incorporates energy-efficient heating, cooling, and lighting systems as well as environmentally friendly building materials. The university plans to seek LEED certification.
Pomona College Earns Fair Trade Status
The designation from Fair Trade Colleges & Universities recognizes the college’s commitment to using goods produced according to standards that address fair prices and wages, safe working conditions and environmental sustainability. The commitment also includes integrating fair trade educational and advocacy efforts into the school’s culture.
Portland State U Students Install Green Roof
Students have installed a 3,000-square-foot green roof as part of a living laboratory for civil and environmental engineering classes. Research will be conducted on the differences between the native and non-native plants.
San Francisco State U to Debut Campus Community Garden
The garden will make its debut on Campus Sustainability Day. Plants will be kept in 12 planters above ground and will be pesticide free. The project received funding from the Physical Planning and Development department, Environmentally Concerned Organization of Students, and the annual Farm to Fork event.
SEED Center Announces Inaugural Green Genome Awards
The American Association of Community Colleges' Sustainability Education and Economic Development (SEED) Center has presented five inaugural Green Genome Awards to exemplary community colleges nationwide that have taken a strategic leadership role in green economic and workforce development and sustainability. The winning colleges include Butte College (California), Central Carolina Community College (North Carolina), Delta College (Michigan), Hillsborough Community College (Florida) and West Virginia University at Parkersburg.
Syracuse U Receives EPA Grant to Support Environmental Education
The Syracuse Center of Excellence Center for Sustainable Community Solutions will use the $130,000 grant to award approximately 30 grants to schools and community organizations to support projects to reduce the run-off of polluted rainwater and promote municipal waste reduction, recycling and composting. The program is designed to improve connections between organizations and school districts, encourage development of community-based projects and provide career development for students.
Temple U Announces Energy Conservation Campaign
The goal of the campaign is to reduce energy use per square foot of building space by 25 percent over the next two years. The campaign will begin with the development of a Utility Master Plan, the first phase consisting of an Energy Saving Strategies Plan to identify energy conservation strategies and develop large scale efficiency projects.
Texas A&M U to Launch Bike Share Program
Transportation Services has announced plans to launch Borrow-a-Bike, a short-term bike lease program. MaroonBike provided locally handmade bicycles for the project.
U Arizona Introduces Mini Sustainability Grants
In an effort to promote small sustainability projects on campus, the Green Fund Committee has set up a new mini-grants program intended to fund small-scale projects led by students and faculty. Each project has a funding cap of $1,500. The Green Fund Committee has allocated a total of $20,000 per fiscal year to be used for these projects.
