An Action Plan for Higher Ed Workplace Diversity, Inclusion
The College and University Professional Association for Human Resources (CUPA-HR) has released its Inclusion Cultivates Excellence Position Statement and Action Plan, which delivers a call to action to encourage inclusion and diversity of all types in all sectors of the higher education workplace. The action plan lays out goals to help higher education HR professionals lead workforce diversity and inclusion efforts on campus.
Blog: AASHE Mourns the Passing of Wangari Maathai
In this AASHE blog, Executive Director Paul Rowland pays tribute to Nobel Peace Prize winner Wangari Maathai, 71, who died September 25 in her home country of Kenya. Dr. Maathai, who was scheduled to give the opening keynote at the AASHE 2011 conference, had been hospitalized for ovarian cancer in the preceding weeks.
SEI Green Revolving Fund Case Study Series: Harvard U
The latest installment of the Sustainable Endowments Institute's new series, Green Revolving Funds in Action: Case Studies of 10 Colleges, features Harvard University's (MA) $12 million fund. In partnership with AASHE and other organizations, the series takes a look at how innovative green revolving funds save energy and "grow money" at higher education institutions.
AASHE Interview Series: Antioch U New England Green Guru Program
The latest installment of the AASHE Interview Series profiles Antioch University New England's Green Guru program, an initiative to make office spaces at the university more sustainable, with a recent achievement of 100 percent participation by university employees. AASHE talks to Assistant to the President for Sustainability & Social Justice Abigail Abrash Walton and Green Guru Rachel Brett about the success of the program.
Bard Center's National Climate Seminars
Professors are encouraged to assign Bard Center for Environmental Policy's (NY) fall 2011 National Climate Seminar series to students. Participants listen in real-time to climate and clean energy specialists talk about the science, policy, law and economics of climate change and discuss solutions. In the upcoming September 21 seminar, Grist's David Roberts will address global warming, politics and the media.
New AASHE Blog for Students: Create the Green Economy You Want
A new blog from AASHE outlines the ways that students can take part in creating a green economy by getting involved in how their institution buys products and services. Tips include reaching out to campus procurement professionals, and contacting vendors of sustainable products and services to help make the business case for bringing their product or service to campus.
New AASHE 'General Campus Sustainability' Discussion Forum
AASHE has debuted a new general discussion forum, General Campus Sustainability and AASHE-related Discussions. This space will foster broad, wide-ranging and philosophical discussions surrounding campus sustainability, as well as questions or discussions about AASHE including its goals, vision and programs. This catch-all forum is also a place for topics or questions that don't quite fit in any of the other forum categories. Kicking off the new forum is a question about the role sustainability might play in public reports and rankings of "a useful education."
SEI Green Revolving Fund Case Study Series: Boston U
The latest installment of the Sustainable Endowments Institute's new series, Green Revolving Funds in Action: Case Studies of 10 Colleges, features Boston University (MA). In partnership with AASHE and other organizations, the series takes a look at how innovative green revolving funds save energy and "grow money" at higher education institutions.
SEI Green Revolving Fund Case Study Series: Weber State U
The latest installment of the Sustainable Endowments Institute's new series, Green Revolving Funds in Action: Case Studies of 10 Colleges, features Weber State University (UT). In partnership with AASHE and other organizations, the series takes a look at how innovative green revolving funds save energy and "grow money" at higher education institutions.
Sustainability and Catholic Higher Education Toolkit
In partnership with AASHE, eight national Catholic organizations have published the new "Sustainability and Catholic Higher Education: A Toolkit for Mission Integration." The toolkit is designed for Catholic colleges and universities to strengthen Catholic mission and publicly commit themselves to mission-based sustainability by becoming a Catholic Climate Covenant Partner.
AASHE Interview Series: SCUP Director of Media Relations
This installment of the AASHE Interview Series features Terry Calhoun, director of media relations, social media and publications for the Society for College and University Planning (SCUP). Calhoun shares ways that SCUP is promoting sustainability and which areas have the biggest room for growth in the campus sustainability field.
Inside Higher Ed 'Academic Minute': Green Jobs
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute's (NY) David Hess discusses green jobs and the best methods for creating them in this Inside Higher Ed "Academic Minute." In addition to the green service sector jobs resulting from demand side policies, manufacturing jobs are a "small but crucial portion of green jobs," says Hess. "They are central to connecting universities and inventors with applications." In an effort to create an integrated green economy, says Hess, "researchers are increasingly studying how governments can integrate their environmental policies with economic development and research policies."
Net Impact Releases Guide to Green MBA Options
In response to an increasing number of students looking for careers that make a positive impact on society and the planet, Net Impact has released "Business as UNusual," a free 2011 guide to graduate business programs with social and environmental themed curriculum. More than 100 different MBA programs are profiled on their green curriculum, student activities and career services.
SEI Green Revolving Fund Case Study Series: Stanford U
The second installment of the Sustainable Endowments Institute's new series, Green Revolving Funds in Action: Case Studies of 10 Colleges, features Stanford University (CA). In partnership with AASHE and other organizations, the series takes a look at how innovative green revolving funds save energy and "grow money" at higher education institutions.
New Book: 'University Reform in an Era of Global Warming'
Eco-Justice Press' "University Reform in an Era of Global Warming," a new book by Chet Bowers, addresses a number of issues ranging from language, cultural commons, academic freedom, patterns of cultural reproduction and the need for administrative leadership that addresses the cultural roots of the ecological crisis. Bowers argues that replacing inefficient campus infrastructures is easy compared to the challenges of engaging faculty in discussions of how the content of their courses continue to reinforce the deep cultural assumptions that give conceptual direction to the individualistic/consumer-dependent lifestyle that that is now widely recognized as unsustainable.
New Issue of Sustainability: The Journal of Record
The latest issue of Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.'s Sustainability: The Journal of Record includes a look at how universities and the private sector are coming together to replace outmoded industry and manufacturing with sustainable business. The article examines the Oberlin College's Oberlin Project, which aims to turn the town of Oberlin, Ohio into a model for such an effort. Also included in the issue is a look at the results of the 2011 Gibbs and Soell Sense & Sustainability survey, which suggest a skepticism about corporate commitment to sustainability and a need for the proper alignment of internal structure, processes and communications.
AASHE Interview Series: Humboldt State U's Steven Hackett
AASHE has posted a new interview with Dr. Steven Hackett, interim associate dean of professional studies and chair of the School of Business at Humboldt State University. Dr. Hackett has served as principal investigator, project director, lead author or senior supervising economist on numerous scholarly works, technical reports, policy studies and regional economic development plans. Hackett talks to AASHE about his current leadership in incorporating sustainability across the core curriculum of the university's School of Business.
USGBC Paid-from-Savings Guide to Green Existing Buildings
For a limited time, community colleges and minority serving institutions may request a free copy of "The Paid-from-Savings Guide to Green Existing Buildings." Produced by the Center for Green Schools at the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) and founding sponsor United Technologies Corporation, the guide is normally valued at $50. The guide is designed to help building facilities managers and energy service companies leverage utility cost savings to fund comprehensive green building retrofits. In addition, the resource provides detailed information on how to aggregate green improvement measures to optimize project economics and achieve LEED for Existing Buildings: Operations & Maintenance certification. To request a copy, please email greencampus@usgbc.org.
AASHE Releases Annual Campus Sustainability Review
AASHE has released its "2010 Campus Sustainability Review." Revealing new ways of thinking about and incorporating sustainability into campus operations, planning and curriculum, the publication takes a look at the higher education sustainability movement through AASHE Bulletin statistics, stories focused on notable practices and interviews with campus sustainability champions including Oberlin College’s Paul Sears Distinguished Professor of Environmental Studies and Politics David Orr. The inaugural Campus Sustainability Review format is a move away from past AASHE Digests. AASHE's Bulletin Interactive Archive, which debuted in October 2010, does most of the work of the Digests, eliminating the need for a comprehensive list of stories each year. The publication is available to AASHE members in PDF format and is also available as an e-book to members and non-members.
New and Improved AASHE Member Directory
AASHE has debuted a new and improved Member Directory. Institutions, businesses and other members are now consolidated into one dynamic searchable listing. Visitors can now search by location, keyword and type of organization, as well as see which organizations are STARS participants or ACUPCC signatories.
New Issue: Journal of Ag, Food Systems, Community Development
"Using a Supply Chain Analysis To Assess the Sustainability of Farm-to-Institution Programs" is among the papers in the latest issue of the Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development (JAFSCD). The study focuses on how to foster farm-to-institution programs by exploring barriers, opportunities and potential solutions from different perspectives in the supply chain. JAFSCD is an online, international, peer-reviewed publication focused on the practice and applied research interests of agriculture and food systems development professionals.
EAUC Launches New and Improved Online Sustainability Tool
The Environmental Association for Universities and Colleges (EAUC) has debuted a new improved version of its online sustainability tool, SORTED. The site now has a fully filtered search and structure aligned with its Future Framework themes including Leadership, Learning, Organizational Capacity and Partnerships. Searches can also be streamlined by type of institution. Twenty-five new case studies have been added to the online resource as well as specific carbon reduction resources to further help institutions to incorporate sustainability initiatives.
New Issue of Int'l Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education
The latest issue of Emerald Group Publishing Limited's International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education looks at how to integrate sustainable development into operations management courses; assess greenhouse gas emissions from university purchases; and promote sustainability in postgraduate education in the Asia Pacific region. The issue also explores two approaches to curriculum development for sustainability education.
Parlez-Vous Green Campus Blog
Join Sonia Marcus, former Ohio University director of sustainability, as she travels the globe to capture the stories of students, faculty and staff members at colleges and universities that are creating a more ecologically sane planet. The blog focuses primarily on efforts taking place outside the U.S. and Canada and gives attention to regions that are underrepresented in the American campus sustainability movement. Recent blog posts include interviews with World Symposium on Sustainable Development at Universities Task Force Chair Walter Leal Filho and International Sustainable Campus Network Secretariat Manager Bernd Kasemir. Also check out Marcus' Twitter feed for the latest campus sustainability stories from around the world.
U Gloucestershire Interview: Education for Sustainability
In this interview with the Global University Network for Innovation, University of Gloucestershire (UK) Professor and Director of Sustainability Daniella Tilbury shares her outlook on education for sustainability. "We are actually looking at a different type of learning - one that helps us challenge our everyday thinking and practice," she says. "It influences the way we relate to each other, the way we use our resources and the way we engage with the earth. It gives a voice to those who are marginalized or vulnerable." Tilbury also talks about the challenges faced by the global higher education community regarding sustainability and gives examples of how sustainability can be incorporated as a core element of higher education.
Driving Energy Conservation on the Small College Campus
The Foundation Center has published "From Idea to Implementation: Driving Energy Conservation on the Small College Campus." Emphasizing the need for strong leadership, the report summarizes outcomes and lessons learned from an initiative to help small colleges assess their energy usage and institute policies, capital improvements, and programs to improve conservation and efficiency.
SEI Case Study Series: Green Revolving Funds
The Sustainable Endowments Institute has released a case study featuring the success of the green revolving fund at the California Institute of Technology. This is the first of a new series, "Green Revolving Funds in Action: Case Studies of 10 Colleges" that will explore how green revolving funds are saving energy and growing money at higher education institutions. In collaboration with AASHE and other organizations, individual case studies on Boston University (MA), Harvard University (MA), Iowa State University, Lane Community College (OR), Stanford University (CA), University of Notre Dame (IN), University of Colorado at Boulder, Weber State University (UT) and Western Michigan University will be released during August and September.
AASHE Blog: Budget Cuts Create Opportunities for Sustainability
California Gov. Jerry Brown signed a budget in June that cut higher education by $1.3 billion and it was announced recently that students in all 23 California State University campuses will be paying 12 percent more this fall than they did last year. This blog takes a look at the innovative sustainability solutions to the state budget crisis that were highlighted during the California Higher Education Sustainability Conference, held July 10-13 at California State University, Long Beach.
AASHE List of Green Office Programs
"Greening the operations of physical offices is among those sustainability opportunities that not only benefit the environment but also save money immediately," says a new AASHE blog post about green office programs. The blog has been posted in tandem with AASHE's new collection of links to campus green office programs, available to AASHE members only. These programs take different forms, including student-run programs and staff training programs to make administrative areas more energy efficient.
Academic Impressions 'Road Map for Campus Sustainability'
The July issue of Academic Impressions' Higher Ed Impact Monthly Diagnostic is themed "A Road Map for Campus Sustainability." The content explores approaches to sustainability, coordinating sustainability efforts across campus, integrating sustainability into curricular and co-curricular programs, efficiency and cost control, and leveraging early successes to increase funding and involvement.
NACUBO Article: Campus 'Power Potential'
"Pairing local renewable energy resources with smart technologies can ensure reliable, efficient, and cost-effective power supplies," says a recent article in the National Association of College and University Business Officers' (NACUBO) Business Officer magazine. Using examples from the University of Minnesota, Morris; Santa Clara University (CA); University of California, Irvine; and Oregon Institute of Technology, the article details specific case studies of successful energy cost savings and emissions reductions on campuses.
Second Nature Climate Change Briefing Paper
Second Nature has published No. 3 in its Briefing Paper Series, "The Ultimate Stakes: Climate Change and the Fate of Civilization." We are living in a "truly extraordinary time in the Earth's volatile history," says author and environmental journalist Dianne Dumanoski in the report. "The world as we know it - with agriculture, civilization, and dense human numbers - has only been possible because of a rare interlude of climatic grace. A long summer." Detailing what the climate changes ahead may mean to human societies in areas including agriculture and public health, Dumanoski writes, "If the world's economy continues on its current trajectory of exponential growth driven by fossil fuels, today's college students will live in a perilous time...they will almost certainly witness a dramatic and dangerous jump in global temperatures in their lifetime; see the demise of coral reefs and other marine life as excess carbon dioxide makes the world's oceans increasingly acidic; endure severe climate disruption; and possibly even confront outright catastrophe from abrupt shifts in the Earth's climate system."
AASHE Guest Blog: Getting to Grid Positive
"We are, in effect, our own renewable power plant," says Butte College President Diana Van Der Ploeg of the college's recent achievement of grid positive status. In this AASHE guest blog, Van Der Ploeg details the steps taken toward generating more power from onsite renewable energy than the campus consumes, and what that means in terms of utility bill savings and as a demonstration of how we can better manage our use of the earth’s limited resources.
New Issue of Sustainability: The Journal of Record
The latest issue of Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.'s Sustainability: The Journal of Record looks at what a sustainability degree is worth and the impetus behind green residence halls. Christopher J. Noonan also examines the human response to climate change and Mary Hoff reviews Mark Hertsgaard's "Hot: Living through the Next Fifty Years on Earth."
Inside Higher Ed 'Academic Minute': Geothermal Power
The University of Massachusetts at Amherst's J. Michael Rhodes discusses the techniques and benefits of geothermal power in this Inside Higher Ed "Academic Minute." In contrast to wind or solar energy, says Rhodes, "it's available 24 hours a day, seven days a week" and "is not obtrusive nor does it take up large amounts of space." While "prevailing wisdom writes off New England as a source of geothermal energy," says Rhodes, the region is "blessed with granite; compared with other rocks, granites contain large amounts of potassium, uranium and thorium, all of which produce heat through radioactive decay. This makes the granite hotter at depth than the surrounding rocks and a possible source of geothermal energy."
Inside Higher Ed 'Academic Minute': Green Energy Storage
This Inside Higher Ed Academic Minute features Raymond Orbach, director of the University of Texas at Austin's Energy Institute. In an attempt to meet President Barack Obama's goal of producing 80 percent of our country's electricity from clean energy sources within 25 years, researchers at the university are focused on creating a means to efficiently store green energy for on-demand use. The problem with clean energy sources, says Orbach, is that "when you turn on your light switch, you expect your lights to come on and that could be in the middle of the day when the wind isn't blowing." The university is developing a "flow battery," which converts electrical energy into chemical energy that can be pumped it into a tank. When the energy is needed, it can be reconverted into electrical energy.
USGBC Paid-from-Savings Guide to Green Existing Buildings
For a limited time, community colleges and minority serving institutions may request a free copy of "The Paid-from-Savings Guide to Green Existing Buildings." Produced by the Center for Green Schools at the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) and founding sponsor United Technologies Corporation, the guide is normally valued at $50. The guide is designed to help building facilities managers and energy service companies leverage utility cost savings to fund comprehensive green building retrofits. In addition, the resource provides detailed information on how to aggregate green improvement measures to optimize project economics and achieve LEED for Existing Buildings: Operations & Maintenance certification. To request a copy, please email greencampus@usgbc.org.
AASHE List of E-Waste Programs, Policies and Events
AASHE has published a collection of institutions that have e-waste recycling and/or reuse programs, policies or events. Computers, cellphones and other electronic materials can be donated or re-sold at a reduced cost to nonprofit organizations and community groups. The list recognizes examples of the items that an institution is recycling with links to the school's website for more details. This resource is available to AASHE members only.
UNECE Education for Sustainable Development Report
The United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) Steering Committee on Education for Sustainable Development has released the report, “Learning for the Future: Competences in Education for Sustainable Development.” A result of 18 months of discussions and negotiations among academics, government officials and experts from international and non-governmental organizations, the paper makes recommendations for the development of education for sustainable development across all sectors of education including guidelines and tools for integration.
Environmental Paper Network RePaper Challenge
Campuses across North America are invited to take part in the Environmental Paper Network's RePaper Campus Challenge. The project challenges campuses, companies and individuals to show support for increasing the paper recovery rate for recycling to 75 percent by the year 2015. The Campus Challenge will teach students, faculty and staff on higher education campuses about the impacts of paper, and how best to recover it for effective recycling. Participating campus organizations currently include the College and University Recycling Coalition (CURC), National Wildlife Federation's Campus Ecology, RecycleMania! and Recycling Organizations of North America Higher Education Program.
New Journal of Sustainability Education Content
The Journal of Sustainability Education, a peer-reviewed, open access interdisciplinary e-journal from the Institute for Sustainable Social Change and the Prescott College (AZ) Ph.D. Program in Sustainability Education, has posted updated content including an interview with Cloud Institute for Sustainability Founder and President Jaimie Cloud, who makes the case for the prime importance of Education for Sustainability (EfS). Also featured is the article, "Bomb Threats, Global Warming and Decision Making: An Educational Experience," which explores how statistics tells us that we must address climate change.
AASHE Interview Series: NIRSA Executive Director
AASHE recently interviewed Kent Blumenthal, executive director of the National Intramural-Recreational Sports Association (NIRSA) in Corvallis, Ore. Blumenthal talks about how NIRSA is promoting sustainability and the areas that he sees the biggest room for growth in the campus sustainability field.
Algae Industry Q&A with Cal Poly Professor: Wastewater to Biofuel
Algae Industry Magazine recently interviewed California Polytechnic State University environmental engineering professor Dr. Tryg Lundquist about how wastewater can make algae biofuel and how algae biofuel can be the impetus for better, low-cost, wastewater treatment.
May Issue of Mother Pelican Journal
Themed "The Coupling of Gender Equality & Clean Energy," the May issue of the Mother Pelican: A Journal of Sustainable Human Development looks at the need for gender equality during the transition from fossil fuels to clean energy. The influence of a patriarchal religious mindset in reinforcing gender inequities and exploitation of natural resources is discussed in this issue, which calls for radical reforms in both social and religious institutions to resolve gender and sustainability issues.
Northwest Earth Institute Sustainability Salon Series
The Northwest Earth Institute (NWEI) has debuted its Spring/Summer 2011 Sustainability Salon Series, the first in a series of quarterly free sustainability curriculum resources. The resource includes article excerpts from NWEI course books and accompanying discussion questions on a variety of sustainability topics. This short, informal resource is intended as a way to engage students in discussion and critical thinking on complex sustainability topics, as a discussion starter amongst faculty or staff during sustainability-focused meetings, as a tool for curriculum trainings and workshops around how to integrate sustainability into the curriculum, and as a way to spark conversation and introduce key concepts of sustainability.
AASHE Releases 2010 Annual Report
AASHE has released its AASHE 2010 Annual Report, an annual summary of highlights from the association's national efforts to make higher education institutions more sustainable. Of note in 2010 was AASHE's increased emphasis on working with the academic side of campuses to address education for sustainability in the curriculum. Also notable, AASHE's Sustainability Tracking, Assessment and Rating System (STARS) awarded its first STARS rating, and by the end of the year had recognized two STARS Bronze institutions, two STARS Silver institutions and one STARS Gold institution. The report is available free from the AASHE website.
Inside Higher Ed 'Academic Minute': Sustainability & Business Ed
"My mantra this entire year has been that before long, all competent management will be sustainability management, and all competent managers must be sustainability managers," says Columbia University's (NY) Earth Institute Executive Director Steven Cohen in this Inside Higher Ed Academic Minute. Addressing the necessity of incorporating an environmental sustainability component into all business and public policy degrees, Cohen says: "One only needs to think about the challenges facing BP last summer in the Gulf of Mexico to acknowledge that sustainability is central to business management. And in the larger picture, government and business leaders will have to develop energy sources that look beyond fossil fuels, otherwise we just can't compete."
Academic Impressions: Greening Your Dining Services
Academic Impressions recently interviewed Georgia Tech Dining Services Sustainability Coordinator Nell Fry for a comprehensive look at how campuses can green their dining services. Fry provides advice and tips in areas including carbon footprint assessment, staff training, campus communication and vendor communication.
Academic Impressions Sustainability Road Map Program
In partnership with University of Colorado at Boulder Environmental Center Director Dave Newport, Academic Impressions has released a new Sustainability Road Map Program. Informed by AASHE's STARS program and ongoing research on factors and benchmarks that influence the health and competitiveness of higher education institutions, the program tackles six core components that any institution needs to address in order to move toward a comprehensive sustainability initiative. The road map is designed to help leaders assess where their campus is with regard to achieving total sustainability and devise a meaningful and actionable plan for effectively prioritizing sustainability.
