U North Carolina System Avoids Over $900M in Utility Costs
The fourth annual University of North Carolina Energy Leadership Challenge revealed that the state's universities and colleges have cumulatively avoided over $749 million in energy costs and over $158 million in water costs as of the 2013-14 academic year.
U Dayton to Hold Conference on Fossil Fuel Divestment
The conference will engage Pope Francis’ call to action by convening representatives from Catholic institutions to discuss theological and ethical underpinnings of divest and invest initiatives, financial mechanics of fossil fuel divestment and opportunities for renewable energy investment, lesson learned from the divestment movement, and ecumenical coalitions for responses to climate change.
U Toledo to Offer Disability Studies Major
The university's new undergraduate major in disability studies will be based on a 21-credit set of required courses that include an introduction to the field, courses on disability culture and a course on the history of disability in the U.S. The program at Toledo will join minors at Ohio State University, Pennsylvania State University and the University of California at Berkeley.
Ireland Engages in National Review of Gender Equity in Higher Ed
(Ireland): Amid concerns over the lack of women in leadership roles in tertiary institutions, the country's Higher Education Authority appointed a review panel to investigate gender discrimination. Higher Education Authority figures revealed 19 percent of university professors are women as of December 2014.
Colorado State U & 13 Others Contribute to Water Research Network
The university will join 13 other academic institutions from the U.S. that will establish the Urban Water Innovation Network (UWIN). With $12 million in funding from the National Science Foundation, these institutions, led by Colorado State University, will create technological, institutional and management solutions to help increase the resilience of water systems and enhance crisis preparedness.
Second Nature Names Climate Leadership Finalists
The sixth annual Climate Leadership Awards resulted in 19 finalists out of nearly 50 applications, seven of which are from two-year institutions and 12 are from four-year schools. The awards are a national competition among higher education institutions that are signatories of the American College & University Presidents' Climate Commitment.
Shippensburg U to Complete New Cooling System
As part of a $30.2 million project to replace the university's outdated heating and cooling systems and reduce its impact on the environment, four new chillers are replacing 24 separate building units to provide more efficient cooling. The new system is anticipated to reduce the overall footprint by eight percent.
Elmhurst College Expands Campus Garden
Tended by students, faculty, staff and volunteers, the college's Heritage Garden quadrupled in size this year and produces organic food for campus and local food banks. The garden has also become a research laboratory and service learning experience for local community members from a boys and girls home.
U Dayton Builds New Student Green Housing
Over the next two years, $17 million will build and upgrade student housing that will be certified under the National Association of Home Builders Green Building program, including building features such as additional insulation, energy-efficient furnaces and appliances, tankless water heaters and airtight windows.
U Virginia and USGBC Partner to Support Public Health
Supported by a $1.2 million grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the new research initiative aims to result in new tools that create and demonstrate the value of public health through the design, construction and operation of sustainable buildings and that bring a public health lens to assessments of commercial real estate portfolios.
U Kentucky Improves Connectivity for Bicyclists and Pedestrians
Because commuting cyclists faced limited and difficult options for traveling to and from campus, the university funded the construction of a new shared-use path and the city provided way-finding and pavement markings that link an existing bicycle route to a new campus facility.
Northwestern U to Implement Energy Efficient Lighting
After investing over $1.5 million since 2009 on updating lighting controls and adding occupancy sensors across campus, the next step of the university's energy savings initiative is to retrofit outdoor, athletic and theatrical lighting to LED.
U Albany to Host Sustainability Leadership Summit
During the National Association of Graduate-Professional Students Leadership Summit in early August, graduate student leaders from across the nation will convene to discuss the principles of leadership used to advance university sustainability capacity and how the principles can be applied to student governance.
Colorado State U Surplus Diverts 18 Tons of Move-Out Material
The university's Surplus Department and Housing and Dining Services diverted over 18 tons of reusable items this year through the Leave it Behind program, which netted just over $7,000 to fund eight students in the Eco Leaders Peer Education Program who raise sustainability awareness in the dorms.
U Kentucky Announces Bicycle Voucher Program
Inspired by the success of the University of Louisville's Earn-a-Bike Program, the University of Kentucky's Parking and Transportation Services' new pilot program is giving up to 100 students a $400 voucher for a local bike shop in exchange for not bringing a motor vehicle to campus for two years. The program aims to encourage commuters to consider alternatives to the single passenger vehicle.
U British Columbia Develops 20-Year Sustainability Strategy
Building on 20 years of sustainability achievement and following extensive community engagement, the strategy provides an overall framework to further integrate academic and operational sustainability efforts through the lens of regenerative sustainability. Using the campus as a societal test-bed, it seeks to explore and demonstrate net-positive approaches to human and environmental well-being.
Dickinson College Energy Efficiency Projects Earn Over $75K in Rebates
Thanks to the state of Pennsylvania incentives to lower power usage through Act 129, the college’s climate action plan projects have brought in $75,000 in rebates. Most recently it received a check for $47,000 for installing motion sensors in all laboratories of one of its science buildings.
U Maryland Partners with Community on Renewable Energy Awareness
The university's Center for Young Children and the Energy Research Center recently hosted 14 students, ages 4 and 5 years old, offering them the opportunity to see how the university uses clean and renewable energy. The children visit photovoltaic panels, an electric car and a research lab.
SUNY Fredonia Installs Solar Panels
The recently installed solar panels at the university's College Lodge will trim electricity consumption and aid in student learning. The array is expected to save $1,750 annually on utility costs and produce approximately 70 percent of the total electricity needs of the lodge.
Maharishi U Management Holds Inaugural Deep Sustainability Discussion
Hosted in June 2015, the Colloquy on Deep Sustainability was a closed discussion in order to distill the meaning of the term deep sustainability, how it differs from similar concepts and systems, and what a future with deep sustainability at its core should look like. Topics included philosophy, spirituality, mathematics, ecology, economics, governments and societies.
Maharishi U Management Holds Green Business Symposium
At its third annual Deep Green Business Symposium, the university focused on Global Green Opportunities and Technologies with 16 speakers discussing subjects including community development, optimization of a product’s life cycle, and philosophies of sustainability.
U Southern California Introduces Green Teams
Promoting environmental sustainability within athletics, the Green Teams Program, part of the Office of Sustainability, recently honored three teams, women's sand volleyball, women's rowing and men's club lacrosse, for their consideration of transportation, waste, energy and water impact, and food consumption. The program has four tiers of certification and seeks to highlight best practices.
Stanford U Dining Becomes REAL Certified
The United States Healthful Food Council recently announced that Stanford has become the nation's first campus dining program to obtain the Responsible Epicurean and Agricultural Leadership (REAL) certification. Honored for its commitment to holistic nutrition and environmental stewardship, the university was evaluated on whole-foods use, portions, behavioral components and procurement.
Elon U Receives 25th LEED Certification
Located in central North Carolina situated on 620 acres, six buildings in the Global Neighborhood on campus recently received U.S. Green Building Council LEED Silver certification. Five are residential and house a total of 600 students.
Michigan State U Terminates Coal Use
In early April 2015, as part of its Energy Transition Plan, the university president announced that it will retire its on-campus coal plant by 2016. Although this move results in switching to natural gas, its ultimate goal is to generate 100 percent renewable energy.
College of the Sequoias to Complete 893KW Solar System
In an effort to minimize energy costs, the newly announced 893-kilowatt photovoltaic system is expected to deliver an estimated 25-year savings of approximately $6.4 million. Two installations comprise the 893kW system, one parking lot shade canopy at 285kW and the other is a ground-mounted, 632kW system covering 3.3 acres.
Kapi'olani CC Students Build Solar Cart
The community college's team of Engineers for a Sustainable World built the cart to demonstrate how science, technology, engineering and mathematics can be applied towards building a more sustainable campus. The apparatus has the ability to provide 0.5-kilowatt-hours of AC electricity.
Alfred U Receives $2.8M Grant for Renewable Energy Research Center
The $2.8 million grant for the center's construction is part of economic development funding for 19 projects across New York by Empire State Development. The new center will allow the university to conduct specialized research and testing on renewable energy systems and high-temperature battery applications.
Ohio U to Discontinue Coal-Fired Boilers
Located in southeastern Ohio coal-mining country, the university anticipates switching to natural gas fuel by the end of 2015 for steam generation to heat and cool campus buildings.
U Warwick Divests from Fossil Fuels
(U.K.): The university commits to moving all oil, coal and gas investments out of its 14 million pounds ($21.9 million) endowment, following a two-year student-led campaign.
U Illinois Urbana-Champaign Allocates $1.2M to 4 Interdisciplinary Projects
More than $1.2 million in seed funding was recently awarded to seed four interdisciplinary research projects through the university's Institute for Sustainability, Energy, and Environment. The selected topics that received over $350,000 each were stormwater and mosquito control, crop response to climate change, renewable energy for transportation, and crude oil cleanup treatment.
San Francisco State U to Open Wellness Center
The 118,700-square-foot complex, scheduled for completion in 2017, will feature an indoor jogging track, fitness and weight areas, pools, a sauna, a climbing wall, racquetball courts, two multi-use courts, fitness studios and a large multi-use space. The university is pursuing LEED Platinum designation.
Cornell U Grants $1.2M to Sustainable Ideas
The university's Atkinson Center for a Sustainable Future has given $1.2 million to 11 new projects that include water cleanup, home retrofits, solar power's impact on pollinating bees, oyster revival, research on ground-source heating and cooling, and wind energy. The grants will enable teams to obtain initial data or proof of principle to find external collaborators.
Cornell U Offers Free EV Charging
Since demand for vehicle charging stations on campus has grown due to popularity of hybrid and all-electric vehicles, university Transportation Services now offers free electric vehicle charging and preferential parking for low-emission and alternative fuel vehicles.
Oregon and Washington, D.C. Considering Free College
Oregon's legislature recently advanced a bill that would fund a tuition waiver for community college students. Washington, D.C. lawmakers are also considering a bill that would create a scholarship to cover tuition and fees for qualifying students who attend the District of Columbia Community College.
U Maryland Earns Honors for Bike to Work Day
The Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments recently presented the 2015 Commuter Connections Bike to Work Day Employer Challenge award to the university. With 161 campus registrants at various pit stops, the university is among the top bike-friendly employers in the region.
Duke U Opens Water Reclamation Pond
The newly opened pond is 5.5 acres and is projected to save up to 100 million gallons of water a year. The water will be used to pump water across campus to cool buildings. The new process is projected to save the university approximately $400,000 per year in avoided city water expenditures.
Elon U Receives Honors for Alternative Fuel Vehicles
The university was recently recognized by the Triangle Clean Cities Coalition for supplanting petroleum use with biodiesel and electricity, avoiding use of more than 17,000 gallons of gasoline over the past year.
U District Columbia Completes Food-Producing Rooftop
The new 40,000-square-foot vegetated rooftop that produces food replicates the university's 143-acre research farm by using techniques from its sustainable agriculture certificate program. The rooftop also boasts a stormwater harvesting system to collect rainwater in two 500-gallon cisterns.
U California Davis to Save 61M Gallons of Water
In an effort to combat ongoing drought issues, using recycled water instead of well water to help cool the campus' chilled water supply will result in a savings of 9 percent of total potable water use for a year.
