This document discusses sustainability on college campuses. It defines sustainability as meeting present needs without compromising future needs and considers factors like environment, economy and society. The United Nations created a program in 2002 to promote sustainable development education from 2005-2014. The document evaluates the sustainability of two universities, noting that one public school scored 66 on the Sierra Club questionnaire while the other private school scored 5 and had initiatives like a biodiesel bus program and 64% waste diversion from landfills through recycling. It concludes that improvements include using fewer resources and energy and certifying all buildings as LEED through measures like occupancy sensors and energy efficiency education.
3. Sustainability defined
Various definitions
Charles Werth: “providing for the requirements of
today without sacrificing the needs of the future”
Amy Allen: “living in a way that everyone else can live
in the same way and the earth will still be able to
support itself with the resources it has”
Being able to meet our needs without affecting the
health of ecosystems and living within the resources
we have now
7. Sierra Club: 66
2nd among big 10
LEED Gold on all new
construction
Student Sustainability
Committee
Hybrid buses
Public Institution
Student fee
Sierra Club: 5
LEED Gold on all new
construction
64% waste doesn’t go to landfills
because of recycling program
Buses powered by biodiesel
Private Institution = more $
Vs.
8. mprovements
Use less resources
Use less energy
All buildings LEED certified
Occupancy sensors
ENERGY EFFICIENCY!!
Inform the average student
Notas del editor
Introduce yourself and topic
Attention getter: Ask students if they know about any efforts their campus is doing when is comes to sustainability?
College Campus sustainability is a hot emerging topic because higher education institutions are starting to care about their impact on the environment
After this presentation there will be three questions that are answered:
1. What does it really mean to be sustainable
2. what does sustainability consider
3. how can we ourselves be sustainable
There are many different definitions of sustainability and this is where the controversy lays
1. Charles Werth professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering says “providing for the requirements of today without sacrificing the needs of the future”
2. Amy Allen Student in Civil Engineering and Presidents of Students for Environmental Concerns explains “living in a way that everyone else can live in the same way and the earth will still be able to support itself with the resources it has”
3. But simply put sustainability is being able to meet our needs without affecting the health of ecosystems and living within the resources we have now
Sustainable development means meeting present needs without compromising future needs and it considers three areas: Society, Economy, and Environment.
Society- improving our lives
Economy- stretching the dollar and putting it to good use
Environment – protecting and restoring our habitats and resources
Because this is such a hot emerging topic the United Nations wanted to get involved:
- 2002 created decade for sustainable development education
Colleges and Universities have adopted this movement and are in different stages of development
2 surveys (of many) to measure Sustainable Development on Campus:
Sierra Club
considers: efficiency, food academics, purchasing, transportation, waste, administration, and investments
Princeton Review Green Rating
considers: policies, academics, buildings, recycling, food, energy use, and transportation
It is hard to compare the two because they measure and analyze on different scales
Looked at Sierra Club Survey results to compare University of Illinois and Stanford University
U of I - 66 Stanford - 5
Leed Gold Leed Gold
Business Instruction Facility transportaion program:car pools ,rentals, charter services, bike program
student fee donations & tuition:
alt energy projects past 10 years $70 million towards sustainability
sustainability projects “stanford challenge” plans to raise $4.3 bil for sustinability porjects
Improvements on the u of I campus
less energy or renewable energy
wind and solar
inform average student what they can do to reduce their impact
LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design)
3rd party certification system that considers energy and water use, CO2 emissions, and use/reuse of resources
Remember to have a green day
don’t mean blast your favorite “Green Day” song all day long
But consider a few things:
recycling
riding your bike
use you buying power to buy things with less packaging
do the little things