AASHE Bulletin – 2/4/14: Four Virginia Colleges Announce 100% Renewable Electricity + More

February 4, 2014
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AASHE Bulletin is a weekly service of the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education. Find out more or subscribe.

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News of the Week

Education & Research

Co-Curricular Education & Student Organizing

1.

U Georgia Students Receive $28K to Promote Sustainability

2.

North Carolina State U Pilots Plastic Bag Recycling

Research

3.

Energy Dept Hosts Geothermal Case Study Challenge

Campus Operations

Buildings

4.

U North Carolina Charlotte Receives BBI Green Globes

Energy

5.

Four Virginia Colleges Announce 100% Renewable Electricity

6.

Oklahoma State U Saves $30M Through Energy Efficiency

Transportation

7.

Bridgewater College Students to Use EV for Recycling Program

Waste

8.

Virginia Tech to Install Nearly 100 Solar Trash Compactors

9.

U Washington Creates Waste Display

Water

10.

California State U Sacramento to Replace Over 500 Toilets

Planning, Administration & Engagement

Affordability & Access

11.

Obama Administration Hosts Affordability Summit

Coordination & Planning

12.

Sonoma State U Appoints First Sustainability Director

Diversity & Inclusion

13.

Southern Oregon U Holds Inaugural Social Justice Conference

Funding

14.

EPA Awards $5M for Clean Water Projects

15.

U Washington Awards $279K to Campus Sustainability Projects

16.

U Albany Awarded Two Grants for Campus Sustainability

New Resources

17.

2014 AASHE Webinar Schedule

18.

Energy Efficiency & Clean Energy Funding Resource Guide

19.

HEASC Paper: Advancing Sustainability in Higher Education

20.

Composting Strategies for Colleges and Universities

Opportunities

21.

Call for Proposals Due Feb. 28: AASHE 2014 Conference & Expo

22.

Call for Reviewers: AASHE 2014 Conference & Expo

23.

AASHE Member-Get-A-Member Business Challenge

24.

AASHE Seeking STARS Technical Advisors

25.

Executive Education for Sustainability Leadership

26.

AASHE Member Discount: 15% Off Tuition Presidio Graduate School

Jobs & Internships

27.

Sustainability Coordinator, Grand Valley State U

28.

Environmental Waste Coordinator, U Florida

Events

29.

Department of Energy and Campus Microgrids Webinar

30.

Sustainable Turf Management for Collegiate Sports Webinar

31.

CURC Webinar: Waste Reduction During Move-Out

32.

Institutional Green Cleaning Webinar

33.

Creating the Next Generation of Sustainability Programs

34.

The Commissioning Process for LEED Projects

35.

The Commissioning Process for Existing Buildings

36.

Ball State U Geothermal Conference

37.

Smart and Sustainable Campuses Conference 2014

Campus Sustainability Discussion Forums Highlights

38.

Community Stakeholder Engagement Frameworks for Governance (STARS

 

News of the Week

Education & Research

Co-Curricular Education & Student Organizing

1.

U Georgia Students Receive $28K to Promote Sustainability

The university’s Office of Sustainability recently announced $28,000 to be used by nine student groups’ projects that aim to promote a culture of campus sustainability. While biking was the most popularly submitted proposal, others included an on-campus garden and water quality testing.
See also: AASHE Discussion Forum: Co-Curricular Education and Student Organizing

2.

North Carolina State U Pilots Plastic Bag Recycling

NC State Stewards, a student group of sustainability ambassadors, are managing a pilot program to collect and properly recycle single-use plastic bags.
See also: AASHE Resource: Student Peer-to-Peer Sustainability Education Programs
See also: AASHE Discussion Forum on Co-Curricular Education and Student Organizing

Research

3.

Energy Dept Hosts Geothermal Case Study Challenge

Over the course of the spring 2014 semester, student groups at participating universities will produce a series of well-researched case studies detailing the exploration, development, and geologic history of selected U.S. geothermal resource areas. Case studies produced by each student group will be added to the existing collection of data currently available on the National Renewable Energy Laboratory’s Open Energy Information (OpenEI) platform. The top 5 highest quality case studies will be awarded paid travel to present their work in a poster session at the 2014 Geothermal Resources Council Annual Meeting in Portland Oregon, Sept. 28 – Oct. 1.

Campus Operations

Buildings

4.

U North Carolina Charlotte Receives BBI Green Globes

The university’s Belk Hall recently achieved the two-globe rating from the Green Building Initiative’s Green Globes for New Construction program, a program used to certify a building’s environmental performance. The building’s features include a reflective roof, energy efficient windows, occupancy sensors, and regionally-appropriate landscaping to reduce water use.
See also: AASHE Business Members Offering Green Buildings Products or Services
See also: AASHE Discussion Forum: Buildings

Energy

5.

Four Virginia Colleges Announce 100% Renewable Electricity

Coordinated by the Council of Independent Colleges in Virginia, Hollins University, Emory & Henry College, Lynchburg College, Randolph College and Sweet Briar College have entered into agreements to provide the schools with electricity produced from landfill gas.
See also: AASHE Business Members Offering Energy-Related Products or Services
See also: AASHE Discussion Forum: Energy

6.

Oklahoma State U Saves $30M Through Energy Efficiency

Since 2007, the university recently announced that through its behavior-based energy conservation program the five university campuses have exceeded the target savings goal by $10 million.
See also: AASHE Resource: Campus Sustainable Energy Plans
See also: AASHE Business Members Offering Energy-Related Products or Services
See also: AASHE Discussion Forum: Energy

Transportation

7.

Bridgewater College Students to Use EV for Recycling Program

After a recent $2,500 grant from Enterprise Rent-A-Car’s philanthropic arm, Enterprise Holdings Foundation, the college will soon have access to an electric-powered utility vehicle for its student-operated recycling program.
See also: AASHE Resource: Campus Alternative Transportation Initiatives
See also: AASHE Business Members Offering Transportation-Related Products or Services
See also: AASHE Discussion Forum: Transportation

Waste

8.

Virginia Tech to Install Nearly 100 Solar Trash Compactors

Making recycling more convenient for the campus community, the solar compactors are intended to increase recycling rates and reduce carbon emissions from maintenance staff.
See also: AASHE Resource: Campus Recycling & Waste Minimization Websites
See also: AASHE Business Members Offering Waste & Recycling-Related Products or Services
See also: AASHE Discussion Forum: Waste

9.

U Washington Creates Waste Display

The new visual display aims to simplify waste disposal on campus and encourage greater composting and recycling by showing the items for compost, recycling and landfill.
See also: AASHE Resource: Campus Recycling and Waste Minimization Policies
See also: AASHE Business Members Offering Waste & Recycling-Related Products or Services

Water

10.

California State U Sacramento to Replace Over 500 Toilets

Striving to meet the city’s water consumption reduction mandate of 20 percent, the university will receive partial funding from the state to replace the decades-old fixtures some of which use 4 gallons per flush.
See also: AASHE Resource: Campus Water Conservation Efforts
See also: AASHE Discussion Forum: Water

Planning, Administration & Engagement

Affordability & Access

11.

Obama Administration Hosts Affordability Summit

During the recent summit attended by top university and college administration officials more than 100 commitments were made to help low-income students attend and complete college.

Coordination & Planning

12.

Sonoma State U Appoints First Sustainability Director

In a recent press release, Paul Draper was named the university’s first director of sustainability and will also chair the university’s Sustainability Executive Committee.

Diversity & Inclusion

13.

Southern Oregon U Holds Inaugural Social Justice Conference

With ‘race’ as the university’s 2013-14 theme, the two-day conference, organized by the Multicultural Resource Center, provided a safe and structured environment to explore issues related to social justice.

Funding

14.

EPA Awards $5M for Clean Water Projects

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency awarded the five universities to evaluate innovative green infrastructure practices in urban areas, using Philadelphia, Pa. as the pilot area. These grants stem from a cooperative partnership between EPA and Philadelphia’s Green City, Clean Waters program that represents a broad, long-term investment in implementing green infrastructure stormwater management practices. The awardees include universities are Villanova University, Swarthmore College, Temple University, University of New Hampshire and University of Pennsylvania.

15.

U Washington Awards $279K to Campus Sustainability Projects

The university’s Green Seed Fund has selected five winning proposals submitted by faculty, students and staff that advance sustainable research, contribute to campus sustainability goals, and will contribute to greenhouse gas reductions.

16.

U Albany Awarded Two Grants for Campus Sustainability

One grant in the amount of $607,000 will go to support the environmental initiatives of a planned expansion of the university’s Campus Center, while the other grant is intended to initiate a campus-wide composting project.

New Resources

 

17.

2014 AASHE Webinar Schedule

The 2014 AASHE Webinar schedule will provide the higher education sustainability community with tools and support in the areas of energy, social equity, purchasing, behavior change, certification and much more. New this year, AASHE webinars are free for AASHE members and $50 for non-AASHE members.

18.

Energy Efficiency & Clean Energy Funding Resource Guide

The U.S. Department of Energy recently released the Federal Finance Facilities Available for Energy Efficiency Upgrades and Clean Energy Deployment as a resource guide that lists the various federal financing programs for which energy efficiency and clean energy qualify.

19.

HEASC Paper: Advancing Sustainability in Higher Education

A recently released paper entitled What Are We Advancing from the Higher Education Associations Sustainability Consortium examines the shifting role of the university and college development office in a national trend toward advancing sustainability in higher education. The paper presents a range of ideas in support of a more whole-system approach to the conservation, alignment and development of resources in support of more sustainable institutions.

20.

Composting Strategies for Colleges and Universities

This recently archived webinar discusses how the campus community can work to reduce and eliminate food waste from traditional campus sources, and by reducing the waste stream save money and reduce its environmental impact.

Opportunities

 

21.

Call for Proposals Due Feb. 28: AASHE 2014 Conference & Expo

AASHE 2014: Innovation for Sustainable Economies & Communities, taking place October 26-29 in Portland, OR will draw together a diverse group of campus representatives including faculty, sustainability officers, presidents and students. In one of the most innovative sustainable cities in North America, we will gather to examine how communities and higher education institutions can come together to create vibrant local economies to help guide the sustainability transformation, how higher education institutions are serving as a model for sustainability in the communities they are located, and campus and community partnerships that are creating innovative solutions to current environmental, social, and economic issues. The deadline for abstract submission is Feb. 28.

22.

Call for Reviewers: AASHE 2014 Conference & Expo

Each year we rely on more than 200 volunteer reviewers to help meet the volume of the conference proposals received. Reviewers will be asked to review 15-25 submissions on topics in which they offer the strongest level of expertise.

23.

AASHE Member-Get-A-Member Business Challenge

We invite you to participate in our Member-get-a-Member Business Challenge! By getting another business to join the AASHE community, you are helping to grow the shared support of our sustainability community, will receive a $25 gift card to the AASHE 2014 bookstore (limited to the first 25 recruits), and an automatic entry for the grand prize drawing to win 50% off an AASHE exhibit booth at AASHE 2014 OR free registration and hotel to AASHE 2014 Conference & Expo in Portland, OR October 26-29, 2014.

24.

AASHE Seeking STARS Technical Advisors

AASHE seeks individuals with expertise related to campus sustainability to serve as STARS Technical Advisors. One to two technical advisors are sought for each of the following areas: research, air and climate, buildings, energy, purchasing, diversity and affordability, and health, wellbeing and work. Application deadline is Feb. 14.

25.

Executive Education for Sustainability Leadership

Designed for chief sustainability officers and directors, the three-day program at Harvard University will use a variety of frameworks, guided activities and case studies to help university and college executives develop a strategic vision for integrating sustainability into the core business and mission.

26.

AASHE Member Discount: 15% Off Tuition Presidio Graduate School

Presidio Graduate School will waive the application fee and offer 15% off tuition for our MBA, MPA, Dual Degree, or Certificate programs to individuals who work for AASHE institutions.

Jobs & Internships

 

27.

Sustainability Coordinator, Grand Valley State U

 

28.

Environmental Waste Coordinator, U Florida

 

Events

 

29.

Department of Energy and Campus Microgrids Webinar

Feb. 19, 2014; 2:00p.m. Eastern ; Online

30.

Sustainable Turf Management for Collegiate Sports Webinar

Feb. 13, 2014; 2:00 p.m. Eastern; Online
Hosted by U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Sports Turf Managers Association, and the Pacific Northwest Pollution Prevention Resource Center

31.

CURC Webinar: Waste Reduction During Move-Out

Feb. 13, 2014; 1:00 p.m. Eastern; Online
Hosted by College & University Recycling Coalition

32.

Institutional Green Cleaning Webinar

Feb. 11, 2014; 12:00 p.m.; Online
Hosted by National Joint Powers Alliance

33.

Creating the Next Generation of Sustainability Programs

Feb. 5, 2014; 1:00 p.m.; Online
Hosted by Spheres of Influence

34.

The Commissioning Process for LEED Projects

May 8-9, 2014; Madison, Wisconsin
Hosted by University of Wisconsin at Madison

35.

The Commissioning Process for Existing Buildings

May 8-9, 2014; Madison, Wisconsin
Hosted by University of Wisconsin at Madison

36.

Ball State U Geothermal Conference

Apr. 10, 2014; Muncie, IN
Hosted by Ball State University

37.

Smart and Sustainable Campuses Conference 2014

Mar. 3-4, 2014; Baltimore, Maryland
Hosted by University of Maryland

Campus Sustainability Discussion Forums Highlights

Click on the titles below to view the full discussion thread.

38.

Community Stakeholder Engagement Frameworks for Governance (STARS

I’m looking for examples of frameworks for community stakeholder engagement in governance, strategy and operations that others have adopted? I’m gathering info for STARS EN-13: Community Stakeholder Engagement and want to see examples.