When it comes to sustainability efforts on a campus, having a vision is certainly a must. But it's the campus community that makes it all happen.
Ruth Abramson, communications manager in the University of British Columbia Sustainability Office, says the institution's achievements in this area "are the result of thousands of UBC students, staff, and faculty actively demonstrating their commitment to sustainability."
UBC has been honored with an inaugural Campus Sustainability Leadership Award from The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education. "This recognition is really helping to inspire our community members to continue with the vision and to renew their commitments," Abramson notes.
Institutions of higher education like UBC are making greater strides than ever in making a commitment to sustainability in governance, academics, operations, and community outreach. The first annual competition had four winners, one in each of the following categories: four-year and graduate institutions with more than 10,000 full-time enrollment, those with 1,001 to 10,000 FTE, those with less than 1,000 FTE, and community colleges and other two-year institutions. Here's a look at some of the highlights from each of the winners, which were announced in October 2006:
University of British Columbia, Vancouver, B.C. (10,000+ FTE)
UBC's sustainability strategy, with 68 targets and actions for achieving nine major goals, leaves no base uncovered. "While some in the world are still debating climate change, we've already achieved our Kyoto targets ahead of schedule--AND we're saving money at the same time," says Abramson says. She's referring to the $3.8 million in energy costs that UBC has saved over the last three years by completing the largest energy retrofit in Canadian history. Called ecotrek, the project will mean an additional savings of $2.6 million annually. In addition, ecotrek is reducing UBC's CO2 emissions by 15,000 tonnes annually, allowing it to exceed the Kyoto Protocol targets (which calls for a national CO2 emissions reduction of six percent below 1990 levels by 2012). It's also reducing campus water use by 30 percent annually.
Knowing a thing or two about sustainability, the institution's sustainability office is sustainable in itself. It employs seven staff members and 10 students, and is funded entirely by savings from its energy reduction programs.
As for building efforts, UBC officials did not let the fact that the LEED system doesn't yet have a way to rate residential units hold them back from ensuring green building design in its new residential developments. The institution developed its own green building assessment program, known as REAP, featuring energy efficient lights, bicycle storage, less use of volatile organic compound emitting materials, stormwater management, and more.
On the academic front, more than 300 courses deal with sustainability, and several departments--such as Land and Food Systems and the School of Community and Regional Planning--have adopted sustainability as a core value.
UBC will soon be launching a pilot training workshop for other institutions and organizations. "We're showing how others can also gain without the pain," Abramson notes. The two-day workshop, scheduled for March 2007, will focus on how to run a successful Sustainability Coordinator program modeled after UBC's, which has 150 staff and faculty volunteers who help create a culture of sustainability.
Berea College (Ky.) (1,001-10,000 FTE)
Berea's sustainability commitment is articulated and guided by several comprehensive governance documents, including its strategic plan, released in 1996 and recently revised to include an expanded sustainability initiative.
A series of building renovations maximized efficiency and incorporating components of green design such as double-paned window retrofits and comprehensive recycling stations on every floor. The Ecovillage, an ecologically sustainable residential and learning complex, is a model for high efficiency at Berea. The complex includes 50 apartments, a Child Development Laboratory, a "Commons" house, and a demonstration house for Sustainable and Environmental Studies. Residents, who are student families, have individual garden plots as well as a shared permaculture "food forest." The sustainability goals of the Ecovillage include reducing energy use by 75 percent, reducing per capita water use by 75 percent, and reusing or composting at least 50 percent of waste.
