Campus Engagement
Introduction
Engaging in sustainability issues through co-curricular activities allows students to deepen and apply their understandings of sustainability principles. Institution-sponsored co-curricular sustainability offerings, often coordinated by student affairs offices, help integrate sustainability into the campus culture and set a positive tone for the institution. Faculty and staff members’ daily decisions impact an institution’s sustainability performance. Equipping faculty and staff with the tools, knowledge, and motivation to adopt behavior changes that promote sustainability is an essential activity of a sustainable campus.
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Food as a Conduit: A Toolkit for Leading Institutional Change
- Boston College (MA)
Change is hard. This interactive session will explore how non-academic campus services like dining, auxiliary and facilities can inspire a culture of sustainability and collaboration across campus and beyond. Boston …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Training Future Food System Leaders Using Campus Food Economies
- Loyola University Chicago (IL)
- University of Utah (UT)
- University of Wisconsin-Madison (WI)
This session is guided by two principle questions: 1. What are all the aspects of a campus food economy and how are students engaged? 2. What structures are in place …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Gonzaga's Journey to Create a Sustainable Food Culture on Campus
- Gonzaga University (WA)
Real Food Club has been working to shift purchasing in our dining facilities to 'Real food' (meaning local, humane, fair-trade, or ecologically sound) since 2013. We are nearing upon the …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Harvard University's Holistic Approach and Model for a Sustainable Food System
- Harvard University (MA)
The Harvard Office for Sustainability (OFS) convened a multi-disciplinary committee of world-renowned faculty to translate their research into action on campus to create a more sustainable food system that contributes …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Fair Trade Campus Advocacy for a Sustainable Economy
- Gonzaga University (WA)
- Fair Trade Colleges & Universities
Fair Trade Campaigns is a powerful grassroots movement mobilizing thousands of conscious consumers and Fair Trade advocates on campuses and in communities across the U.S. Our Fair Trade Colleges & …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Leveraging the Power of Institutional Purchasing to Create a Sustainable Economy through Fair Trade
- Arizona State University (AZ)
- University of California, Irvine (CA)
- Aramark (PA)
- Fair Trade Colleges & Universities
Fair Trade Campaigns is a powerful grassroots movement mobilizing thousands of conscious consumers and Fair Trade advocates on campuses and in communities across the U.S. Our Fair Trade Colleges & …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Food Systems Down Under: Lessons from the Australian Context and The Fair Food Challenge
- University of Melbourne (Victoria)
This presentation will look at action in campus food systems in Australian universities. Australia has been slow to adopt action in campus foodscape transformation and there have been recent advancements …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Bring More Plant-Based Options to Your Campus
- Balanced.org (KS)
In this session, attendees will learn how to work with their university's food service department to increase the amount of plant-based foods on dining hall menus. They'll learn how to …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Creating a Student-Led Campaign for a Self-Operated Dining System: How to get Started at Your School
- Western Washington University (WA)
At Western Washington University, students have been leading a multi-year effort to implement a self-operated dining system after the decade long contract with Aramark expires in 2021. Currently, WWU is …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Lessons Learned from a Campus Food Pantry: Sustainability, Social Justice, and Campus Partnerships
- University of Denver (CO)
Hunger and food insecurity are growing problems on college campuses. The rising cost of a college education and the increasing number of nontraditional students mean that more students are struggling …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Student Food Security: Multi-Tiered Solutions to Reach all Food-Insecure Students
- Northern Arizona University (AZ)
- Sodexo USA (MD)
- Swipe Out Hunger (CA)
Student food insecurity is a social justice issue that University and College Boards, Administrators, and Students are looking to solve. There are no silver bullet solutions, a comprehensive, multi-faceted solution …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Combating Food Waste and Addressing Food Insecurity
- Appalachian State University (NC)
- University of the Incarnate Word (TX)
- Utah State University (UT)
Three Universities, from three different areas of the United States, will present on how each has responded to the issue of Food Insecurity on College Campuses in unique ways. University …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Diverting Waste, Feeding Communities: The Cardinal Cupboard
- University of Louisville (KY)
Facing the highest rates of food insecurity amongst faculty, staff, and students of the University of Louisville and large amounts of food waste from on-campus dining facilities, student leaders opened …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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The Energy Challenge at IUPUI
- Indiana University Indianapolis (IN)
The IUPUI Energy Challenge is a brand-new engagement program between the buildings on campus to reduce their energy use. This is achieved through encouraging behavior changes of the people who …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Making the Case for Campus-Wide Energy Monitoring and Student-Led Initiatives for Implementation
- Creighton University (NE)
We present the case for campus-wide energy monitoring, a community-engaged energy dashboard, and how these initiatives become feasible with student leadership. At Creighton University, we have developed a holistic, detailed, …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Data, Data, Data: Longitudinal Importance of Assessing Student Energy Behaviors
- University of Massachusetts Dartmouth (MA)
- NORESCO (NC)
UMass Dartmouth has partnered with NORESCO for eight years on a behavior change program called Energy Conservation Through Behavior Change® as a part of a larger energy savings project. The …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Vampire Energy Slayers 2.0
- University of San Diego (CA)
The Vampire Energy Slayers program was first developed at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG). At the University of San Diego, we have embraced the program and aim …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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University of Denver's Renter Efficiency Program for Students
- University of Denver (CO)
The Renter Efficiency Program for Students (REPS), at the University of Denver, provides free energy audits to students who rent off campus. The audits consist of teaching the tenants about …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Using Technology to Achieve Sustainability
- University of Mississippi (MS)
Numerous academic and residential buildings, thousands of people subsisting together, and various facilities to support the establishment, it won't be wrong to compare a college campus to a small town. …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Energy Performance Improvement: Energy Savings and Occupant Awareness Program at Texas A&M University
- Texas A&M University (TX)
Utilities & Energy Services (UES) Division at Texas A&M University strives to bridge the gap between implementing energy conservation measures and its success through increasing occupant engagement and empowerment. UES …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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An In-House Energy Dashboard: Challenges and Achievements from Oregon State University
- Oregon State University (OR)
Digital energy dashboards have proven to be a convenient tool for energy data management, analysis and reporting. Dashboard software can be leveraged to not only support campus operations, but also …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Incorporating Stakeholder Values: Assessing Renewable Energy Options at Portland State University
- Portland State University (OR)
To determine options for renewable energy development and procurement, the Campus Sustainability Office at Portland State University (PSU) turned to it's Living Lab program to engage students in this key …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Committing your campus to 100% renewable energy
- Environment America (MA)
It's 2019. We have the power to harness clean, abundant energy from the sun and the wind, and we can do it more efficiently and cheaply than ever before. Yet …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Social Justice Connections: Mapping Sustainability, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion on Campus and in the Community
- Georgia Institute of Technology (GA)
- Portland Community College (OR)
- University of Illinois Chicago (IL)
- University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point (WI)
Examining connections between sustainability and diversity, equity and inclusion efforts is essential for advancing environmental sustainability and social justice together. The AASHE Advisory Council's Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) Committee invites …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Tokenism versus authentic inclusion: Evaluating equity efforts within sustainability programs
- University of North Carolina, Asheville (NC)
Colleges and universities can be key players in increasing DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) in traditional environmental careers and pathways. But how well are we serving our students of color …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Social Incubators in Sustainability Projects for Stronger Diversity, Inclusion, and Innovation
- Prescott College (AZ)
Social incubators are an effective inclusion practice for sustainability initiatives, building social capital and social networks that can raise up submerged voices and counter hidden entitlement networks. Through research over …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Considering Low-Income Students in Sustainability
- Central Community College (NE)
Lower-income students are more likely to feel the impacts of climate change and are less likely to be major contributors of carbon emissions. Despite this, many climate change solutions focus …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Digging In: Specific Examples of Including Diversity in Sustainability Work
- Bemidji State University (MN)
- Central College (IA)
We all have to make sure the sustainability movement is not a white, elitist movement. Join two Sustainability Directors as they share their successes, challenges, and lessons learned through integrating …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Document & Web Accessibility: Making Content Available to All
- Cornell University (NY)
Most sustainability offices use websites and other online resources as a low-impact way share information - but common design choices and technology flaws make many websites, PDFs, videos, and other …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Diversity, and Inclusion on Campus: Designing Student Engagement
- DLR Group (WA)
The presentation will create a dialogue of how the built environment intersects with minority student groups on campus and how planning and visioning helped bring to life two institutes at …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Integrating Contemplative Practice, Social Justice and Sustainability as a Unified Model
- Naropa University (CO)
Humanity is at a crisis point. Numerous indicators across a plurality of domains - including skyrocketing depression and substance abuse, economic inequality, climate change, and fisheries collapse - demonstrate that …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Award Winner Session: Creating an SDG Based Course Inventory & Sustainability Pathways at the University of Toronto
- University of Toronto (ON)
The Expanded Student Engagement Project (ESE) at the University of Toronto (UofT) has been awarded AASHE's 2019 Campus Sustainability Research Award for authoring 'Expanding Student Engagement in Sustainability: Using SDG- …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Getting Credit: Partnerships between Sustainability Offices and Academic Departments
- University of Massachusetts Amherst (MA)
This poster gives an overview of UMass Amherst's Sustainability Fellowship Program, which began in 2009. Fellows are compensated with three academic credits per semester (awarded by the Department of Environmental …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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What do Students Know, Think, Feel, and do about Sustainability and Climate Change?
- University of Hawaii System Office (HI)
This session describes three separate but coordinated projects within the University of Hawaii System: a survey, a focus group study, and an assessment pilot project. Moderated for synthesis, each panelist …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Design Your Own Ecovillage: Playing the Ecovillage Game to Explore Sustainability
- State University of New York at Potsdam (NY)
Ecovillages are living laboratories of sustainability and they can be found all over the world. They are intentional or traditional communities 'using local participatory processes to holistically integrate ecological, economic, …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Award Winner Session: Food Waste Digester Project: An Ongoing Collaborative Project Model for Experiential Student Learning
- Chandler-Gilbert Community College (AZ)
This presentation will focus on The CGCC Food Waste Recycling Project, a grant-funded campus-wide ongoing collaborative project that offers deep, cross-disciplinary, experiential student learning via an innovative solution for CGCC's …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Developing Interdisciplinary Sustainability Programs at Small Liberal Arts Colleges
- Eureka College (IL)
- Muhlenberg College (PA)
With undergraduate enrollment ranging from under 450 to 2,500 and total full-time faculty sizes from 40 to 150, small liberal arts colleges experience a number of challenges to implementing major …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Narratives of relatedness: Engaging metaphor, story, and contemplative practices for economic change
- Portland State University (OR)
The current dominant economy is rooted in patterns of extraction, destruction, scarcity, and disconnection with the living earth. These capitalist patterns have shaped our dominant culture, institutions, and our ways …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Breaking the Silos: Increasing the awareness and adoption of Green Chemistry across disciplines
- Beyond Benign (MA)
- State of Washington (WA)
Green chemistry is the design of chemical products and processes that use and generate less hazardous materials. In practice, green chemistry can result in tremendous benefits such as the reduction …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Sustainability Curriculum: Status Quo or Transformation?
- Ripon College (WI)
In the last several years, we have witnessed a growing number of sustainability undergraduate programs across the United States. Often stemming from the work of existing departments, these programs address …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Ripon College Catalyst: Sustainable Futures Through General Curriculum
- Ripon College (WI)
Higher education will play an important role in equipping students with knowledge and competencies to address environmental and social problems as well as preparing them for civic engagement and the …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Preparing Students for Success Through Sustainability Competencies, Community and Hope
- University of Georgia (GA)
As sustainability educators we need to prepare students to address the challenges of sustainability in every field and for positions that have not even been developed yet. In addition to …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Catalyzing Careers in Sustainability: Benefits of Community Engaged Course Design
- Indiana University South Bend (IN)
As Nathan Hensley of Bowling Green State University described in the March 24, 2017 issue of The Journal of Sustainability Education, sustainability education should be based on 'transformative, experiential, and …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Growing Strong Leaders: A Collaborative Approach
- Dartmouth College (NH)
Sustainability problems are intersectional and multi-faceted. Solving these problems will require collaboration between stakeholders working in different sectors and communities, and using different strategies. Our approach to training changemakers and …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Advancing University Sustainability via a Co-Creative Process of Assessing Barriers & Change Drivers
- Kennesaw State University (GA)
Higher education institutions increasingly aim to integrate sustainability at all levels including students, faculty, staff, and the larger community. However, universities also face barriers to enacting change towards greater sustainability, …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Strategies for Engaging Students in Meeting Operational Sustainability Goals
- Dartmouth College (NH)
- Middlebury College (VT)
Many colleges and universities either have or strive to develop sustainability plans or goals that are implementable, while still allowing them to achieve their educational mission. At Dartmouth College, Middlebury …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Campus As A Living Lab: Integrating Academics and Facility Operations to Work Toward Common Goals
- University of Utah (UT)
It is an often understood idea that campuses across the nation allow themselves to become a laboratory for student ideas, especially in the field of applied sustainability. Unfortunately, larger universities …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Utilizing Strategic Planning and Stakeholder Engagement Techniques to Maximize Sustainability
- University of New Haven (CT)
Starting a new job is difficult. As a sustainability professional, how many times have you been asked if you are an engineer? An environmentalist? Or do you just find it …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Charting the Course for Sustainability at a New Campus: Utilizing Strategic Planning
- University of New Haven (CT)
Starting a new job is difficult. As a sustainability professional, how many times have you been asked if you are an engineer? An environmentalist? Or do you just find it …
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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Colorado Sustainability Networking Meeting
- University of Denver (CO)
Calling all students, staff, and others who work on Sustainability across Colorado Colleges and Universities! Let's get together and talk shop!
- Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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This tab provides access to data collected through AASHE’s Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System™ (STARS). STARS is a transparent, self-reporting framework for colleges and universities to measure their sustainability performance. STARS enables meaningful comparisons over time and across institutions using a common set of measurements developed with broad participation from the campus sustainability community.
All responses reference content from reports under the latest version of STARS, version 2.2. AASHE membership and log-in is required.
EN 1: Student Educators Program
- Percent of students served by a peer-to-peer sustainability outreach and education program
- Description of the student educators program (1st program)
- Description of the student educators program (2nd program)
- Brief description of the student educators program (3rd program)
- Hours worked annually by trained student sustainability educators per students served
- Website URL - Student sustainability educators programs
EN 2: Student Orientation
- Percent of entering students that have an opportunity to participate in sustainability-inclusive orientation activities and programming
- Description of how sustainability is included prominently in new student orientation
- Website URL - Information about sustainability in student orientation
EN 3: Student Life
- Description of the active student groups focused on sustainability
- Description of student gardens, farms, CSAs, fishery programs, and/or urban agriculture projects
- Description of the student-run enterprises
- Description of student sustainable investment funds, green revolving funds or sustainable microfinance initiatives
- Description of sustainability-focused conferences, speaker series, symposia, or similar events for students
- Description of sustainability-focused cultural arts events, installations, or performances
- Description of the wilderness or outdoors programs that follow Leave No Trace principles
- Description of sustainability-focused themes chosen for themed semesters, years, or first-year experiences
- Description of the programs through which students can learn sustainable life skills
- Description of sustainability-focused student employment opportunities offered by the institution
- Description of graduation pledge(s)
- Description of other co-curricular sustainability programs and initiatives
EN 4: Student Life
- Website URL - Central sustainability website
- Description of sustainability newsletter or social media platform(s)
- Description of the signage that highlights campus sustainability features
- Description of the sustainability walking map or tour
- Description of the guide for green living and/or incorporating sustainability into the residential experience
- Description of other comprehensive sustainability outreach materials and publications
EN 5: Student Life
- Description of the first sustainability outreach campaign
- Description of the second sustainability outreach campaign
- Description of other sustainability-related outreach campaigns
EN 6: Assessing Sustainability Culture
- Description of how and when the cultural assessment(s) were developed and/or adopted
- Copy or sample of the questions related to sustainability culture (upload)
- Copy or sample of the questions related to sustainability culture (description)
- Website URL - Assessment of sustainability culture
EN 7: Employee Educators Program
- Percent of employees served by a peer-to-peer sustainability outreach and education program
- Description of the employee educators program (1st program)
- Description of the employee educators program (2nd program)
- Hours worked annually by trained employee sustainability educators per employees served
- Website URL - Employee sustainability educators programs
EN 8: Employee Orientation
- Percent of new employees that have an opportunity to participate in sustainability-inclusive orientation activities and programming
- Description of how sustainability is included prominently in new employee orientation
- Website URL - Information about sustainability in employee orientation
EN 9: Staff Professional Development & Training
- Estimated percentage of regular, non-academic staff that participates annually in sustainability professional development and training
- Description of any internal sustainability professional development and training opportunities
- Description of any external professional development and training opportunities in sustainability that are supported by the institution
- Estimated percentage of staff for which sustainability is included in performance reviews
- Description of how sustainability is included in staff performance reviews
- Website URL - Information about staff professional development and training in sustainability
Additional analysis on scores and quantitative fields can be conducted using the STARS Benchmarking Tool.