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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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Bowdoin student EcoReps provide tours of LEED Platinum Building

Roux Center Tour Guides

  • Bowdoin College (ME)

During the busy opening weekend of Bowdoin's first LEED Platinum Building, The Roux Center for the Environment, sustainability tours were provided by Bowdoin EcoReps, identifiable by their green sash.

Bowdoin College EcoReps help collect unwanted goods for reuse during Move Out.

Bowdoin College Give and Go Moveout

  • Bowdoin College (ME)

Sustainable Bowdoin student employees help gather unwanted items from residence halls at the end of the school year, with much of the material being donated to Goodwill of northern new ...

Bowdoin College Carbon Foodprint Dinner 2

Bowdoin College Carbon Foodprint Dinner

  • Bowdoin College (ME)

Bowdoin's student EcoReps worked with Bowdoin Dining on an educational dinner about the carbon footprint of the meal as part of International Polar Bear Day (Bowdoin's mascot is ...

Students cause a stir by tapping campus trees to make syrup at the University of Louisville.

Tapping Campus Trees & Making Syrup

  • University of Louisville (KY)

Each winter in the early spring semester, University of Louisville students, faculty, staff, and community partners participate in tapping trees on campus to make syrup and learn about the process ...

Life long friendships are formed between ISOW scholars and team

Wilfrid Laurier University's social sustainability initiative: International Students Overcoming War

  • Wilfrid Laurier University (ON)

International Students Overcoming War - International Students Overcoming War (ISOW) is a student-led and student-funded humanitarian initiative at Wilfrid Laurier University that partners with NGO organizations to provide full scholarships to ...

Disrupt Climate Injustice Curriculum Disruption

  • The New School (NY)

In 2018, The New School invited all 14,000 faculty, staff, and students to participate in a university-wide curriculum disruption entitled "Disrupt Climate Injustice." Participants were encouraged to stop "business ...

Knowledge, agency and collective action as barriers to energy-saving behaviour

  • University of Plymouth (Devon)

Energy saving is becoming a rising priority as a response to climate change and fossil fuel depletion in recent years. However, despite energy-related behaviour change being an important part of ...

  • Posted July 19, 2019
  • Publications
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Thank you to all the volANTeers who made quick work of planting 65 trees in Verano Place today. Happy Earth Week UCI! 😎🌎🐜🌳

Community Tree Planting

  • University of California, Irvine (CA)

Annual tree planting is part of UCI's commitment to sustainable landscaping and healthy urban forests. Since 2010, UC Irvine has been recognized as a Tree Campus USA university by ...

Engaging Students with University Sustainability Indicators

  • Tulane University (LA)
  • AASHE (MA)

The webinar will explore ways of engaging students and faculty with university sustainability indicators and assessments, such as AASHE’s Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System (STARS), suggesting that asking ...

  • Posted June 13, 2019
  • Videos & Webinars
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Plug Load Metering Pilot at Swarthmore College

  • Swarthmore College (PA)

This report goes over the research and beginning stages of starting a pilot at Swarthmore college aimed to test a new technology, plug load meters. These have the ability to ...

Scaling the Ladder: Engagement Programs as Tools for Sustainability

  • McGill University (QC)
  • AASHE (MA)

Using examples from McGill University, this webinar covers how practitioners can use the ladder of engagement can turn small changes into meaningful, collective action. While there is often a debate ...

  • Posted May 23, 2019
  • Videos & Webinars
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Why and how do universities work for sustainability in higher education (HE)?

  • Lund University
  • Malmö University

The purpose of this paper is to open up a discussion about the roles and responsibilities of universities in society. The vision of the Regional Centre of Expertise (RCE) Skane ...

Volunteer handing out re-usable bamboo utensil sets to our students.

Journey to Zero Waste

  • California State University, San Marcos (CA)

This is an annual event, previously celebrated as Thank You for Recycling Day. This year the program was re-branded as Journey to Zero Waste Day to encourage not just recycling ...

  • Posted May 22, 2019
  • Outreach Materials
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Green Events Guide

  • California State University, Northridge (CA)

What does it mean to put on a “Green Event”? What does it mean to be sustainable? Greening your event means to incorporate a wide spectrum of environmental, social, and ...

  • Posted May 22, 2019
  • Outreach Materials
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U-Bikes and Cyclab at Princeton University

  • Princeton University (NJ)

Princeton University's U-Bikes and Cyclab programs work to support sustainable development on campus. The U-Bikes programs takes abandoned bikes collected by Public Safety and repairs and reuses them in ...

  • Posted May 22, 2019
  • Videos & Webinars
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No Impact Meal - A More Mindful Dinner

  • Loyola University Chicago (IL)

The No Impact Meal (NIM) program is transforming our relationship with food on campus, one meal at a time. Led by a group of sustainability interns since the spring of ...

  • Posted May 22, 2019
  • Videos & Webinars
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How Students Can Achieve Campus Sustainability: The Sustainability Climate Initiative Fund

  • University of Utah (UT)

Edmond Andrews, the University of Utah Sustainability Climate Initiative Fund (SCIF) Manager, explains what SCIF is and how it works.

The Sustainable Campus Initiative Fund (SCIF) is the University of ...

  • Posted May 22, 2019
  • Videos & Webinars
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Student Sustainability Leadership Award

  • California State University Maritime Academy (CA)

California State University Maritime Academy in its continued effort to becoming most sustainable campus, engaging staff, faculty, and students, explored and identified water saving opportunities for the campus. The project ...

Campus Sustainability Achievement

  • California State University Maritime Academy (CA)

California State University Maritime Academy (Cal Maritime) participated in the Arbor Day Foundation program, managed by a non-profit conservation and education organization founded in 1972, and applied for the Tree ...

teach in

The Pyramid of Action: A Multifaceted Approach For Deeper Engagement

  • California State University, Chico (CA)

With many environmental issues overwhelming students today, it can be paralyzing. So, AS Sustainability utilized the “Pyramid of Action” strategy in semester-long campaigns, leading students from awareness, behavior change, education ...

Aggie Green Fund Official Logo

Aggie Green Fund

  • Texas A&M University (TX)

Aggie Green Fund (AGF) is a funds granting program under the Office of Sustainability that invites sustainability ideas from all members of the University community (students, faculty, and staff) to ...

Additional QA/QC testing by student interns

The Searle Biodiesel Lab - Loyola University Chicago's Student-Run Biodiesel Program

  • Loyola University Chicago (IL)

The Biodiesel Lab is a student-run biodiesel production facility within Loyola University’s Institute of Environmental Sustainability. Starting from a single student’s idea over a decade ago, nearly 100 ...

Workshop attendees at the SDG Summit 2018

Leveraging student leadership to build campus capacity for Sustainable Development Goals implementation: a case study on the University of Calgary’s Sustainable Development Goals Alliance.

  • University of Calgary (AB)

The Sustainable Development Goals Alliance (SDGA) is a student-led organization at the University of Calgary which seeks to improve campus and community collaboration towards the implementation of the seventeen Sustainable ...

Central College Bee Campus

  • Central College (IA)
  • The Xerces Society (OR)

Central College is a leader in sustainability education, both in Iowa and the Midwest. For more than a century, Central students and staff have prioritized sustainability at the college. After ...

Coalition building to create university-wide change

  • Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, Camden Campus (NJ)
  • Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, New Brunswick Campus (NJ)
  • Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, Newark Campus (NJ)

Two years ago, we formed the Rutgers Sustainability Coalition, a student-led group of representatives from about 20 student organizations working together to address the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. We ...

Students for Sustainability

  • University of Central Oklahoma (OK)

Students for Sustainability was established in 2016 as the University of Central Oklahoma's first and only sustainability oriented organization. The group was founded not only as an outlet for ...

Case Study Results Graphic

Composting at Northwestern University Norris Center

  • Northwestern University (IL)
  • Real Food Challenge (MA)
  • Compass Group (NC)

The project consists of the successful implementation of a front-of-the-house composting program in Northwestern University's Norris Center food court dining area and the coordination of a series of experiments ...

UW Mailing Services delivery drivers and the electric-assist cargo bikes.

Delivering difference: using e-bikes to deliver mail at the University of Washington

  • University of Washington, Seattle (WA)

With over 80,000 students, faculty, and staff on campus, it's difficult to comprehend the sheer number of packages, textbooks, course packets and dorm mail UW Mailing Services delivers ...

University of California’s Cool Campus Challenge

  • University of California, Office of the President (CA)

In 2019 the University of California launched the Cool Campus Challenge, an online competition between all ten campuses to engage students, faculty, and staff in the UC Carbon Neutrality initiative ...

President's Cart Solar Roof

The Impact of Solar-assistance on Electric Golf Carts

  • Georgia College & State University (GA)

In the Condensed Matter Research Lab at Georgia College, we conducted a real-world experiment to quantify the impact of vehicle-mounted solar panels. Our campus golf cart fleet consists of both ...

Student Leaders Supporting Student Success

  • University of California, Merced (CA)

The Bobcat Pantry serves as a sustainable service addressing food insecurity while combating student huger and malnourishments. The space encourages students to implement health-conscious lifestyles to further their academic success ...

Stream Metabolism Poster from Waller Creek Symposium May 2019

A Six Mile-Long Living Laboratory: Publishable Student Research to Foster Sustainability and Resilience in Austin’s Waller Creek

  • University of Texas at Austin (TX)

Over the past decade, a comprehensive approach to research in Waller Creek—the urban stream that bisects The University of Texas at Austin—was developed by faculty in the College ...

Resilience Planning

  • Boston University (MA)
  • Cornell University (NY)
  • Smith College (MA)

This work initiates an inventory of good practices and introduces a theoretical framework for the assessment of resilience planning in order to guide and support institutions of higher education in ...

Cross-Campus and Community Collaborative Bikeshare

  • Champlain College (VT)
  • University of Vermont (VT)

Champlain College and UVM played an integral role in advancing the timeline of bringing bikeshare to Chittenden County. With almost 75% of active Greenride members being affiliates of UVM and ...

One of our waste stations

McHenry County College Composts! (Finally!)

  • McHenry County College (IL)

Composting has been a goal of the MCC Board of Trustees approved Sustainability Strategic Plan since 2012 and 2015. Based on a waste audit done several years ago, MCC’s ...

Sustainable Events Consultant Volunteer Team

The McGill Staff Engagement Ladder

  • McGill University (QC)

Between 2016 and 2019, the McGill Office of Sustainability developed four separate engagement programs to increase collective sustainability actions for staff, students, and faculty. The programs were strategically developed to ...

Coffee Sticker

Dollar Coffee Club

  • University of Montana- Missoula (MT)

The intent of the Dollar Coffee Club (DCC) is to leverage the powerful appeal of one dollar coffee to incentivize customers to participate in sustainability efforts through a quid pro ...

Demystifying Sustainability Behaviors on College and University Campuses: A Mixed Methods Analysis

  • State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry (NY)

In response to the growing threat posed by climate change, colleges and universities are implementing interventions to engage students and employees with achieving sustainability and greenhouse gas emission reduction goals ...

Carolina de Aguair Martins, ASPCC Sustainability & Eco Justice Program Specialist lead a team of energetic students group to create a sculpture to bring attention to the pressing issue of plastic in our oceans.

Earth Week at Portland Community College - Rock Creek Campus 2019

  • Portland Community College, Rock Creek Campus (OR)

Carolina de Aguair Martins, Associated Students of Portland Community College Sustainability & Eco Justice Program Specialist, lead a team of energetic students group to create a sculpture to bring attention ...

Ribbon Cutting, Portland Community College Learning Garden, Cascade Campus

Learning Garden construction at Portland Community College's Cascade Campus

  • Portland Community College (OR)

Portland Community College Staff and students teamed up to plant a new learning garden on Portland Community College's Cascade campus. Learning gardens already exist at three of PCC's ...

Chemistry students utilize the on-site compost bins to conduct research on the makeup of the compost and the compostability of items

The Chemistry Behind Composting

  • Harper College (IL)

Harper College Facilities Management partnered with Harper’s Chemistry Department to begin a compost collection and research program on campus. Compost bins were built in-house on Harper’s grounds for ...

Carbon-less Concert at the community engagement event

Our Solar Potential

  • University of Saskatchewan (SK)

Farm the Sun with Us is a term project led by students working on an assessment to determine the feasibility of implementing a campus solar farm. The project continues to ...

Tiger Sustainability Night - EcoRep with #LoveAMug Poster at mug giveaway

#LoveAMug: Reinvigorating a Reusable Mug Program

  • Princeton University (NJ)

In 2003, Princeton University Campus Dining (CD) introduced a 25 cent reusable mug discount in retail operations. Over the years, the program became stagnant and was applied to an average ...

Sampling Benthic Macroinvertebrates during a BioBlitz event

Mainstreaming Biodiversity on Campus - Niagara College's BioBlitz Program

  • Niagara College Canada (ON)

The Niagara College BioBlitz program is part of a continuous focus at Niagara College on experiential learning and providing the opportunity to students and the community to use the campus ...

Vincent Medina - Co-Founder of mak-'amham

Students of Color Environmental Conference

  • University of California, Berkeley (CA)

The first ever Students of Color Environmental Conference (SCECon) was intended to bring together students of color from across California to connect and build with local environmental justice activists. This ...

Food waste in biodigester

Chandler-Gilbert Community College Food Waste Recycling Project

  • Chandler-Gilbert Community College (AZ)
  • Maricopa County Community College District Office (AZ)

The CGCC Food Waste Recycling Project is a grant-funded campus-wide ongoing collaborative project that offers deep, cross-disciplinary, experiential student learning via an innovative solution for CGCC’s food and green ...

Creating a focused Departmental Sustainability Plan for Residence Life

  • Texas A&M University (TX)

In 2018, the Department of Residence Life at Texas A&M University sought a new avenue to promote sustainability within the institution and, more specifically, their individual department. Working with Ayers-Saint ...

Eating Green Student Engagement

Eating Green

  • Harvard University (MA)

I created a guide to plant-based eating for students on Harvard's campus. Unfolding over the course of several months, this pamphlet translated into 2,000 hard copies and a ...

Fuel Efficiency - Figure 1

UC Irvine’s Transition from a Bio-Diesel to Electric Transit Fleet

  • University of California, Irvine (CA)

The University of California, Irvine (UCI) is the first college campus in the nation to transition to a fully-electric bus fleet. The student-funded and student-operated Anteater Express campus shuttle service ...

Climate Change Escape Room

  • Harvard University (MA)

In April 2019, the Resource Efficiency Program (REP) constructed and staffed a climate change themed escape room. Each minute in the room equated to four years of climate change impacting ...

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

EN 2: Student Orientation

EN 3: Student Life

EN 4: Student Life

EN 5: Student Life

EN 6: Assessing Sustainability Culture

EN 7: Employee Educators Program

EN 8: Employee Orientation

EN 9: Staff Professional Development & Training

Additional analysis on scores and quantitative fields can be conducted using the STARS Benchmarking Tool.

Campus Engagement Partners

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