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.
Featured Resources
New Resources
Cal Poly Earth Week Festival
- California Polytechnic State University (CA)
Cal Poly Earth Week, hosted by Cal Poly Energy, Utilities, and Sustainability Department in collaboration with Green Campus and many other campus and community entities! See discussion section and schedule ...
- Posted May 5, 2019
- Photographs
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Community College of Allegheny County (CCAC) South Campus Earth Day Celebration
- Community College of Allegheny County (PA)
Students at CCAC's South Campus took an active part in Earth Day celebrations.
- Posted May 5, 2019
- Photographs
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Community College of Allegheny County (CCAC) North Campus Earth Day Celebration
- Community College of Allegheny County (PA)
CCAC North Campus Green Team and Creative Arts Club worked together to make artwork driving home the importance of reducing and recycling waste.
- Posted May 5, 2019
- Photographs
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Enhancing Campus Curricula and Sustainability Through UN SDGs
- Lehigh University (PA)
- AASHE (MA)
The UN Sustainable Development Goals are serving as a benchmark for not only development of much of the world, but also for redevelopment of the industrialized world, which faces a ...
- Posted May 2, 2019
- Videos & Webinars
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Developing the Student Anchor Engagement Framework
- Drexel University (PA)
Modern urban and metropolitan universities are increasingly obliged to recognize their role as anchor institutions. These same institutions of higher education (IHEs) also have a responsibility to educate students to ...
- Posted April 30, 2019
- Publications
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Building sustainable university-based community gardens: Volunteer perceptions of enablers and barriers to engagement and benefits received from volunteering in the Moving Feast
- University of the Sunshine Coast
- University of Portsmouth
Community gardens are receiving increasing attention as a source of locally available and sustainable food, and aim to increase food security. Engagement and commitment from the volunteer workforce in community ...
- Posted April 30, 2019
- Publications
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Leadership of Heart and Mind: Examining the Mind and Skill Sets of Student Sustainability Leadership
- University of New England (ME)
- University of Southern Maine (ME)
The purpose of this comparative case study was to deepen the understanding of post-secondary student sustainability leaders’ motivations and identify the skills they have employed in order to inform the ...
- Posted April 29, 2019
- Publications
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Examining the Relationships between Factors Influencing Environmental Behaviour among University Students
- University of Eastern Finland
Education for sustainability may be seen as consisting of four dimensions: sensitivity and attitudes toward the environment, awareness and knowledge of the environment, environmentally friendly actions and participation. A questionnaire ...
- Posted April 29, 2019
- Publications
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On how business students’ personal values and sustainability conceptions impact their sustainability management orientation: Evidence from Germany, Indonesia and the USA
- University of St. Gallen
- National University of Singapore
- Leuphana University of Lüneburg
- University of Sussex (Sussex)
This paper aims to develop and empirically test a framework on how personal values and sustainability conceptions affect students’ sustainability management orientation (SMO). An understanding of this connection gives insight ...
- Posted April 29, 2019
- Publications
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The 5E Model of Environmental Engagement: Bringing Sustainability Change to Higher Education through Positive Psychology
- Tel Aviv University (Tel Aviv District)
- Vrije Universiteit Brussel
What is the role of universities in advancing sustainability? This paper delineates a unique program for promoting sustainability that was applied in Vrije Universiteit Brussels (VUB). The unique characteristics of ...
- Posted April 29, 2019
- Publications
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Sustainability assessment of the service operations at seven higher education institutions in Brazil
- Universidade Tecnológica Federal do Paraná
- Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Paraná
The objective of this paper is to test a procedure for assessing the adoption of sustainable practices in higher education technological institutions services, known as institutes of technology and polytechnic ...
- Posted April 29, 2019
- Publications
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Piloting Sustainability in UVA Research Labs
- University of Virginia (VA)
A one-year, comprehensive study in three campus research labs illustrates the benefits of small-scale infrastructural improvements paired with occupant engagement techniques . Lighting upgrades, equipment timers, and freezer set-points were targeted ...
- Posted April 29, 2019
- Publications
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Boston University Earth Week
- Boston University (MA)
In 2019 Boston University hosted its Ninth Annual Earth Week. Partnering with numerous area organizations, businesses, University departments, and student clubs, sustainability@BU put on several events to celebrate Earth ...
- Posted April 29, 2019
- Photographs
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Annual Chittenango Creek Clean-Up & Wildlife Shrub Seedling Planting
- Cazenovia College (NY)
More than 35 people from Cazenovia College's Environmental Club and chapter of Alpha Phi Omega (volunteer/community service group), Trout Unlimited, Cazenovia Preservation Foundation, 4-H, Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts ...
- Posted April 29, 2019
- Photographs
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EarthFest 2019 Cleveland State University
- Cleveland State University (OH)
Over 30 exhibitors and a giant earth dome contribute to making EarthFest at CSU both fun and educational! Students gain stamps on their eco-passports by engaging with campus and community ...
- Posted April 29, 2019
- Photographs
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Earth Day UTea Crush
- University of Texas at Austin (TX)
Justin Hays of The University of Texas at Austin’s Landscape Services provides information about U-Tea (pun intended)— compost tea made on campus and bottled in repurposed plastic containers—during ...
- Posted April 29, 2019
- Photographs
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Sustainability Quest
- University of Illinois Chicago (IL)
Students Hula hooped 64 rotations for the 64 geothermal wells on University of Illinois at Chicago's campus! This was one of four stops on the Sustainability Quest to spread ...
- Posted April 29, 2019
- Photographs
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Earth Day Celebration
- University of Colorado Boulder (CO)
University of Colorado Boulder Celebrates Earth Day
- Posted April 29, 2019
- Photographs
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ACG Volunteers Reforest Mt. Hymettus!
- The American College of Greece (Aghia Paraskevi)
In March, volunteers from The American College of Greece (ACG) got together for a great cause!
Over eighty community members – Deree and Pierce students, staff, faculty, alumni, and parents – gathered ...
- Posted April 29, 2019
- Photographs
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Lettuce Bee Sustainable at Dominican University - River Forest, IL
- Dominican University (IL)
Lettuce Bee Sustainable this Earth Day, Monday, April 22 from Noon to 2:00 pm in the Parmer Atrium.
• Build your own Salad in a Jar. • Taste test vegan Avocado ...
- Posted April 29, 2019
- Photographs
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Earth Day Extravaganza
- Auburn University (AL)
Earth Day Extravaganza on Auburn University's Campus Green Space to celebrate Earth Day!
- Posted April 29, 2019
- Photographs
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Bash the Trash Performance at Dominican College
- Dominican University New York (NY)
Dominican College kicked off its Earth Week celebration with a performance of Bash the Trash. Bash the Trash builds, performs, and educates with musical instruments made from recycled and reused ...
- Posted April 29, 2019
- Photographs
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MUSC Earth Day & Local Food Festival
- Medical University of South Carolina (SC)
On Wednesday April 10th, 2019 MUSC hosted the largest Earth Day event in the Charleston area. Running from 11am to 2pm on the MUSC Horseshoe, MUSC Earth Day and Local ...
- Posted April 29, 2019
- Photographs
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CSI (College of Southern Idaho) 10th Annual Sustainability Fair
- College of Southern Idaho (ID)
Picture of some of the thirty exhibitors at CSI's 10th Annual Sustainability Fair
- Posted April 29, 2019
- Photographs
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Earth Week at St. Lawrence University
- St. Lawrence University (NY)
This year, nearly a dozen student organizations came together to celebrate Earth Week with several campus events. The week started on Tuesday, April 16th with Mt. Trashmore, an art installation ...
- Posted April 29, 2019
- Photographs
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William & Mary Earth Day Festival 2019
- College of William & Mary (VA)
Individuals celebrating Earth Day at the College of William & Mary through tabling, a butterfly tent, and photographs taken with the Lorax
- Posted April 29, 2019
- Photographs
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Earth Day Reception & Award Ceremony
- Indiana University South Bend (IN)
The 11th Annual Earth Day Reception & Award Ceremony at Indiana University South Bend. The event took place Thursday, April 18, 2019, 5:30-7:30pm in the University Grill. The ...
- Posted April 29, 2019
- Photographs
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Earth Month Activities
- University of Scranton (PA)
Earth Day Fair
- Posted April 29, 2019
- Photographs
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UVA Earth Week 2019
- University of Virginia (VA)
Earth Week is a UVA tradition that celebrates the planet we all share. Students, faculty, staff, and community members were all invited to take part in over 27 events that ...
- Posted April 29, 2019
- Photographs
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How Can Wolves & Ag Co-Exist? (Earth Day Event)
- Feather River College (CA)
Feather River College's Sustainability Action Team hosts a Spring Sustainability Series. This year it culminated with an event called "How Can Wolves and Ag Co-Exist" in partnership with the ...
- Posted April 29, 2019
- Case Studies
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Tarrant County College Southeast Campus Aquaponics Cultivation Center and Wildlife Development
- Tarrant County College Southeast (TX)
This is a massive, on-going project that we have been developing as a committee over the past 2 years. Right now, I am in the process of developing 2 miles ...
- Posted April 29, 2019
- Case Studies
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Connecting Academic and Administrative Units through Sustainability Professional Development
- University of California, Santa Cruz (CA)
The Sustainability Certificate program was developed in 2017-18 to foster meaningful dialog and empower leadership in sustainability among campus employees. The program connects a diversity of departments and initiatives engaged ...
- Posted April 29, 2019
- Case Studies
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Pro-Environmental Behavior of University Students: Influence of Cultural Differences
- Istanbul Technical University
- İstanbul Kültür Üniversitesi
Responsible Consumption and Production, among the Sustainable Development Goals, indicates that humans should be aware of environmental problems which are to some extent, direct or indirect consequences of their behaviors ...
- Posted April 4, 2019
- Publications
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Sustainably Developing Sustainability Programs and Curriculum
- University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point (WI)
- AASHE (MA)
The climate is changing in higher education today with unpredictable state funding, evolving student populations and dialog about sustainability of higher education itself. With the urgency for sustainable solutions to ...
- Posted April 4, 2019
- Videos & Webinars
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Examining the effect of an environmental social marketing intervention among university employees
- University of Birmingham
- Queen Mary University of London
- University of Sheffield
- Global Action Plan
This paper examines the impact of an environmental social marketing intervention on employees’ energy saving intentions in a higher education institution (HEI) in the UK. The study examines the influence ...
- Posted March 30, 2019
- Publications
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How Water Bottle Refill Stations Contribute to Campus Sustainability: A Case Study in Japan
- Ritsumeikan University
The purpose of this study was to explore the feasibility of installing Water bottle Refill Stations (WRSs) and their contributions to campus sustainability by means of encouraging pro-environmental behavior in ...
- Posted March 30, 2019
- Publications
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Sulitest®: A Mixed-Method, Pilot Study of Assessment Impacts on Undergraduate Sustainability-related Learning and Motivation
- Pittsburg State University (KS)
A United Nations international collaboration between the Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) and the Principles for Responsible Management Education (PRME) resulted in the creation of Sulitest® (aka Sustainability Literacy Test ...
- Posted March 15, 2019
- Publications
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Cognitive and behavioural environmental concern among university students in a Canadian city: Implications for institutional interventions
- University of Regina (SK)
Informed by Stern and colleagues’ value-belief-norm theory and their earlier empirical work, we examined levels and predictors of cognitive and behavioural environmental concern (EC) of university students in a Canadian ...
- Posted March 15, 2019
- Publications
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University Contributions to the Circular Economy: Professing the Hidden Curriculum
- Cranfield School of Management
In a world dominated by linear economic systems, the road to improving resource use is multi-faceted. Whilst public and private organisations are making progress in introducing sustainable practices, we ask ...
- Posted March 15, 2019
- Publications
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Expanding Student Engagement in Sustainability: Using SDG- and CEL-Focused Inventories to Transform Curriculum at the University of Toronto
- University of Toronto (ON)
- London School of Economics and Political Science
The Expanded Student Engagement Project (ESE) has developed three comprehensive inventories which aim to increase student knowledge of sustainability-related course content and increase student engagement in on- and off-campus, curricular ...
- Posted March 15, 2019
- Publications
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Competing priorities: lessons in engaging students to achieve energy savings in universities
- De Montfort University
- Imperial College London
- National and Kapodistrian University of Athens
This paper aims to present findings from an EU-funded international student-led energy saving competition (SAVES) on a scale previously unseen. There are multiple accounts of short-term projects and energy saving ...
- Posted March 4, 2019
- Publications
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PCC, Sustain Me! A Higher Education Sustainability & Environmental Justice Podcast
- Portland Community College (OR)
This has been an ongoing project that has blossomed from a local/regional production and has now been promoted, recognized, listened to, and presentations have been given nationally and internationally ...
- Posted Feb. 26, 2019
- Case Studies
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Central College Student Green Fund
- Central College (IA)
What is Green Fund? The purpose of the Central College Student Green Fund is to promote innovative student projects that further the vision of sustainability at Central College.
Who can ...
- Posted Feb. 26, 2019
- Green Funds
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Zero is Hero: Use a Zero Waste Events Program to Re-Teach Recycling
- Johns Hopkins University (MD)
- AASHE (MA)
Do you know how many events occur on your campus every year? Can you guess how many of those events use disposables? Do you have a hard time engaging your ...
- Posted Feb. 21, 2019
- Videos & Webinars
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AIM2Flourish: An Experiential SDGs-Assignment for Students
- Case Western Reserve University (OH)
The UN SDGs are the world’s must-do list by 2030, and we need every student, everywhere to identify themselves as Global Goals leaders. Now in its third year, the ...
- Posted Feb. 14, 2019
- Videos & Webinars
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Sustainability Fund
- North Carolina State University (NC)
NC State students began contributing a sustainability fee per semester in fall 2013 following a student-led campaign that included pledges of support from more than 2,000 students and letters ...
- Posted Feb. 7, 2019
- Green Funds
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Sustainability Fee
- University of Illinois Chicago (IL)
The Sustainability Fee is a student-led initiative to improve the quality of campus operations, reduce UIC’s environmental impact, and generate awareness about environmental and sustainable issues by creating opportunities ...
- Posted Feb. 7, 2019
- Green Funds
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Renewable Energy Initiative (REI)
- Appalachian State University (NC)
The Appalachian State Renewable Energy Initiative is a student-led, student-funded organization that seeks to install renewable energy and energy efficiency projects on campus. Projects can be proposed by any student ...
- Posted Feb. 7, 2019
- Green Funds
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Charlotte Green Initiative Fund
- University of North Carolina, Charlotte (NC)
The Charlotte Green Initiative (CGI) is a student-led initiative that collects a $1 per semester Green Fee from each full-time UNC Charlotte student. These funds are allocated to projects that ...
- Posted Feb. 7, 2019
- Green Funds
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Northwestern Sustainability Fund (NSF)
- Northwestern University (IL)
The Northwestern Sustainability Fund is a $50,000 pool established to catalyze Northwestern student engagement in energy and sustainability. The Northwestern Sustainability Fund (NSF) provides one-time grant funds for student-led ...
- Posted Feb. 7, 2019
- Green Funds
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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.