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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Getting everyone on board with carbon neutrality: UC system best practices for faculty, student, and staff engagement
- University of California, Office of the President (CA)
- University of California, Santa Barbara (CA)
- University of California, Berkeley (CA)
In 2014, University of California President Janet Napolitano announced the Carbon Neutrality Initiative, committing UC to achieve carbon neutrality by 2025. President Napolitano formed a Global Climate Leadership Council to …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Green Monday - A Growing Global Movement and an Effective Marketing Campaign to Reduce Your Institution's Foodprint
- Columbia University (NY)
- Washington University in St. Louis (MO)
- Green Monday
Green Monday is a growing global movement that promotes green lifestyle choices. Columbia alumnus David Yeung created Green Monday in his native Hong Kong, where it has seen incredible success. …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Students Powering the Energy Transition
- University of Minnesota, Twin Cities (MN)
How can students make a positive impact on public policy and decision makers to help our energy system transition to a sustainable future? Ellen Anderson, former energy advisor to Governor …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Developing Energy Management Programs for a More Sustainable Campus
- California State University, Dominguez Hills (CA)
- Enlighted Inc. (CA)
In 2012, California State University Dominguez Hills' Central Plant Manager, Kenny Seeton, was tasked with finding a way to limit energy expenditures on campus in order to meet the university's …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Sustainability Engagement through Dining Partnerships and Programming
- Florida Gulf Coast University (FL)
- Aramark (PA)
Want to get more people engaged in the sustainability conversation on your campus? Let's face it, food connects us all and everyone needs to eat. Your campus dining partner can …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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A Better Business Building' - Penn State and Leonardo Academy Connect Students, Faculty, and Facilities through LEED for Existing Buildings and LEED Campus
- Pennsylvania State University (PA)
- Leonardo Academy (WI)
Learn how students, faculty, and facility management staff worked together to transform the sustainability of the Smeal Business Building at Penn State through LEED-EBOM. The project served as a model …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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The competition landscape: 5 years of data from Campus Conservation Nationals
- Alliance to Save Energy (CA)
- Atrius (CA)
Campus Conservation Nationals (CCN) is the nation's largest electricity and water reduction competition for college campuses. It aims to engage, educate, motivate and empower students and staff to reduce resource …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Hastily Formed and Sufficiently Executed Support for a Thesis That Changed Student Energy Use
- Middlebury College (VT)
- Atrius (CA)
Using the campus as a learning laboratory is a great concept. Doing it well often means busy people from different quarters of the campus community coming together to plan and …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Why students should shower with their phones: The call for shorter showers
- University of Rhode Island (RI)
- NORESCO (NC)
Do students know how long they are in the shower? Are students able to mentally time their shower? How can we encourage students to decrease their time in the shower? …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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360 Degrees of Recognition: How and Why It Matters
- Northern Arizona University (AZ)
- University of Arizona (AZ)
Recognition is about noticing and honoring. It may encourage and support an action' (Hansen, Smith, & Hansen, 2002). Recognition can be a powerful and transformative tool for sustainability education by …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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The Real Food Challenge: Empowering Students, Creating Just, Local Food Systems
- University of Minnesota, Twin Cities (MN)
- Real Food Challenge (AZ)
Campus food service is a $18 billion dollar industry that spends $5 billion on food annually. This food is largely sourced from unsustainable sources due to the complex supplies chains …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Art of Conversation: Overcome Obstacles by Making Connections
- Smith College (MA)
- GreenerU (MA)
As a sustainability professional good relationships are essential. You are responsible for making sure your institution sets and meets ambitious goals; however, you will not be the person who does …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Fostering Behavior Change: hosted by the organizers of RecycleMania and Campus Conservation Nationals
- U.S. Green Building Council (DC)
- Keep America Beautiful (CT)
The coordinators of RecycleMania and Campus Conservation Nationals (CCN), two of the largest behavior change competitions in higher education, are inviting campus stakeholders to a networking session designed to share …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Sustainability Professionals in Student Affairs Networking Session
- The Ohio State University (OH)
- University of Oregon (OR)
This networking session is designed to give sustainability professionals that work in student affairs departments an opportunity to interact in a structured environment. The session will begin with introductions and …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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A new classroom environment: Extending sustainability education into living & learning residential communities
- University of Rhode Island (RI)
- NORESCO (NC)
Over the past 8 years, the University of Rhode Island (URI) has been working with the Energy Service Company, NORESCO, to increase energy efficiency for campus buildings. Multiple phases of …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Sustainability, the Musical: A Case-based Exchange of Ideas for Integrating the Arts, Popular Culture, and Creative Expression into Environmental Pedagogy, Research, and Service on Campus.
- University of Minnesota, Twin Cities (MN)
The goal of this session is for all participants to exchange ideas about integrating the arts into campus sustainability initiatives. In other words, it is a GIFTS session (Great Ideas …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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EcoLeaders Community Supports Student Sustainability Projects & Helps Build Career Skills to be Competitive in the Workforce
- National Wildlife Federation (VA)
National Wildlife Federation's EcoLeaders Initiative is a sustainability leadership certification program for college students. EcoLeaders features the first web-based community to provide students with the virtual space to initiate projects …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Overcoming Barriers to Sustainability Education for International and Culturally Diverse Students
- Portland State University (OR)
A sure way to transform sustainability education is to make it more inclusive and incorporate multiple perspectives. To do this, the dominant sustainability education culture must engage in a paradigm …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Successful Campus Move Out Drives
- Southwestern College (OH)
The Southwestern Green Team has held numerous successful move-out collection drives over the years. We hold one at the end of every semester, collecting clothes, food, appliances, furniture, etc. We …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Football Program Scores with Waste Reduction.
- University of North Carolina, Charlotte (NC)
UNC Charlotte is a large urban university that recently added a football program and built a 15,000-seat stadium. Some students saw this as an opportunity to start a major program …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Sustainable Residential Living: Energy Monitoring on a College Campus
- Macalester College (MN)
This panel presentation will analyze the unique benefits and challenges associated with the installation of an energy monitoring system on a college campus from multiple perspectives. Macalester College recently installed …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Food Matters: Growing a Sustainable Food Culture in America's Heartland
- University of Northern Iowa (IA)
The University of Northern Iowa (UNI) is a leader in developing a sustainable food culture. In the mid 1990's, the Local Food Program emerged. Since then, collaboration between different programs …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Engaging Students in Food Waste Reduction - Aramark, UNC-Chapel Hill & Feeding The 5,000
- Aramark (PA)
A review & discussion of the genesis, planning & execution of an innovative food waste reduction event conducted by Aramark at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. In partnership with …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Fossil Fuel Free Fish House
- Bemidji State University (MN)
For the past year, the Bemidji State University Sustainability Office has been working with several partners to create a fossil fuel-free fish house. The house will eventually be placed on …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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The Renewable Power of a Simple #Hashtag - Using Social Media to Build Global, Cross-Sector Relationships
- Boston University (MA)
How do you share your message in 140 characters or less? Engaging a diverse, inclusive and wide-ranging set of stakeholders across the globe on Twitter requires social media strategy and …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Using Technology for Live Intercampus Conversations and Student Engagement Across a Region
- Central Community College (NE)
Central Community College (CCC) is a college system with multiple campuses and centers in rural Nebraska. As a way to increase student engagement in sustainability, CCC created a monthly (facilitated) …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Sustainable Greek Initiative: Enhancing the Campus Community through Sustainability Initiatives within Greek Life
- College of Charleston (SC)
Greek Life consists of individuals sharing leadership values and campus involvement, making it a great candidate for enacting sustainable practices. The Office of Sustainability created a program encouraging Greek involvement …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Growing With Faith: Community Gardening in a Jesuit Context
- Gonzaga University (WA)
Under the umbrella of our Jesuit university's mission, which encourages a faith that does justice and service, we have engaged in new sustainability initiatives. One of these is the Campus …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Using Student Research to Motivate Institutional Change
- Grinnell College (IA)
We recently took six students on a research trip to Germany to investigate sustainability practices there, with the aim of understanding why Germany is so far ahead of the U.S. …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Educating Sustainability Ambassadors: Insights from a campus-wide sustainability initiative
- Macalester College (MN)
Achieving sustainability is one of the grand challenges confronting society. To answer this challenge, in 2014 Macalester embarked on a campus-wide initiative to infuse sustainability throughout the college curriculum and …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Formalizing a Sustainability Engagement Strategy at Niagara College of Applied Arts and Technology
- Niagara College Canada (ON)
The journey of sustainability engagement at Niagara College has come a long way, with origins in an informal outreach strategy that tracked participants through excel, to utilizing a more formally …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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EcoVillage at North Carolina State University: A Living-Learning Introduction to Sustainability
- North Carolina State University (NC)
This case study presents the successes and challenges of a sustainability-themed living-learning community (LLC) in its third year of student enrollment, presented by the two University staff members primarily responsible …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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PepsiCo Recycling: Shaping The Next Generation of Recyclers
- PepsiCo (IL)
The PepsiCo Recycling program has introduced thousands of new recycling solutions to events, K-12 schools, colleges and universities, gas stations, convenience stores and numerous venues across North America. Since the …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Campus Accessibility: Physical, Mental and Emotional Accessibility as a Feature of Social Sustainability ('El Mapa')
- Portland State University (OR)
Sostenibilidad Cultural Gira Mapa One of the surest ways to transform sustainability education is to make it more inclusive and incorporate multiple perspectives. To do this, the dominant sustainability education …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Bridging the Academic and Operational Divide with WALLE: The Waste Audit Living Lab Experience
- Portland State University (OR)
Like many universities, Portland State University (PSU) is operationally challenged to collect concrete and robust data about the quantity and types of materials that are going through its waste stream. …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Fostering Student Leadership for Zero Waste Campuses
- Post-Landfill Action Network (NH)
The focus of this Think Tank will be to progress the vision of Zero Waste campuses. Highlighting the importance of student involvement in these initiatives, we will troubleshoot the perceived …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Developing a Student-Led Move-Out Waste and Yard Sale Program
- Post-Landfill Action Network (NH)
In 2010, after seeing dumpsters overflowing with thousands of usable materials during the previous year's move-out, I founded the UNH Trash 2 Treasure program as a sophomore. As students, we …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Planting the AASHE Seed: Applying the Conference Experience to Your University
- Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (IL)
Students from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE) have attended AASHE conferences for many years and have had great success in implementing ideas and materials encountered at the conference. Using our …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Tarleton State University Eco-Reps
- Tarleton State University (TX)
First sustainability based organization on campus. So the poster will cover the challenges faced by starting an organization like this in rural Texas, ideas to further membership/outreach, involving various departments, …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Sustainable Natural Fertilizer Initiative: A solar-powered, rainwater-fueled vermiculture and tea brewing system!
- The University of Alabama in Huntsville (AL)
This was a student-led Green Fund project aimed at replacing all commercial fertilizers used on campus with compost tea. Students across multiple departments worked alongside university researchers, student organizations, the …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Compost Diplomacy and Harvesting the Waste of Nations
- University of Arizona (AZ)
The student-run compost program at the University of Arizona provides a model for how institutions of higher education can engage profoundly with their communities and the social and environmental challenges …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Student Perceptions of the Temporal Domain of Sustainability
- University of Arkansas (AR)
Sustainability is 'development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs'. The temporal domain of 'future generations' and thus, …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Nature Village: Engaging Multicultural Families in a Collegiate Setting
- University of California, Berkeley (CA)
University Village (UV) is a housing complex located in Albany, California, a city that borders Berkeley, which currently provides housing for 974 families with 2,718 total residents. Many of the …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Engaging Bike Commuters in All Seasons with a Fun and Friendly Challenge
- University of Iowa (IA)
This presentation will show how the University of Iowa Office of Sustainability created two bike challenges as fun way engage bicyclists and encourage alternative transportation on campus. The Winter Warrior …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Sustainability Challenge Grants - Leveraging diverse funding sources to secure $100,000 for interdisciplinary projects at UK
- University of Kentucky (KY)
The Sustainability Challenge Grant program was designed to engage multidisciplinary teams from the University community in the creation and implementation of ideas that will promote sustainability by simultaneously advancing economic …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Pick It Up! Trash talk, a garden gnome and the push to eliminate litter at the University of Kentucky.
- University of Kentucky (KY)
Litter is a unique campus challenge with a diverse and unpredictable set of causes and contributing factors. It can also be a black eye for any campus. Pick It Up …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Prolonged Engagement: Growing a Culture of Sustainability within a Student Body
- University of Louisville (KY)
How do we engage our students around sustainability, when their primary focus is on their college experience? How do we get them to care about a sustainable future for the …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Sustainability education: A campus-wide study guiding an all unit strategic approach at the University of Minnesota, Duluth
- University of Minnesota, Duluth (MN)
A team of faculty and staff who were working on sustainability education across the UMD campus conducted an all campus survey (N=1700) to meet the Chancellor's Strategic Initiative. The Initiative …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Engaging Beyond the Sustainability Circle
- University of Minnesota, Twin Cities (MN)
Our universities have the potential to create diverse ways of producing sustainable change both on and off campus. This student summit presentation would be a collaborative brainstorm cafe of ways …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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University of Missouri Energy Strategies Student Advisory Group: What's Our Potential?
- University of Missouri (MO)
Students and staff at the University of Missouri (MU) created the Energy Strategies Student Advisory Group (ESSAG) in 2012 to explore coal-free technologies for our on-site energy management facility. Through …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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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.