Grounds

748 resources

Universite Laval - High Performance Greenhouse Complex

  • Université Laval (QC)

The High Performance Greenhouse Complex is a reference as a research infrastructure. Its equipment is among the most sophisticated in North America. The High Performance Greenhouse Complex distinguishes itself from ...


Central New Mexico Community College, Main Campus Detention Basin

  • Central New Mexico Community College (NM)

Photos # 1 & 2 Description: This detention basin slows and filters stormwater that drains from a large parking lot located at CNM Main Campus, near University Avenue. It also supplies ...


Tennessee Tech’s Sustainable Intramural Pavilion

  • Tennessee Technological University (TN)

The Tennessee Tech intramural facility features pervious pavement and an underground drainage system below the volleyball court. The pervious pavement allows rainwater to flow through it and deposit into a ...


University of Minnesota, Duluth - Pollinator Pledge

  • University of Minnesota, Duluth (MN)

Three students -- Rachel Hopwood, Michael Purtell, and Dave Herrera -- pioneered the passing of an operational policy that protects the University of Minnesota Duluth's campus pollinators in perpetuity. Referred to ...


CSU Monterey Bay - Laundry to Landscape

  • California State University, Monterey Bay (CA)

CSU Monterey Bay implemented a pilot laundry to landscape project that is connected to 8 washing machines. The greywater is filtered and then distributed to adjacent landscaping. The project was ...


Portland State University - Smart Trees Researcher

  • Portland State University (OR)

In this photo, Portland State University graduate and postdoctoral researcher Hannah Prather climbs a Douglas fir in the early morning to collect samples as part of a smart trees research ...


CSU Monterey Bay - Living Community Challenge - Biophilic Design Study

  • California State University, Monterey Bay (CA)

In partnership with an environmental studies research course, CSU Monterey Bay developed a Biophilic Design Framework Study. With this study, we will be able to inform future projects, ensuring that ...


Universite de Montreal SCI images

  • Université de Montréal (QC)

Our beautiful campus in fall/Tree planting in the spring of 2020.


The American College of Greece - A sustainable campus!

  • The American College of Greece (Aghia Paraskevi)

A selection of photos from The American College of Greece main campus, depicting the campus sustainable grounds, interaction of students with green technology as well as wellness areas!


University of Saskatchewan - Bowl

  • University of Saskatchewan (SK)

Students enjoying USask's bowl where compost has now replaced fertilizer in keeping turf areas vibrant and green.


Webinar: Managing Surplus Property for Zero Waste

  • College & University Recycling Coalition (DC)

CURC learned in a 2019 survey that managing surplus property was a key interest of members to learn about. What strategies for managing surplus property work on different campuses, public ...

  • Posted Sept. 11, 2020
  • Videos & Webinars
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Reaching Your Collaborators: Communicating for Connection & Education

  • College & University Recycling Coalition (DC)

Welcome to the CURC 2020 Webinar Series!

Trying to implement a campus-wide waste initiative with limited time, influence and staff is a barrier we've all faced. How do we ...

  • Posted Aug. 4, 2020
  • Videos & Webinars
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Greenspace Sustainability Design Town Halls and Make-A-Thon: A model for empowering campus communities to lead the design of sustainable spaces and places

  • University of Central Florida (FL)

A team of students at the University of Central Florida (UCF) (Orlando, Florida) led a partnership between UCF Student Government, the UCF Office of Sustainability Initiatives, and UCF Landscaping and ...


Herbicide-Free LMU

  • Loyola Marymount University (CA)
  • Re:wild Your Campus (TX)

The project represented in this case study is Herbicide-Free LMU, a campaign I started at LMU under Herbicide-Free Campus. With a slow beginning as the sole campaign leader, I worked ...


Herbicide-Free Campus: UCSB

  • Re:wild Your Campus (TX)

This project sought to reduce synthetic herbicide use on the UC Santa Barbara Campus. There were three main aspects of this project: meeting with groundskeepers, passing resolutions in the student ...


Final Project Report: Crum Woods

  • Swarthmore College (PA)

Purpose of the Project: To increase student, faculty, staff, and community member engagement and safety in Crum Woods, as well as continue to implement the 10-year Crum Woods Restoration and ...


Palo Alto College Community Garden

  • Palo Alto College (TX)

The Palo Alto Community Garden opened in October of 2019 as a space to grow food, cultivate community, and improve food security for the greater Palo Alto Community.


Biodiversity in the Campus Landscape: A Meta-Evaluation of Landscape Metrics and Rating Systems

  • Smith College (MA)

In the context of globally dwindling biodiversity, Smith College is in the process of developing a new Landscape Master Plan. This research analyzed approaches to landscape management rating systems and ...


One Million Trees

  • Pepperdine University (CA)
  • Santa Monica College (CA)
  • University of California, Los Angeles (CA)
  • University of Southern California (CA)

This project started in 2015 and the goal was to plant one million trees by 2020 in partnership with the National Forest Foundation. Our team came up with the idea ...


Grand Valley State University - Water Sustainability

  • Grand Valley State University (MI)

Abstract - Grand Valley State University - Water Sustainability
Having success in reducing energy consumption and costs, Grand Valley State University (GVSU) located in the state of Michigan, looked at other areas ...


The relationship between self-rated naturalness of university green space and students’ restoration and health

  • University of British Columbia (BC)
  • Xiamen Haicang Urban Construction Group
  • Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University

A growing body of evidence indicates that university green space can promote students’ restoration and health. Nonetheless, only a few studies have focused on the relationship that exists among perceived ...


Improving the attractiveness and accessibility of campus green space for developing a sustainable university environment

  • City Planning & Design Institute of Yiwu China
  • University of Kitakyushu (Fukuoka)

A growing body of research has investigated the vital effects of urban greening. However, the green space on campus, also recognized as an important element of urban greening and providing ...


Campus-Based Ecotourism: A Case Study on the Power of Local Ecotourism

  • University of Nebraska at Omaha (NE)
  • University of Nebraska Medical Center (NE)

Academic campuses across the Great Plains can serve as landscapes for teaching and learning about native flora of cultural importance with regard to food, medicine, and lifeways. Campus visitors (tourists ...


Active and Passive Use of Green Space, Health, and Well-Being amongst University Students

  • Furman University (SC)
  • Yale University (CT)

Frequent exposure to green space has been linked to positive health and well-being in varying populations. Yet, there is still limited research exploring the restorative benefits associated with differing types ...


Is Skidmore Carbo-loading? Establishing a Baseline Carbon Inventory of Skidmore’s Northern Lands

  • Skidmore College (NY)

Approximately half of the world’s terrestrially sequestered carbon is held in forests and wetlands. Landowners and institutions can manage forests to maximize their sequestration potential for the purpose of ...

  • Posted March 6, 2020
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Sequestering Carbon: Using Campus Wood to Make Carbon-Capturing Furniture and Items

  • Western Michigan University (MI)

The Living Woodshop, run by the Office for Sustainability at Western Michigan University, has been designed as a partnership with the Facilities Management department to reuse lumber on campus. Wood ...


Worm Poop Creates Sustainable Economy!

  • University of Louisville (KY)

After almost fifteen years of trying to turn worm poop into sustainable community and economy, the good news is that this is possible. It's a good deal of work ...

  • Posted Dec. 4, 2019
  • Conference Presentations
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Outdoor Waste Receptacle Removal: A Creative Approach to Waste Management

  • Indiana University Bloomington (IN)

Institutions across the country have found success in strategically phasing out outdoor waste receptacles and focusing their waste efforts on the management of indoor waste streams. Though perhaps counterintuitive to ...

  • Posted Dec. 4, 2019
  • Conference Presentations
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University of Kentucky Organic Waste Composting Pilot Project: Growing Sustainability Partnerships

  • University of Kentucky (KY)

In 2019, the University of Kentucky (UK) College of Agriculture, Food and Environment, UK Dining, Aramark, UK Physical Plant (Waste, Recycling, & Grounds), and UK Sustainability began a strategic partnership ...

  • Posted Dec. 4, 2019
  • Conference Presentations
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Don't Let it Go to Waste: Three Scrappy Strategies for Managing Food Waste and Organics in Kentucky

  • University of Kentucky (KY)
  • University of Louisville (KY)
  • Western Kentucky University (KY)
  • Aramark (PA)

Food waste is all too often seen as nothing more than 'trash.' Yet capturing food waste for positive transformation can and should be a key component of campus sustainability efforts ...

  • Posted Dec. 4, 2019
  • Conference Presentations
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Leveraging Campus Buying Power to Get Toxic Chemicals Out of Our Food and Off School Grounds

  • University of California, Berkeley (CA)
  • Center for Environmental Health

This session aims to educate, inspire, and equip purchasing decision makers, relevant staff and students to take action, collaborate with other purchasers, and employ creative solutions to eliminate toxic chemicals ...

  • Posted Dec. 4, 2019
  • Conference Presentations
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Rooted in Community: Collaboration with Local Land Trusts

  • Davidson College (NC)
  • University of Alabama at Birmingham (AL)

As higher education institutions, and specifically sustainability offices, seek to broaden and deepen collaboration with local organizations, the land trust community is a natural partner. In many cases, both the ...

  • Posted Dec. 4, 2019
  • Conference Presentations
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Bees : How UTSA is Connecting Sustainability and Undergraduate Research Opportunities

  • University of Texas at San Antonio (TX)

The University of Texas at San Antonio's newly established Office of Sustainability awarded the department of Environmental Science and Ecology funding for a 3 year program to facilitate the ...

  • Posted Dec. 4, 2019
  • Conference Presentations
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Creating Living Laboratories Through Campus Ecological Restoration

  • Eastern Washington University (WA)

At Eastern Washington University we are currently working to restore 120 acres of campus farmland back to native habitat with the goal to preserve natural landscapes, sequester carbon, promote sustainable ...

  • Posted Dec. 4, 2019
  • Conference Presentations
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Creating a Buzz Across America: Supporting a Healthy Food Economy with Beekeeping

  • Central Community College (NE)
  • Delta College (MI)
  • Portland Community College, Rock Creek Campus (OR)

Higher education is an ideal platform to champion environmental practices toward a sustainable economy. Community colleges are at the forefront of raising awareness of the role pollinators have on their ...

  • Posted Dec. 4, 2019
  • Conference Presentations
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Apiculture: A Case for Producing Local Honey

  • Winthrop University (SC)

Humans have been harvesting honey from honeybees since prehistoric times. Raw honey is a natural food with many nutritional benefits, contains powerful antioxidants, counters pollen allergies and is a natural ...

  • Posted Dec. 4, 2019
  • Conference Presentations
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How to Start an Herbicide-Free Campaign on Your Campus!

  • University of California, Berkeley (CA)

Herbicide-Free UC's mission is to stop the use of toxic herbicides across all University of California campuses. We are currently at four UC campuses, but the UC system is ...

  • Posted Dec. 4, 2019
  • Conference Presentations
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The VCU Pocket Park: Creating a sustainability-oriented green space on a dynamic university campus

  • Virginia Commonwealth University (VA)

Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) is a growing, changing university in the heart of the city of Richmond, VA. Green space is limited on this dense urban campus. The VCU Office ...

  • Posted Dec. 4, 2019
  • Conference Presentations
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Campus Farmers Networking Meeting

  • Loyola University Chicago (IL)
  • University of Utah (UT)
  • University of Wisconsin-Madison (WI)

Join other campus farmers and food system advocates in creating a robust, interdisciplinary network of campus-based growers and partners. Find someone in your region or across the nation to share ...

  • Posted Dec. 4, 2019
  • Conference Presentations
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Curriculum and a Hands-On Project: Manual vs. Automated Irrigation Methods in the University Garden

  • University of Houston - Downtown (TX)

The Center for Urban Agriculture and Sustainability (CUAS) at the University of Houston-Downtown (UHD) has combined innovative curriculum with hands-on projects to teach sustainable practices. Students enrolled in the CUAS ...

  • Posted Dec. 4, 2019
  • Conference Presentations
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Fostering Student Engagement and Learning Through Campus Gardens

  • State University of New York at Geneseo (NY)
  • University of Tennessee at Knoxville (TN)

Leah McCord, AmeriCorps VISTA member serving at the University of Tennessee Office of Sustainability, will share her office's experience of proposing and implementing the Grow Lab. The Grow Lab ...

  • Posted Dec. 4, 2019
  • Conference Presentations
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Design a permaculture garden through a co-curricular and service learning experience.

  • Pikes Peak Community College (CO)

The Office of Sustainability partnered with a Group Communication Class and local permaculture guild to established a community garden at Pikes Peak Community College's Centennial Campus. Communication students interviewed ...

  • Posted Dec. 4, 2019
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A Model for Higher Education Involvement in Land Conservation: The ALPINE Network

  • Lincoln Institute of Land Policy (MA)

With their academic roots, the authors of the Wildlands and Woodlands vision recognized that an untapped source of energy, skill, and commitment for land protection lies with the constituents of ...

  • Posted Dec. 4, 2019
  • Conference Presentations
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Managing Trees on Campus: A Survey of North American College and University Tree Care Practices and Operations

  • James Madison University (VA)
  • APPA: Leadership in Educational Facilities (VA)
  • Arbor Day Foundation (NE)

In 2017 and 2018, a study was conducted to better understand the extent to which college and university campuses are treed and how trees are managed. A web-based survey was ...

  • Posted Sept. 5, 2019
  • Publications
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Climate Change Garden at Cornell University

  • Cornell University (NY)

The Climate Change Garden at Cornell University, a permanent campus installation that demonstrates the impact of climate change on plant growth in New York state. Planning for the climate change ...


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 ...


University of Richmond - 2019 SCI

  • University of Richmond (VA)

This photo is to be considered for University of Richmond's highlight in the 2019 Sustainability Index.


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 ...


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 ...


Central College Tree Campus

  • Central College (IA)
  • Arbor Day Foundation (NE)

Central College is a leader in sustainability education, both in Iowa and the Midwest. For more than a century, Central students and staff have helped plant and care for trees ...

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.

OP 9: Landscape Management

OP 10: Biodiversity

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

Grounds Partners