Public Engagement
Introduction
Engagement in community problem-solving is fundamental to sustainability. By engaging with community members and organizations in the governmental, non-profit and for-profit sectors, institutions can help solve sustainability challenges. Community engagement can help students develop leadership skills while deepening their understandings of practical, real-world problems and the process of creating solutions.
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Weatherizing Together: Finding Effective Community Partnerships
- Furman University (SC)
Is your school planning on or already implementing a home weatherization program? Have you found community partners for your program? Furman University's home weatherization program, the Community Conservation Corps (CCC), …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Mapping our Participation in the United Nations Global Compact: Storytelling and Sustainability
- State University of New York at Geneseo (NY)
As a participant of the U.N. Global Compact, the State University College of New York at Geneseo uses the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals as a framework to talk about our …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Community Impacts Through Energy-Efficient Housing Education
- Pennsylvania State University (PA)
The Energy Efficient Housing Research Group (EEHR), an outreach arm of the Hamer Center for Community Design, is a conduit between high-performance housing research and housing stakeholders. EEHR connects multidisciplinary …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Co-Designing a Sustainable, Native American Cultural Center with the Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate
- University of Virginia (VA)
Public engagement is a crucial way for higher education institutions to align their teaching and research activities around the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This case study examines how an interdisciplinary …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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How Higher Ed Helps Enact Tomorrow's Climate Change Legislation, Today!
- New York University (NY)
New York City is poised to enact the world's most sweeping climate change legislation, based on the innovation, validation, and support of higher education. How did NYU lead in making …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Urban Forestry and Community Engagement - the Chemis-tree of Successful Partnerships
- Virginia Commonwealth University (VA)
Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) is an urban research university located in downtown Richmond, Virginia. With greenhouse gas mitigation goals looming, VCU established the VCU Urban Forestry Collaborative (VUFC) - a …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Climate Lab: Taking the Gloom out of the Doom
- University of California, Office of the President (CA)
Let's face it - thinking about climate change and sustainability - and what to do about these pressing issues - can be downright depressing. People don't want to hear about …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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UC3: The Research University's Role in Place-Based, Cross-Sector Climate Action
- University of California, Office of the President (CA)
- University of Colorado Boulder (CO)
- Second Nature (MA)
The University Climate Change Coalition, or UC3, is a coalition of 13 leading North American research universities that are prototyping a collaborative model designed to help local communities achieve their …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Learning from our Future: Engaging Youth in Climate Justice
- University at Buffalo (NY)
How do we build a truly inclusive climate justice movement that values every voice and experience? Engage young people. They have a lot to say, and are eager to say …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Community Outreach on Steroids: Impacting People in 8 Counties While Recruiting Great Students
- Slippery Rock University (PA)
In June 2017, Slippery Rock University's Office of Sustainability launched the 'Healthy Planet, Healthy People Environmental Summer Camp and Community Project Incubator'. The focus of this program was to create …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Climate Memes: Undergraduates Making Climate Data Go Viral
- University of California, Irvine (CA)
On Earth Day 2017, Climatepedia boothed in Pershing Square at the March for Science-Los Angeles. Students from the University of California, Irvine branch of the organization displayed their signs at …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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All We Need is Political Will: Empowering Students on Civic Engagement on Climate Change
- Juniata College (PA)
- University of Pittsburgh (PA)
- U.S. Partnership for Education for Sustainable Development
- Citizens' Climate Lobby (CA)
At this critical time in our nation's history, the need to transition to a clean energy economy and a just and equitable society is more urgent than ever. Young people …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Moving Toward Climate Justice Through Divestment and Reinvestment
- Better Future Project (MA)
All colleges have an endowment that they use to invest in a broad range of industries. Divestment is a powerful tactic where institutions can use their political and financial power …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Native Food Garden in the Sonoran Desert
- University of Arizona (AZ)
Since July 2017, I began volunteering at The Desert Research Learning Center (DLRC). The DRLC is owned by the National Park Service and is located adjacent to the east district …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Pollinator Protection: Save the Monarch Butterfly!
- Central Community College (NE)
This poster will describe the process Central Community College uses to engage students in the support of pollinators, particularly the Monarch butterfly. Furthermore, basic information regarding Monarch butterfly behavior and …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Food Recovery and Partnership Models
- University of Notre Dame (IN)
- University of Utah (UT)
- Sodexo USA (MD)
- 412 Food Rescue (PA)
The University of Utah is collaborating to address seven of the United Nation's Sustainable Development Goals on on-campus, in local communities, as well as throughout the state. While working to …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Building a Bigger Table: Engaging Communities on Food Security
- College of Charleston (SC)
On our campus, and in the surrounding community, there appears to be a growing urge for increased engagement and 'silo-busting.' One of the largest focal points for this is food, …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Agrivoltaic Arrays: Cultivating the Future of Renewable Energy
- University of Arizona (AZ)
Agrivoltaics' combines the terms, 'agriculture' and 'photovoltaics' to create a symbiotic relationship between food and renewable energy. The vast majority of solar energy generated comes from solar farms. However, as …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Scaling UP Renewable Energy Beyond Campus
- Cornell University (NY)
- State University of New York at Cortland (NY)
The Paris Agreement (at the moment) represents civilizations best path forward for global action and accountability of our collective reduction in harmful greenhouse gas emissions. What happens when a significant …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Where civil rights fit into sustainability: an environmental justice workshop
- Ithaca College (NY)
An in-depth exploration of how civil rights and environmental justice fit into the global sustainability framework, this presentation will utilize case studies from across the US to exemplify how environmental …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Think Outside: Educating about Conservation and Race in the Great Outdoors
- Messiah University (PA)
- Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (PA)
We need multi-lateral participation to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) outlined by the UN; however, the narrative of environmental protection, and the subsequent sustainability movement, is dominated by a …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Engaging Students and Low-Income Community Members: Successes in Conservation and Social Equity
- University of Colorado Boulder (CO)
The FLOWS program (Foundation for Leaders Organizing for Water and Sustainability), is made up of diverse CU Boulder Environmental Center student staff and historically marginalized community members that team up …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Sustainability Best Practices to Contain the Uncontainable: Lessons Learned From UVA & August 11/12
- University of Virginia (VA)
UVA's responses to the white supremacist rallies at UVA and Charlottesville during the summer of 2017 can serve as an example to other institutions as white supremacy and violence on …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Anti-Oppressive Youth Facilitation
- Power Shift Network (DC)
From organizing campaigns to coordinating community engagement events. From engaging in political advocacy efforts to training with youth. Wherever your youth engagement falls, there are best practices for working with …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Crowdcoaching: A Workshop About Workshops
- Tufts University (MA)
- GreenerU (MA)
Undertaking sustainable practices at colleges and universities requires the convergence of people, resources, and knowledge. Sharing experiences with colleagues at other campuses is an efficient conduit for successful implementation. Crowdcoaching …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Sustainability Competencies, SDGs & Metacognition: Implementation and Assessment
- City University of New York, John Jay College of Criminal Justice (NY)
- Leuphana University of Lüneburg
Core learning sustainability competencies have been identified and are guiding course design: system thinking, future/temporal thinking, ethical literacy (values), interpersonal literacy (communication & collaboration), strategic thinking (action), and creativity/imagination. This …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Enhancing Student Learning and Promoting Sustainability Through Experiential Learning
- New York University (NY)
- University of Dayton (OH)
- Worcester Polytechnic Institute (MA)
This session includes experiential learning programs in three academic institutions.The programs illustrate how higher education institutions can foster public-private-community partnerships to achieve the SDGs and inform approaches to SDG 17. …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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ESRAP: Building Partnerships Across the Globe to Elevate Sustainability Focused Curriculum & Research
- Southern New Hampshire University (NH)
Educators for Socially Responsible Apparel Practices (ESRAP) is a non-profit that engages and collaborates across the globe to share news, best practices, review sustainability texts, and offer strong platform for …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Nation's First Community-Based Culinary Medicine Garden and Sustainability Curriculum
- University of Utah (UT)
We have the nation's first Culinary Medicine (CM) course pairing community members and Health Sciences (HS) students together to research, design, and implement community-based CM curricula, the inclusion in CM …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Backcasting to the Future: SDGs and Graduate Research
- Indiana University South Bend (IN)
Preparing sustainability graduate students for the future requires a balance of real-world work and project applications as well as research and publishing experiences and opportunities. It means guiding the challenging …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Integration of the SDG's as a Targeted Educational Alternative...A Story of Successful Collaboration
- University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (TX)
Join us as we share a Story of Success: UTRGV and Buell Central High School's Transformative integration of SDG's to engage and motivate our most vulnerable and marginalized youth. Buell …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Education as the Engine for the Global Goals
- Portland Community College (OR)
In 2016, 750 experts from around the world came together in Ahmedabad, India, to drill down into each of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), or Global Goals, to identify how …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Social Environmental Case Study on Mining, Wild Rice and Water Protection in Minnesota
- University of Minnesota, Twin Cities (MN)
This session involves participants in a social environmental synthesis case study, using methods taught by the National Social Environmental Synthesis Center (sesync.org) in Maryland, where this case was developed at …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Applied Learning: Interventions for Sustainability Impacts
- Arizona State University (AZ)
- Portland State University (OR)
- Princeton University (NJ)
- University of Calgary (AB)
Applied learning (AL) for sustainability is an umbrella term and encompasses student engagement activities (e.g., internships, courses, research practicums) that deliver exceptional student experiences and a positive outcome for sustainability …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Key Competencies in Sustainability: Overview and Next Steps
- Arizona State University (AZ)
- Chatham University (PA)
- Northern Arizona University (AZ)
- Sustainability Curriculum Consortium (MD)
The Panel-discussion is part of a nationwide process to solicit feedback on an initiative with the National Council for Science and the Environment (NCSE). The goal of the initiative is …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Experience The SDGs Abroad: Reimagine Your Curriculum with The GREEN Program
- University of Pittsburgh (PA)
The GREEN Program (TGP) is an experiential education and workforce development program for young leaders in sustainable development. Created for students, by students, TGP has introduced a new model for …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Pursuing the SDGs in Education Abroad: Tools, Techniques, and Assessment Strategies
- U.S. Partnership for Education for Sustainable Development
- The Education Abroad Network (IL)
Well-designed education abroad programs expose students to the many ways other cultures prioritize and pursue the UN SDG's. Foreign approaches to sustainability, biodiversity, and social justice reveal to students abroad …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Uniting Human Rights and Sustainability Across the University
- University of Dayton (OH)
The United Nations Agenda 2030 and Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) are a powerful framework for alleviating human suffering and achieving social and environmental justice. However, making progress on the the …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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From Theory to Practice: Applied Community Projects in Environmental Capstone Courses
- Earlham College (IN)
Over the past five years, Environmental Studies and Environmental Sustainability seniors at Earlham College have completed an 'integrated research project (IRP)' in collaboration with a community partner. The IRP is …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Service and Community Engaged Learning for Social and Environmental Justice
- Champlain College (VT)
- Southern Oregon University (OR)
- University of Hawaii Kapiolani Community College (HI)
- Villanova University (PA)
Service-Learning / Community Engaged Learning is a common practice in higher education and is increasingly found being paired with sustainability. This networking session will allow practitioners to share best practices, …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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AIM2Flourish: Transforming Management Education Through Positive Business Innovation Stories
- Case Western Reserve University (OH)
The UN Global Goals are the 'World's Must-Do List' to end poverty, combat climate change, protect life on land, and ensure a livable future for all people. Many business leaders …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Teach Environmental Sustainability via Children's Literature
- University of Wisconsin-River Falls (WI)
We propose to share methods of integration into curriculum and resources for teacher-educators to reach their students, starting with elementary students and continuing on up the grades, K-12. Because children's …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Incorporating Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) into Collaborative Sustainability Planning
- Ohio University (OH)
Ohio University is proud to have an ambitious and community-created Sustainability Plan, and to reside in a community that values sustainability. Both the City of Athens and Athens County have …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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The Role of Private Sector Partnership in Sustainable Higher Education Operations & Education
- American University in Cairo (Cairo)
Throughout the American University in Cairo's 100-year history, we have strived to be leaders in all we do. Recently, that mission has been applied to sustainability. AUC has implemented meaningful …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Leveraging the SDGs to Build a System-Wide Higher Education Sustainability Strategy
- University at Albany (NY)
- University at Buffalo (NY)
- State University of New York at Geneseo (NY)
Sixty-Four schools, nearly half a million enrolled students, 33,000 faculty and 96,000 degrees granted annually--the higher education scope and impact of the State University of New York system is vast …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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How to Overcome Challenges at Large, Urban Campuses
- University of Pittsburgh (PA)
This will provide a space for large urban campuses to discuss challenges and accomplishments of working on sustainability on Urban campuses. AASHE has lacked the spaces for these types of …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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The Design Thinking Process: User-Centered Solutions to Complex and Confounding Problems
- University of Denver (CO)
Coming out of Stanford's Institute of Design, the Design Thinking (DT) framework has taken the Architecture, and now the business world, by storm. However, this solution- and user-focused design process …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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How a Team of Student Ambassadors Can Amplify and Accelerate Wins for a Small Sustainability Staff
- Case Western Reserve University (OH)
Facing the Big, Hairy, Audacious Goals of campus sustainability work with small offices can feel impossible; however, despite having a small staff, college and university sustainability offices can effect real …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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Top Down and Bottom-Up: The Pitt Sustainability Planning Process
- University of Pittsburgh (PA)
- SmithGroup (MI)
In 2017 Pitt embarked on their first comprehensive sustainability plan which launched early this year. This session outlines the top-down approaches to connect with leadership and link this planning effort, …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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International Networking Meeting
- Portland Community College (OR)
- AASHE (MA)
Members of the international community who are attending the AASHE conference and those who are interested in international issues are invited to join in a networking meeting to share resources, …
- Posted Nov. 5, 2018
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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 10: Community Partnerships
- Description of a formal community partnership to advance sustainability (first partnership)
- Description of a formal community partnership to advance sustainability (second partnership)
- Description of a formal community partnership to advance sustainability (third partnership)
- Website URL - Community partnerships to advance sustainability
EN 11: Inter-campus Collaboration
- The national or international sustainability network(s)
- The regional, state/provincial or local sustainability network(s)
- Description of sustainability conference(s) and presentation(s)
- Description of sustainability resource center or awards program and submission(s)
- Description of sustainability board or committee appointment(s)
- Description of sustainability-related mentoring relationship and activities
- Description of sustainability-related peer review activities
- Website URL - Sustainability-related inter-campus collaborations
EN 12: Continuing Education
- Percentage of continuing education courses that are sustainability course offerings
- Inventory of continuing education sustainability course offerings (upload)
- Inventory of continuing education sustainability course offerings (description)
- Description of sustainability-related continuing education certificate program(s)
- Website URL - Continuing education courses and programs in sustainability
EN 13: Community Service
- Percentage of students engaged in community service
- Number of annual community service hours contributed per student
- Description of program(s) to support employee volunteering
- Website URL- Community service programs
EN 14: Participation in Public Policy
- Description of sustainability public policy advocacy at the municipal/local level
- Description of sustainability public policy advocacy at the state/provincial/regional level
- Description of sustainability public policy advocacy at the national level
- Description of sustainability public policy advocacy at the international level
- Website URL - Sustainability advocacy efforts
EN 15: Trademark Licensing
- Description of the independent trademark monitoring and verification organization
- The labor rights code of conduct for licensees (upload)
- The labor rights code of conduct for licensees (description)
- Website URL - Trademark licensing initiatives
Additional analysis on scores and quantitative fields can be conducted using the STARS Benchmarking Tool.