| Overall Rating | Silver |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 53.99 |
| Liaison | Amy Parrish |
| Submission Date | Feb. 19, 2025 |
Boise State University
AC-6: Sustainability Research
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
7.97 / 10.00 |
6.1 Percentage of academic departments engaged in sustainability research
Number of academic departments engaged in sustainability research:
Annotated list or inventory of the institution’s sustainability research by department:
Description of the process used to identify the institution’s sustainability research:
Sustainability Research
Process
Data was gathered from between Spring 2021 to Fall 2023 for any entry in the scholarship portion of the Faculty180 tool. There were 8169 Scholarly Work entries, in 70 different units. This initial data set was searched for the keywords outlined below in both the title of the work and the outlet of the work (conference name, journal name, etc) to highlight potential work meeting the AASHE sustainability research definitions below. The positive results from the keyword search were then manually reviewed to confirm. This was especially vital for words such as "Wind" because this resulted in many false positives due to the word being used in woodwind instruments so it was very important to eliminate such results. Following these layers of reviews, the number of departments and departments completing sustainability research was counted.
Results
Using the methodology outlined above, resulted in the following: # of departments that conduct sustainability research = 49. # of departments that conduct research = 70 (Based on unique names of departments). However, after manual review, this was refined to 47 departments that conduct sustainability research with the removal of Art and Music.
There were 434 entries that included one of the keywords listed, however, after manual review, this was refined to 318 entries.
Definitions
Definitions were provided by AASHE. Sustainability research: Sustainability research is research and scholarship that explicitly addresses the concept of sustainability, furthers our understanding of the interdependence of ecological and social/economic systems, or has a primary and explicit focus on a major sustainability challenge. Sustainability challenges: AASHE defines sustainability research as research activities and scholarly work that explicitly address the concept of sustainability, further our understanding of the interdependence of ecological and social/cultural/economic systems, or have a primary and explicit focus on a sustainability challenge. A sustainability challenge is described as an issue or situation that threatens or undermines ecological integrity, racial equity and social justice, or the ability of future generations to meet their needs (e.g., biodiversity loss, poverty and inequality, and climate change), OR a goal or objective that contributes to the resolution of such an issue or situation (e.g., ecosystem health, universal human rights, and renewable energy generation). To identify sustainability challenges, it may be helpful to reference the targets embedded in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the principles outlined in the Earth Charter, and/or the Doughnut of social and planetary boundaries. Keyword search: “sustainab*”, “climate”, “solar”, “wind”, “renewable”, “hydro”, “geothermal”, “nuclear”, “equity”, “pollution”, “poverty”, “depletion”
The Reporting Tool will automatically calculate the following two figures:
Points earned for indicator AC 6.1:
6.2 Incentives for sustainability research
Description of the sustainability research incentives for academic staff:
Boise State Grand Challenges
Boise State awarded funding to faculty teams to conduct community-based research on Grand Challenges. These were internal, competitive grants, awarded in 2022 and 2023.
How do we create an Idaho that is healthier for everyone? How can we make urban and rural systems more resilient and sustainable in the face of unprecedented growth and climate crises?
Grand Challenges like these are urgent, societally-relevant issues that require creativity and transdisciplinary collaboration to answer. At Boise State, we’ve committed to answering these questions by connecting expert scholars and creating partnerships across sectors.
In breaking down disciplinary silos, researching complex issues together and engaging passionate students in research, Boise State University Grand Challenge initiatives are:
- Contributing to solving the most pressing issues of our time,
- Producing graduates who are ready to make a difference
- Expanding our innovative ecosystem,
- Furthering our educational mission through research
https://www.boisestate.edu/research/grand-challenges/
The Resource Nexus for Sustainability Grand
One such Grand Challenge that was given funding was The Resource Nexus for Sustainability Grand Challenge
The Resource Nexus for Sustainability Grand Challenge tackles the issues of resilience and sustainability with the goal to build more resilient and sustainable urban and rural systems. For example, three current ‘Nexus’ teams are exploring topics such as:
- Idaho regenerative ranching and carbon projects
- Tribal energy solutions
- Refugee farming resilience
This initiative will catalyze a nexus of scholars and practitioners to explore interactions between the built and natural environment through the lens of many disciplines and stakeholders.
A project report can be found here: https://www.boisestate.edu/research/wp-content/uploads/sites/241/2024/03/Resource-Nexus-for-Sustainability-tagged.pdf
Healthy Idaho Grand Challenge
The Healthy Idaho Grand Challenge is focused on improving physical and social conditions to foster healthy and thriving communities throughout Idaho.
We invite applicants to submit a proposal for projects that show clear potential for improving the health of Idahoans, which demonstrate a plan with specific and measurable outcomes/goals that can be accomplished within the 18-month project cycle. The team must be multidisciplinary and include community and/or industry partnership.
“Every Idahoan is impacted by heat and wildfire smoke. Understanding who is at most risk and how they can mitigate the negative health impacts of such extremes is a topic of interest for both the university affiliates and the general public. The findings of this study will benefit everyone.”
– Civil Engineering faculty, Mojtaba Sadegh
https://www.boisestate.edu/research/grand-challenges/healthy-idaho-grand-challenge/
Boise State HCRI
The Boise State Hazard and Climate Resilience Institute invites applications for project funding through our Institute. We will grant 4-5 awards ranging from $1000 – $5000. Applicants must submit a proposal with a clear connection to one or more of the following HCRI research pillars (listed below). Projects must also include at least one community partner. Collaborative research that spans the social sciences and STEM are encouraged. Grants are available to Boise State faculty, staff, and students. Co HCRI Research Pillars: Natural Environment: Research related to the health of our planet, natural resources, natural hazards, and climate change, i.e., Assessing the causes and consequences of geophysical or climate-related hazards; Risk assessments; Disaster risk perception and preparedness behavior studies; Investigating the efficacy of sustainable environmental practices. Infrastructure and the Built Environment: Research related to the reliability and strength of critical infrastructure (communications, power grid, buildings built to hazard code), and systems facilitators or inhibitors to improve or build stronger infrastructure (e.g., capital, policy), i.e., Assessing the resilience of critical infrastructure; The role and/or strength of community lifelines with respect to disaster recovery capacity. Health and Well-being: Research related to the environmental and social conditions that foster healthy and thriving communities, i.e., assessing how access to environmental amenities impacts physical and mental health; The role of human and social capital on community resilience; Food system security with respect to sustainable and environmentally respectful practices; Impact of poor air quality and vulnerable populations. Economy and Society: Research related to economic and political conditions that (1) allow communities to prepare for, mitigate, respond, and recover from adverse events, and (2) foster thriving, healthy communities, i.e., Resilience network analyses; Using a capitals approach to investigate resilience capacity and interconnectedness between communities; Valuation of natural capital.
Does the institution provide incentives for students to conduct sustainability research?:
Description of the sustainability research incentives for students:
Boise State HCRI
The Boise State Hazard and Climate Resilience Institute invites applications for project funding through our Institute. We will grant 4-5 awards ranging from $1000 – $5000. Applicants must submit a proposal with a clear connection to one or more of the following HCRI research pillars (listed below). Projects must also include at least one community partner. Collaborative research that spans the social sciences and STEM are encouraged. Grants are available to Boise State faculty, staff, and students. Co HCRI Research Pillars: Natural Environment: Research related to the health of our planet, natural resources, natural hazards, and climate change, i.e., Assessing the causes and consequences of geophysical or climate-related hazards; Risk assessments; Disaster risk perception and preparedness behavior studies; Investigating the efficacy of sustainable environmental practices. Infrastructure and the Built Environment: Research related to the reliability and strength of critical infrastructure (communications, power grid, buildings built to hazard code), and systems facilitators or inhibitors to improve or build stronger infrastructure (e.g., capital, policy), i.e., Assessing the resilience of critical infrastructure; The role and/or strength of community lifelines with respect to disaster recovery capacity. Health and Well-being: Research related to the environmental and social conditions that foster healthy and thriving communities, i.e., assessing how access to environmental amenities impacts physical and mental health; The role of human and social capital on community resilience; Food system security with respect to sustainable and environmentally respectful practices; Impact of poor air quality and vulnerable populations. Economy and Society: Research related to economic and political conditions that (1) allow communities to prepare for, mitigate, respond, and recover from adverse events, and (2) foster thriving, healthy communities, i.e., Resilience network analyses; Using a capitals approach to investigate resilience capacity and interconnectedness between communities; Valuation of natural capital.
As an example, in 2020 we provided funding for the following projects:
a. Economic Valuation of Greenbelt: Evidence from Property Values in Boise. Jayash Paudel, Assistant Professor, Department of Economics
b. Building Community Resilience with an Air Quality Communication Strategy Aimed at Enhancing Elder Care. Luke Montrose, Assistant Professor, School of Public and Population Health
c. Resilient Landscapes and Livelihoods Through Better Conservation Planning (Pemba Island, Tanzania) Matt Clark, M.S. student in Human Environment Systems. Advisor: Vicken Hillis
d. Climate change, wildfire, and adaptive watershed management in Idaho Tao Huang, M.S. student in Human Environment Systems. Advisor: Megan Cattau
The HCRI was awarded financial support from Boise State including a $20,000 grant to support our research grant competition and $15,000 through Center for Advanced Energy Studies (CAES) to support our Business Operations Manager (1 year, part-time).
The Reporting Tool will automatically calculate the following figure:
Optional documentation
The Excel document that was created from this research is meant to be an evolving document that can be updated each year. The intention is to make access to these findings more accessible and user-friendly.
Additional documentation for this credit:
The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.