Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 53.74
Liaison Stephen Ellis
Submission Date March 1, 2016
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.0

Boston University
AC-10: Support for Research

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 3.00 / 4.00 Dennis Carlberg
Associate Vice President for Sustainability
BU Sustainability
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Does the institution have a program to encourage student sustainability research that meets the criteria for this credit?:
Yes

A brief description of the institution’s program(s) to encourage student research in sustainability:

The Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP) was established in 1997 to facilitate participation by Boston University undergraduates in faculty-mentored research. Since 1997, it has supported research efforts of approximately 1500 Boston University students and in 2014 alone, over 130 undergraduate students had research in which they participated published in an academic journal. Support comes from the University, individual faculty grants, alumni and corporate donations, and government agencies and private foundations.

UROP provides financial support for student research stipends, supplies, and travel. The program has funded a broad range of research projects in the humanities, social sciences, natural sciences, medicine, education, and the arts. Research through UROP must take place under the guidance of a BU faculty mentor, and is defined as any scientific or scholarly activity that contributes to the production of new knowledge.

Various research opportunities are offered in ecology/behavior, earth sciences, environmental health, environmental economic/geography, sustainable tourism development, geography, geology/geochemistry, biology, and public health.


The website URL where information about the student research program is available:
Does the institution have a program to encourage faculty sustainability research that meets the criteria for this credit?:
Yes

A brief description of the institution’s program(s) to encourage faculty research in sustainability:

The UROP program is offered as a mentoring relationship between faculty and undergraduate students.


The website URL where information about the faculty research program is available:
Has the institution formally adopted policies and procedures that give positive recognition to interdisciplinary, transdisciplinary, and multidisciplinary research during faculty promotion and/or tenure decisions?:
No

A brief description or the text of the institution’s policy regarding interdisciplinary research:
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The website URL where information about the treatment of interdisciplinary research is available:
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Does the institution provide ongoing library support for sustainability research and learning that meets the criteria for this credit?:
Yes

A brief description of the institution's library support for sustainability research and learning:

sustainability@BU provides BU students with access to its sustainability-focused library, which includes paper and digital resources available as research material. Additional, the School of Education’s Pickering Library recently opened the Sustainability Resources Center, a collaboration between the library and sedGreen. The Center features curricula, books, films, DVDs with a player and monitor, Kill-o-Watt meters, and other materials that will help the University become more earth systems literate and effective when teaching how to build a healthier, sustainable planet.


The website URL where information about the institution's library support for sustainability is available:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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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.