| Overall Rating | Silver - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 54.16 |
| Liaison | Ellie Perry |
| Submission Date | June 30, 2020 |
California State University, Dominguez Hills
EN-3: Student Life
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
2.00 / 2.00 |
Ellie
Perry Sustainability Manager Facilities Services |
Does the institution have an active student group focused on sustainability?:
Name and a brief description of the active student groups focused on sustainability:
Ecology Club: Provides maintenance and restoration support for native gardens on and off campus.
Earth Science Club: The Earth Science club is to provide an informal environment for undergraduate students, graduate students, and faculty who are interested in Earth Sciences, to promote interaction, and expand opportunities for extracurricular learning and experiences. Our goal is to explore, discover, enjoy and further the Earth Sciences through both, active and non-active, functions.
Sustainability Club: We are a club run by interns from the CSUDH Office of Sustainability. Our goal is to educate and empower fellow students on the subjects of:
-Recycling and waste management
-Saving energy and water
-Sustainable landscaping
-Food recovery
Such education is provided through tabling events, classroom discussions, and hands-on projects. Members have the opportunity to work
alongside interns on their sustainability projects that make a big difference on campus. Together, we can go green!
Does the institution have a garden, farm, community supported agriculture (CSA) or fishery program, or an urban agriculture project where students are able to gain experience in organic agriculture and sustainable food systems?:
A brief description of the gardens, farms, community supported agriculture (CSA) or fishery programs, and/or urban agriculture projects:
The CSUDH Campus Farm is located next to Physical Plant and is a living laboratory designed to allow students and faculty to experiment with urban farming techniques and address food insecurity issues for disadvantaged communities.
Does the institution have a student-run enterprise that includes sustainability as part of its mission statement or stated purpose?:
A brief description of the student-run enterprises:
Does the institution have a sustainable investment fund, green revolving fund, or sustainable microfinance initiative through which students can develop socially, environmentally and fiscally responsible investment and financial skills?:
A brief description of the sustainable investment funds, green revolving funds or sustainable microfinance initiatives:
In the 2018-19 academic year, the President funded a $10,000 Toro Green Initiatve Fund designed to encourage student involvement in sustainability projects of their own design. Students were encouraged to submit a project proposal and proposed budget to further sustainability on campus.
These funds were distributed in the 2019 calendar year and spent on campus sustainability projects as described in the attached website URL. Based on this success, this is being discussed as a permanent line item as part of the Office of Sustainability's budget in the upcoming 2020 fiscal year (July 1, 2020).
Has the institution hosted a conference, speaker series, symposium, or similar event focused on sustainability during the previous three years that had students as the intended audience?:
A brief description of the conferences, speaker series, symposia, or similar events focused on sustainability:
CSUDH's annual Earth Day celebration takes place the third Thursday of April and is a campus-wide event. The day is filled with speakers discussing sustainability topics, vendors displaying eco-friendly products and technologies, and student clubs tabling to showcase their sustainability projects.
Due to COVID-19 measures, the 2020 event was cancelled with an online Earth Day bingo game offered as a virtual option. However, 2019 was celebrated, and 2021 is anticipated to be the next celebration.
Has the institution hosted a cultural arts event, installation, or performance focused on sustainability with the previous three years that had students as the intended audience?:
A brief description of the cultural arts events, installations, or performances focused on sustainability:
The Labor, Social & Environmental Justice Fair occurs every April and features art, performances, lectures, films, and more on this topic.
Does the institution have a wilderness or outdoors program that follow Leave No Trace principles?:
A brief description of the wilderness or outdoors programs that follow Leave No Trace principles:
Has the institution had a sustainability-focused theme chosen for a themed semester, year, or first-year experience during the previous three years?:
A brief description of the sustainability-focused themes chosen for themed semesters, years, or first-year experiences:
The university teaches First-Year Seminars (FYS) which feature a variety of topics including sustainability-related themes.
In fall 2019, this included a FYS on "Urban Farming" and environmental activism at the Campus Urban Farm. Spring 2020 includes the sustainability-related topics of "Waterfalls of the World" and "Environmental Humanities: Media, Ecology, and Tech"
Does the institution have a program through which students can learn sustainable life skills?:
A brief description of the programs through which students can learn sustainable life skills:
In September 2019, sustainability interns hosted weekly eco-living workshops for residents in Housing. Topics included DIY Green Cleaning & Cosmetics, Reduce & Reuse Crafting, Farm to Table Cooking, and Race to Reduce Tools & Tricks(energy, water, and waste reduction). This is planned to be an annual programming event.
Does the institution offer sustainability-focused student employment opportunities?:
A brief description of the sustainability-focused student employment opportunities offered by the institution:
There are currently 13 paid sustainability internships through the Office of Sustainability.
Outside organizations also regularly offer sustainability-focused student employment opportunities through the Career Center's student job portal (Handshake).
https://www.csudh.edu/career-center/employers/csudh-handshake-online-job-posting-service/
Does the institution have a graduation pledge through which students pledge to consider social and environmental responsibility in future job and other decisions?:
A brief description of the graduation pledge(s):
Students can fill out an online green graduation pledge promising to consider social and environmentally responsibility in their daily lives after graduation and/or in their future employment decisions.
In exchange, Facilities Services has committed to putting $1/pledge towards planting new trees on campus. The pledge covers the graduating classes for the next five years (2020-2025) which correlates to the Sustainable Landscape Plan's goal of achieving 25% tree cover on campus by 2025 through tree planting.
www.csudh.edu/sustainability (Take Action)
A brief description of other co-curricular sustainability programs and initiatives that do not fall into one of the above categories:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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.