Overall Rating	Gold
Overall Score	67.32
Liaison	Jennifer Daniels
Submission Date	Jan. 31, 2024

STARS v2.2

California State University, Stanislaus
AC-8: Campus as a Living Laboratory

Status	Score	Responsible Party
	4.00 / 4.00	Jennifer Daniels Sustainability Specialist CPFM

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Campus Engagement

Is the institution utilizing its infrastructure and operations as a living laboratory for applied student learning for sustainability in relation to Campus Engagement?:

Yes

A brief description of the projects and how they contribute to understanding or advancing sustainability in relation to Campus Engagement:

Students enrolled in MDIS 3010 (Seminar in Community Learning) are assigned to programs under Climate Action. The Sustainability department under CPFM has College Corps Fellows that work on outreach projects to further education around sustainability across campus. College Corps students in Fall 2022 collected samples of waste from staff/faculty/students to be used in outreach activities.

Public Engagement

Is the institution utilizing its infrastructure and operations as a living laboratory for applied student learning for sustainability in relation to Public Engagement?:

Yes

A brief description of the projects and how they contribute to understanding or advancing sustainability in relation to Public Engagement:

Master of Science in Interdisciplinary Studies candidate engaged in community-based participatory research for their thesis, which resulted in the creation of an interactive map and a handbook for use by the local school community to create and maintain school gardens, as part of a solution to the climate crisis. The thesis "Planting Seeds & Hope: School Gardens in Turlock, California" aimed to identify existing school gardens, identify barriers to establishing and maintenance, and create a solution for those barriers.

Air & Climate

Is the institution utilizing its infrastructure and operations as a living laboratory for applied student learning for sustainability in relation to Air & Climate?:

Yes

A brief description of the projects and how they contribute to understanding or advancing sustainability in relation to Air & Climate:

Transportation and Air Pollution Study “Faculty and Student Research: Air Pollution, Health, and a 51 Million Mile/Year Student Commuter Campus (CSU Stanislaus) and Solutions.” With the assistance of a student research assistant, the research focuses on air pollution in the Central Valley, a determination of how much Stan State contributes to the air pollution through student commuting, and immediate solutions the university can take to drastically reduce this environmental impact. The research student also assisted in creating models for reducing impact and commutes, and created a Sustainable Transportation webpage with a summary of additional findings and available resources for alternative transportation modes available to students and the community.

Buildings

Is the institution utilizing its infrastructure and operations as a living laboratory for applied student learning for sustainability in relation to Buildings?:

A brief description of the projects and how they contribute to understanding or advancing sustainability in relation to Buildings:

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Energy

Is the institution utilizing its infrastructure and operations as a living laboratory for applied student learning for sustainability in relation to Energy?:

A brief description of the projects and how they contribute to understanding or advancing sustainability in relation to Energy:

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Food & Dining

Is the institution utilizing its infrastructure and operations as a living laboratory for applied student learning for sustainability in relation to Food & Dining?:

Yes

A brief description of the projects and how they contribute to understanding or advancing sustainability in relation to Food & Dining:

Chartwells' Teaching Kitchen provides hands-on learning in the Main Dining kitchen regarding nutrition and eating on a budget for students who live in residential housing.
Basic Needs hosted a series of "NOONTrition" online and in person cooking demonstrations. NOONtrition promoted creative ways to help students achieve their healthy lifestyle goals with resources, events, and campus support. Ingredients and recipe cards were available at the Warrior Food Pantry prior to each hands-on demonstration.
The campus Sustainable Garden is utilized to educate students on sustainable farming practices. Fruit and vegetables are shared with the campus community, sold to Chartwells to be used in campus dining.

Grounds

Is the institution utilizing its infrastructure and operations as a living laboratory for applied student learning for sustainability in relation to Grounds?:

Yes

A brief description of the projects and how they contribute to understanding or advancing sustainability in relation to Grounds:

Students enrolled in AGST 1500 (Intro to Agriculture) students were assigned individual farm plots for basic planting and production of vegetables in the sustainable garden.
Students enrolled in AGST 3500 (Weed Biology and Management) participate in weed identification and collection on campus in various locations, including the sustainable garden.
Students enrolled in AGST 3900 (Integrated Pest Management) participate in activities in the Sustainable Garden on campus to study sustainable practices for agriculture, from tree fruits to vegetable production.
Students enrolled in AGST 3950 (Tree and Fruit Crop Production and Management) participate in activities in the Sustainable Garden on campus to study sustainable practices for agriculture, from tree fruits to vegetable production.
Students enrolled in AGST 4050 (Sustainable Vegetable Production) participate in activities in the Sustainable Garden on campus to study sustainable practices for agriculture, from tree fruits to vegetable production.
Students enrolled in AGST 4100 (Agroecology) participate in activities in Agroecological management practices in the sustainable garden.
Students enrolled in BIOL 1150 (General Biology II) complete a field research project that involves monitoring the phenology (life-cycle timing) of trees across campus. This is a long-term project to understand how plants are responding to climate change. Students are recording the dates of leaf bud break, flower bud break, fruiting (if applicable), and leaf drop.
Students enrolled in BIOL 4000 (Biogeography) uses Trans-California Pathway for island biogeography experiments to measure biodiversity.
Students enrolled in BOTY 3130 (Morphology Plants Algae Fungi) use the five separate ponds on campus to collect and analyze algae for a project.
Students enrolled in BOTY 3700 (Flowering Plants) use the Trans-California Pathway to identify species of flowering plants and community composition.
Students enrolled in BOTY 4600 (Plant Ecology) use campus grounds to practice some basic species identification and measurement techniques to quantify plant species abundance and community composition.

Purchasing

Is the institution utilizing its infrastructure and operations as a living laboratory for applied student learning for sustainability in relation to Purchasing?:

A brief description of the projects and how they contribute to understanding or advancing sustainability in relation to Purchasing:

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Transportation

Is the institution utilizing its infrastructure and operations as a living laboratory for applied student learning for sustainability in relation to Transportation?:

Yes

A brief description of the projects and how they contribute to understanding or advancing sustainability in relation to Transportation:

Waste

Is the institution utilizing its infrastructure and operations as a living laboratory for applied student learning for sustainability in relation to Waste?:

Yes

A brief description of the projects and how they contribute to understanding or advancing sustainability in relation to Waste:

Water

Is the institution utilizing its infrastructure and operations as a living laboratory for applied student learning for sustainability in relation to Water?:

Yes

A brief description of the projects and how they contribute to understanding or advancing sustainability in relation to Water:

Students enrolled in BOTY 3130 (Morphology Plants Algae Fungi) use the five separate ponds on campus to collect and analyze algae for a project.

Coordination & Planning

Is the institution utilizing its infrastructure and operations as a living laboratory for applied student learning for sustainability in relation to Coordination & Planning?:

Yes

A brief description of the projects and how they contribute to understanding or advancing sustainability in relation to Coordination & Planning:

Students enrolled in MDIS 3010 (Seminar in Community Learning) are assigned to programs under Climate Action. The Sustainability department under CPFM has College Corps Fellows that work on gathering and analyze data for a sustainability report and STARS submission and/or perform an internal review of the STARS submission.

Diversity & Affordability

Is the institution utilizing its infrastructure and operations as a living laboratory for applied student learning for sustainability in relation to Diversity & Affordability?:

Yes

A brief description of the projects and how they contribute to understanding or advancing sustainability in relation to Diversity & Affordability:

Students enrolled in MDIS 3010 (Seminar in Community Learning) are assigned to programs under Food Insecurity. The Basic Needs department has College Corps Fellows that distribute food at the food pantry, monthly food box distribution events, assist with outreach activities, and other food equity programs.

Investment & Finance

Is the institution utilizing its infrastructure and operations as a living laboratory for applied student learning for sustainability in relation to Investment & Finance?:

A brief description of the projects and how they contribute to understanding or advancing sustainability in relation to Investment & Finance:

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Wellbeing & Work

Is the institution utilizing its infrastructure and operations as a living laboratory for applied student learning for sustainability in relation to Wellbeing & Work?:

A brief description of the projects and how they contribute to understanding or advancing sustainability in relation to Wellbeing & Work:

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Optional Fields

Website URL where information about the institution’s living laboratory program is available:

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Additional documentation to support the submission:

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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.